
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
Join the 7 day email challenge HERE
AI policy kit availible HERE
2027 business planning group kicks off 30 October - check it out HERE
I'm walking you through exactly what happens when a studio pays me for an AI consultation. Spoiler: I don't start by asking whether you use ChatGPT or Claude. I start by asking how you think AI works. What you believe happens after you hit enter shapes every task you give it, every answer you accept, and every possibility you never notice.
From there it's habits. Coming with the messy problem instead of 90% of the answer. Pushing back when the model gets confident and wrong (one of my students did, and Claude admitted it half-read her brief). Using AI to read your own numbers, not just your Instagram analytics. Building a "green room" so you stop knocking $2,500 off a proposal right before you hit send. And having a few tabs quietly doing actual work while you do yours.
What we get into
Your experiment this week
Pick one recurring task that eats your time or makes you ask "why do we even do it this way?" Talk it through with AI. Notice what context it needed, what it asked you, where it helped and where it went in circles. Then decide if it was actually better.
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
Six Years In: Business, Family Seasons, and Using AI as a Support Tool (with Aiden)
Host Rhiannon Lee introduces a 2024 catch-up conversation with her husband, Aidan, reflecting on how their family and her business have evolved into its sixth year, including the pressures of supporting other designers through her framework. She shares a new small-group live business-planning series for six women starting late October, focused on quarterly strategy, revenue goals, and building AI-supported tools like calculators and admin workflows. In the interview, Rhiannon and Aiden discuss boundaries, empathy, imposter syndrome in creative work, shifting away from daily social media toward podcasts, Pinterest, and referrals, and navigating family demands, including their eldest’s autism diagnosis and increased admin. They explore AI as a practical supplement to reduce menial tasks, including Rhiannon’s custom support assistants for students.
00:00 Welcome to the Show
00:59 Annual Check In Setup
01:44 Live Planning Sessions
04:33 Introducing Aiden Again
07:32 Six Years In Business
10:32 Imposter Syndrome Talk
12:39 Social Media Burnout
14:17 Family Diagnosis Shift
16:55 Tag Teaming Parenthood
21:36 Market Changes and Pivots
24:24 AI as a Business Tool
29:37 Building AI Assistants
33:39 Future of Oleander Finch
36:17 Seasons and Sustainability
38:43 Final Outro and Thanks
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
revisiting one of my most popular chats over the school holidays - part one of mt chat with my husband, tune in for part two next week and an all new part three the week after.
Behind the Scenes of Oleander & Finch: Real Talk on Business, Marriage, and Boundaries (with Aidan)
Host Rhiannon Lee replays a candid 2023 conversation with her husband, Aidan, about the behind-the-scenes realities of growing Oleander & Finch from a COVID-era side hustle into a larger design and education business. They discuss her early imposter syndrome and underpricing (including obsessing over a cushion-styling job), building confidence and a clearer pricing structure, and the patience and trust required from a partner when income is inconsistent in the first year. They unpack the relentless logistics of running a business with three young kids, boundary-setting with clients across time zones, burnout that prompted a business reassessment, and how creating “the framework” course reduced stress by shifting away from high-volume one-on-one client work. They also touch on social media frustrations, transparency as a strategy, and the benefits of building a dedicated home studio.
00:00 Show Intro
00:38 Holiday Chaos Update
00:50 Replaying Aidan Chats
02:55 Why Share This
04:19 Side Hustle Origins
04:48 COVID Going All In
07:51 Early Imposter Syndrome
09:31 Growth and Confidence
11:14 Money Pressure and Trust
16:13 Juggling Kids and Work
19:15 Partner Support Reality
21:38 Boundaries and Time Zones
24:27 After Hours Boundaries
25:36 Nocturnal Work Burnout
26:50 Building The Framework
27:50 Ambition And Work Ethic
28:41 Industry Osmosis Lessons
29:47 Social Media Copycats
33:08 Radical Transparency Shift
36:07 Course Creator Tradeoffs
39:23 Creative Sponge Ran Dry
41:21 Home Studio Build Reality
43:37 Closing Reflections And Outro
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
You can smell it the second you walk into some budget stores. Then we bring the occasional chair home, pop it in the corner and call it styled.
Susie from Casa Flair Interiors has run her design studio in Sydney's Hills District for six years. Before that, she taught creative arts. Now she's niched into low-tox consultations, which means looking at a space through what's actually in it. Off-gassing floors. Fire retardants in fabric. The glue holding your sofa together. The flickering downlight nobody notices until the headaches start.
We've worked together for about six months, so we get honest about how scary niching felt and what changed when "I'm not techy" became "not techy yet". Spoiler: she set up her own automation in 20 minutes while I sat on Zoom and mostly watched.
Then I got on my soapbox about AI ethics. Barbie boxes, sticker packs, wallpaper with octopuses riding tricycles. I'm judging you a little.
What we get into
Find Susie
If you've been calling yourself not techy, add the word yet. Then come and find me. Studio CEO details are at rhiannon-lee.com.
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
What happens when the thing you started doing for yourself quietly becomes the thing you want to build your life around?
In this episode of Designing Success, I’m joined by fibre artist Kasia for a conversation about creativity, business, motherhood, visibility and what it actually takes to stop treating your creative work like a little hobby and start backing it properly.
Kasia’s work began during motherhood as a way to slow down, process emotions and have something that belonged to her. There was no grand business plan. There was rope from the local hardware store, a dismantled broomstick, some YouTube tutorials and one extremely ambitious two-metre-wide wonky first attempt.
Which, frankly, is how some of the best businesses begin.
Fast-forward and her work has developed into a recognisable fibre art practice, with large-scale sculptural pieces, interior designer commissions, exhibitions, art prizes and collaborations — including work that has appeared on The Block.
But what I really wanted to talk about was everything that happened in between.
Because whether you’re an artist, interior designer or running any other creative business, there comes a point where being good at the creative bit isn’t enough.
You have to decide to be seen.
We talk about finding your own creative voice in an incredibly trend-driven world and why Kasia deliberately moved away from traditional macramé aesthetics to develop work that now feels unmistakably hers.
We get into the slightly murky business of pricing handmade creative work when calculating “materials + hours” doesn’t remotely capture the value of a one-of-a-kind piece — and how reputation, exhibitions, awards, experience and collectability begin to influence pricing as an art practice grows.
We also talk about collaborating with interior designers, creating bespoke pieces for difficult or oversized spaces, working with colour and scale, and why the best creative collaborations require the client or designer to give the artist enough trust and freedom to actually do their job.
And then we get into something I think almost every creative business owner needs to hear:
Nobody is coming to discover you.
At some point, you have to send the email.
Submit the application.
Enter the award.
Pitch the collaboration.
Post the Reel even though hearing your own voice makes you want to crawl directly into a cupboard.
Kasia openly talks about feeling awkward on camera, worrying about her accent and questioning whether she should be putting herself forward at all. But over the past year, she’s stopped allowing those things to be reasons to hide.
And unsurprisingly, opportunities have started appearing.
Not because she sat beautifully in her studio waiting for the art world to stumble across her.
Because she started knocking on doors.
We also talk about why the messy middle is often the most interesting part of your marketing. Your audience doesn’t only want the polished reveal. They want the experimentation, the change of mind, the process, the problem solving and the story behind what you create.
Connection is marketing.
And sometimes the most powerful business strategy really is just being a human being brave enough to say:
Hi. This is what I do. I think we could make something interesting together.
In this episode, we talk about:
Kasia also shares some of the exhibitions and group shows she has coming up, including West End Art Space in Melbourne, Forty Five Downstairs’ Primal Instincts group show, and Woollahra Gallery in Sydney, where she has been selected as a finalist.
This is such a good listen for anyone who knows they’re capable of more but is still waiting for some imaginary permission slip before they properly put themselves out there.
There isn’t one.
Send the email.
Apply for the thing.
Show people what you do.
And please stop assuming the impressive person on the other side of the DM is some terrifying untouchable industry overlord.
They’re probably just a person having a coffee.
Listen now to Designing Success.
You can find Kasia and visit her upcoming exhibitions below
Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize - https://www.woollahragallery.com.au/Artists/Woollahra-Small-Sculpture-PrizeThanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
Explore the AI safe policy KIT here
Check out Studio Build HERE
If you’re using ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or other AI tools inside your interior design business, there are a few decisions worth making before client information starts casually finding its way into AI.
Because “is AI safe?” isn’t actually the right question.
The better questions are: What information are you uploading? Whose intellectual property is it? Do you have permission to use it? Which AI account are you using? What happens to that information after you upload it? And does everyone in your studio know the rules?
A quick but important disclaimer: I’m an AI educator and business strategist, not a lawyer. Everything discussed in this episode — including the frameworks, questions, clauses and policy considerations — is designed to help you identify what your studio needs to think about and document. It is not legal advice. Ultimately, these are operational questions and starting points until you seek independent legal counsel about what is appropriate for your business, your contracts and your clients.
In this episode of Designing Success, I’m sharing key excerpts from my recent AI safety webinar for interior designers and breaking down what actually happens when you upload information into an AI platform — including transmission, processing, output and retention.
Then we get practical.
I walk through seven things I believe every interior design studio should consider documenting when using AI with client work:
We also look at my Stop, Pause, Play traffic-light framework for deciding what information can go into AI, what needs to be redacted or assessed first, and what should stay out altogether.
Because the goal isn’t to become terrified of using AI.
It’s to stop making the decision from scratch every single time you open ChatGPT.
Decide once. Document it. Then operate by it.
And this conversation goes beyond AI safety.
Towards the end of the episode, I explain the difference between a safe, useful and scalable AI studio — and why jumping straight to agents and automations before documenting how your business actually operates is usually just accelerating the mess.
Safe AI has boundaries.
Useful AI has context.
Scalable AI has documented processes it can reliably help execute.
If your SOPs are still living in your head, your business knowledge is scattered across folders and your workflows depend on you remembering what happens next, AI isn't ready to magically take the business off your plate.
That’s the work we do first.
In this episode:
AI Safe Studio Policy Kit
If listening to this has made you realise, Ohhhh… we probably need to actually write some of this down, I’ve already built you a starting point.
The AI Safe Studio Policy Kit is a ready-to-customise operational pack designed to help interior design studios ask the right questions and begin documenting their decisions around AI use, client information, approved tools, restricted data, redaction, human review and team expectations.
It is intentionally a starting point, not a substitute for legal advice. Once you’ve worked through the questions and made some preliminary decisions, you can take that thinking to your own legal counsel to review what is appropriate for your studio.
[LINK TO AI SAFE STUDIO POLICY KIT]
Ready to make your whole business AI-compatible?
The policy piece helps you build the safe foundation.
Studio Build tackles the bigger operational piece underneath it.
Over six weeks, we document how your studio operates, centralise the knowledge and context currently living across your head, folders and platforms, map your repeatable workflows and identify where AI can safely and reliably start taking work off your plate.
Instead of building your business around whichever AI platform happens to be winning the Mario Kart race this week, we build a documented business that can plug into the tools as they evolve.
The final Studio Build cohort for 2026 begins 8 September.
Explore Studio Build:
Designing Success is hosted by Rhiannon Lee, AI strategist, business coach and educator helping interior designers build smarter, more documented and AI-ready design businesses.
Subscribe to the podcast for practical conversations about AI for interior designers, interior design business systems, marketing, pricing, studio operations and building a design business that doesn't require you to personally remember absolutely everything.
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
If Instagram has felt like you’re posting into the void lately, Trial Reels might be worth your attention.
In this episode of Designing Success, I’m sharing the Instagram growth strategy I’m actively testing in my own business — and the results have been pretty hard to ignore.
In the last 30 days, I’ve added around 4,500 Instagram followers, had a Trial Reel reach 300,000 views, and while recording this episode, five Trial Reels posted across one day had put my business in front of around 50,000 new eyeballs.
And no, this does not mean I’m suggesting you add five beautifully edited Reels to your already ridiculous weekly to-do list.
Trial Reels work differently from your normal Instagram content because they’re designed to be shown predominantly to people who don’t already follow you. That makes them a really interesting top-of-funnel marketing tool for interior designers who want to increase Instagram reach, grow an aligned audience and ultimately create more opportunities for enquiries and in-home consultations.
In this episode, I’m breaking down exactly how I’m approaching them.
We talk about:
I also share the exact workflow I’m currently using to create five Trial Reels in around 20–30 minutes — without filming five new videos every morning.
Because the point isn't more content for the sake of more content.
It’s using content you already have, pairing it with a stronger message, putting it in front of people who don't know you yet, and then paying attention to what actually works.
FREE AI + CLIENT DATA WEBINAR
I’m also running a free live webinar for interior designers:
What’s Really Happening When You Upload Files to AI?
The Truth About Client Data, Intellectual Property & AI for Interior Designers
We’re talking about client files, transcripts, floor plans, intellectual property, privacy, AI tools, internal policies and what responsible AI use actually looks like inside an interior design studio.
No AI panic. No “delete ChatGPT immediately” nonsense. Just a practical conversation about understanding the tools we’re increasingly using inside our businesses.
Register free here:
Register even if you can’t attend live and you’ll receive access to the replay.
WANT THE SYSTEMS BEHIND THE STRATEGY?
Inside Studio Build, we go much further than simply asking AI to write a few Instagram captions.
We build the documented business underneath it — your systems, processes, SOPs, AI workflows and marketing infrastructure — so AI actually has something useful to work with.
The next round of Studio Build kicks off in September and is the final cohort for the year.
Explore Studio Build HERE
Topics: Instagram marketing for interior designers, Instagram Trial Reels, interior design marketing, social media marketing for interior designers, Instagram growth strategy, how to get interior design clients, content marketing for interior designers, AI for interior designers, ChatGPT for interior designers, Claude AI, interior design business, interior design business coaching, marketing an interior design business, Instagram Reels strategy, Studio Build.
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
Clients are starting to ask interior designers how they use AI with their private information — floor plans, budgets, family details, meeting transcripts. Rhiannon Lee, AI strategist for Australian interior designers, breaks down what actually happens to uploaded data, why your account type changes the answer, and how to build a simple studio policy so you can answer with confidence instead of stumbling through it.
Register for the free webinar (24 August):
→ What's really happening when you upload files to AI:
Explore Penelope, proposal GPT here
Get your Contract Clause HERE
──────────────────────────
CHAPTERS
──────────────────────────
Why clients are starting to ask about AI in interior design
What actually counts as "using AI" in your studio
Protecting your own IP from AI in client contracts
What client information should never go into AI
How to redact client details before you prompt AI
What actually happens when you delete an AI chat
Does your AI account type change your privacy protection
What is shadow AI and is it happening in your studio
Getting client consent to record and transcribe consults
How to build a simple AI policy for your studio
──────────────────────────
RESOURCES MENTIONED
──────────────────────────
→ Free webinar — What's really happening when you upload files to AI: [link]
→ DM "contract" on Instagram for the AI IP clause: @the_rhiannonlee
→ Studio Build — 6-week AI implementation intensive: [link]
→ Studio CEO — 12-week business coaching program: [link]
→ Studio Learn — free resources for interior designers: [link]
──────────────────────────
ABOUT RHIANNON LEE
──────────────────────────
AI strategist for Australian interior designers. Former Oleander & Finch. Creator of the Studio Suite — Studio Learn, Studio Build, and Studio CEO — operational AI implementation for design businesses, not productivity theatre.
→ Instagram: @the_rhiannonlee
→ Website: rhiannon-lee.com
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
Register for the AI Safe Webinar, HERE
Join the weekly email list HERE
learn how to build out project management in Notion HERE
Interested in my speaker fee card and customising a talk for your business or group? email me at [email protected] and I'll point you right to it.
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
Text me and tell me what you think of this ep.
Thanks for listening to this episode of "Designing Success: From Study to Studio"! Connect with me on social media for more business tips, and a real look behind the scenes of my own practicing design business.
Grab more insights and updates:
Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/the_rhiannonlee
For more FREE resources, templates, guides and information, visit the Designer Resource Hub on my website ; https://www.rhiannon-lee.com/
Get your interior design studio running on AI in 6 weeks.
admin, client follow-ups, content, and operations handled.
Six live build sessions.
You leave with a working system, not more mess.
Studio BUILD ( now open)
Remember to subscribe to the podcast and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue providing valuable content to aspiring interior designers. Stay tuned for more episodes filled with actionable insights and inspiring conversations.
Thank you for your support!
From the publisher's feed
Designing Success from School to Studio by Rhiannon Lee is dedicated to filling in the gaps in your design course to encourage you to build a sustainable business that supports your dream…
Are you searching for strategy, systems and support? Looking for a community to bounce industry issues around in? In this podcast, we will cover the interior design business infrastructure you need to supplement your design school curriculum with practical insights and actionable advice. We also cover all things marketing, product innovation, client acquisition, and more. Go beyond the theory, filter through the stuff that doesn’t serve you and get on with creating.
You will find real talk with industry professionals, practical tactics from business realists that leave you reenergised and focused on exactly how to improve the current landscape of your own business. For more behind the scenes of the interior design industry, check out oleander and finch in Instagram https://instagram.com/oleander_and_finch
or head to www.oleanderandfinch.com