Mirrors, money frogs and mastering Feng Shui with Jane Langof

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Transcript

0:29

Welcome to Designing Success from Study to Studio. I'm your host Rhiannon Lee, founder of the Oleander and Finch Design Studio. I've lived the transformation from study to studio and then stripped it bare and wrote down the framework so you don't have to overthink it. In this podcast, you could expect real talk with industry friends, community connection, and actionable tips to help you conquer whatever's holding you back. Now, let's get designing your own success. On today's episode of Designing Success, I had the enormous pleasure of being able to interview Jane Loff, who is an internationally accredited feng shui master. Feng shui is not something I had a lot of knowledge about. I met Jane at the design show. We were both. Speaking and I sadly didn't catch her presentation, but I did get to chat to her a little bit and I thought that you guys might really like hearing a bit more about the principles of feng shui, and we talked a lot about flow and spatial planning and the sorts of things that can be beneficial to your homeowner. So without further ado, here's my conversation with Jane.

rhiannon: 1:33

Can you give a little rundown on Feng SRE and what is it? What am I like? What should I know about it? If I'm a complete novice, which I am.

1:42

Well, Feng shui is about energy flow, and if you're a complete novice, I would say probably a lot of the information that you see out there in internet land. There's a lot of rubbish, and so you need to be careful where you get your information about feng shui. Feng shui is about your relationship with your environment and your surroundings, and how the energy in your surroundings impacts you on a mental, physical, and spiritual level. It's all about energy flow and getting that energy flow right, creating a background in your environment that helps you to operate as at your highest level and be your best self.

rhiannon: 2:17

I can relate to that so much.'cause I hear that and all I can think of is the difference between, so I have Wednesdays off and I catch up on domestic tours and the difference between my, my state of mind on a Tuesday afternoon and a Thursday morning when I've had that Wednesday reset in the home. Things around us absolutely affect us. I can,, I don't think that's a woo woo kind of thing. I don't think that's anything. For some people, and I know I'm, I am definitely affected by it. If I'm seeing clutter or I'm seeing mess or I'm seeing my kids' toys everywhere or whatnot it absolutely is gonna change the way I show up in my own life and in my home.

2:53

Yeah, it does. It just, it affects your clarity how well you can do your work thinking relationships as well. You don't when your place is in order, you're less likely to become a screaming banshee in the home. Right.

rhiannon: 3:07

I'm wondering though, like per, not, maybe not percentage wise, but in your experience, how often do you think people are actually considering this sort of stuff in their residential and commercial spaces?

3:19

I think people probably think about it. A lot, but they don't have the language to put it in the context of feng shui. Yeah. They might think about decluttering or organizing their spaces and while, decluttering in itself is not a traditional feng shui principle, it wasn't required, you know, thousands of years ago. When Feng Shui was first developed, it is something that absolutely impacts how the energy flows through your space. So it's from a modern feng shui perspective, those sorts of concepts are, are very important. But even things like biophilic design, I'm not sure if you would've heard of that, but it's to, to do with bringing nature into our surroundings that has a calming effect. And there's, there's studies that, that prove that. And you can feel it as well when you're in an environment where you are connected to nature, it makes a big difference to your wellbeing and health and calmness. And literal oxygen intake,

rhiannon: 4:17

A, a typical client coming to you? What sort of things are they exploring?

4:21

You don't actually need these lucky symbols to have good feng shui. Good. You don't need them. Uh, we don't need to turn your house into a Chinese restaurant. We don't need little money, frogs and things like that. It's really just about getting the energy flow right through your space. And I think that's where there, there has been a lot of. There have been a lot of myths about Feng shui. People thinking that it's oriental design or you require these lucky objects, but really you don't. The main thing that people will ask me is, oh, I've heard that. The front door shouldn't be in direct alignment with the back door or the front door. Shouldn't be in direct alignment for the stairs. Is that bad luck? What do you think? And then they ask me about the direction of their house and whether it's a good direction or not. And these are very contextual, sort of sorts of questions. A lot of the times. It depends how, how it's going to impact the people living in the home Depends on. On the precise layout of the space, who's living there, what they use the space for, the orientation of the building, how old the building is, all sorts of things like that. So in feng shui I work on the tangible energy in a space. What you can see the physical layouts. Also that intangible energy layer. So q works in, in different ways. Uh, it's through what you can see and also the unseen layer, the unseen energies, which are things like even emotions. If you are have, if you've had a fight in a room, you can feel it when you, when you walk in, that that, that something feels wrong. Or if you've been to a space where tragedies have occurred in a particular. Building or location,

rhiannon: 6:08

you can feel that heavy energy. So interesting. And you absolutely can, you know the thing where you show up to a dinner party, you show up to someone's house or something, and they've just had a fight before you get there. He's not doing it right or she's not laying the table, and you just, you know, it doesn't matter that nobody, everybody's acting like it's fine. It's like it is lingering in this space and you feel. You

6:29

can feel the tension in the air. Absolutely. So on that intangible energy layer, what I do is I work out what the energy map is of a home or a space, and that will tell, and that's based on certain variables the layout. The age of the building, even the birth dates of the occupants. All of that information sort of comes together to, to help a Feng Shui consultant work out what the energy map is of the, of the home and how that might be impacting them. And so we look for things like the wealth sector. Where's the wealth sector? Where's the best energy for harmony, health, and relationships? Where's the toxic energy that relates to illness or conflict? And then we use the five elements that are used in Chinese metaphysics to harmonize. Those energies on that layer. And so the five elements are fire, earth, metal, water, and wood. And each of those elements relates to a particular color, shape, and material. So from a design point of view, it's great because it can give a designer a bit of inspiration as to how we, what elements are required in a space. And it doesn't mean that we need to make rooms, different colors, or go too crazy. Uh, from that perspective, but we might just need to add a particular element to a room to harmonize that energy flow. For example, if we have a room that needs the metal element because there's a particular illness in energy in there, then we might bring that through a through furniture like the circular objects represents metal or metallic finishes, and we can make it really beautiful and suit the aesthetic of the people who live there. I think that's such a good

rhiannon: 8:08

point that it's like, it's the interpretation of it and it's the execution of it that doesn't have to be so literal. And I think that's what all designers do quite well is, if you are trying to go for a style, it's not just Google that style and go Exactly. Put all of that in. It's so bespoke to every property and every person and personality inside of the house. That's so great. I love the idea of. I guess everyday designers being able to understand that a little bit more. Like where do we get that information from? Like do you consult directly to designers or are you direct to the homeowner when you are doing your sort of work?

8:44

I do both. Yeah. So I will work, I will work directly with a homeowner. If they, if they're not working with a designer and they just need help from a fun shui point of view, or if it's a, if it's a project that where the client wants to in, include a designer in their renovation and home build, then I can work with them as well, so I can work with. Work, depending on how, how it suits the client and suits the, project team,

rhiannon: 9:13

It takes the pressure off a, a non-expert designer there is sometimes a concern from designers that we have to be the, jack of all trades and know absolutely everything, where if they know that they can reach out and ask an expert, then there's pressure off me to instantly be like, oh, I don't know where to hang the mirror for that. Like, I'm not, I'm not actually sure what I'm supposed to do. Yeah. Feng

9:35

shui is a very complex topic, and the problem with our industry is that if you ask. A particular question on the internet or ai, you will get multiple answers. Mm-hmm. So it's always better to work with an accredited professional to, to get the result. And I'm working with homeowners who actually want to raise their property value and use feng shui as leverage for that as well. So for example, uh, working with some clients in, in, uh, Bellevue Hill in Sydney, where they want to appeal to the, the Feng Shui conscious market and, and. People who are interested in wellbeing. Um, and so what we've got is they're building a home, and I've got my signage out the front.

rhiannon: 10:15

Yeah, amazing. To, to, and also the listing would, you know, I, I think there's opportunity in that listing as well to be like a feng shui considered home that has been, I, I spoke to someone recently, one of my clients, and they had done this amazing design that was for aging in place. So the home has like a lot of different elements of factors for an aging. Homeowner. And then I think, similarly, similarly, I can't even say that you would have, people who, if they're considering this from before the slab pour and everything's been considered, that that's such a selling feature. They can call it out. They've had an expert.

10:52

It's, and it's absolutely the best time to be incorporating feng shui into a project as well when, when things are still just lines on a page rather than walls. And, uh, doors in place. But having said that, there are still ways that we can make improvements. There are always ways to maximize the energy in the space, whatever stage it's in.

rhiannon: 11:11

Yeah. Any, um, any experience with this is unsavable? Any layouts or anything that you've been called into that you feel like it's just too far on, or it's always just a matter of there are elements you can apply, but it won't be at your best result because we can't go back down to ground level.

11:31

Exactly what you say. So sometimes I'll get a call from real estate agents saying, we're having trouble selling this, this property, Jane, because, uh, you know, the front door is in direct alignment with whatever the stairs or the back door. And our Feng SSI conscious buyers don't un don't like it. Uh, so what can we do? And. If only these people had called me a couple of years back when they were planning the build, we could have created something that was really appealing to everybody that could really raise that, raise that price, and not have that issue. But yes, there are ways to make improvements definitely, but it's always best to. To incorporate that from the beginning.

rhiannon: 12:13

There's a lot of houses out there and even,, we get called into certain things where the back door is the front door, you walk around or you've got this, or there's some confusion out there. Obviously there's different architectural influences and there's different architecture in different areas. And are you mainly working in and around Sydney or are you doing consultations elsewhere? And do you find there's a big difference between what their needs are? I

12:35

work everywhere and. Generally what people want is just to improve the energy in their home, to support their families when I'm working with residential clients, but I also do work on commercial clients as well. So I think places like casinos or um, hotels where they wanna create a welcoming environment for their patrons and uh, and their guests.

rhiannon: 12:59

Uh, yeah. And I imagine. With a lot more focus on the wellness industry has really exploded in the last 10 years, so I'm thinking there's more opportunities there as well. Where there is considered, spas and Pilates and all sorts of things, like they're actually thinking about those entryways, those lobbies, those places where people are waiting and how that, that's making them feel and increasing that. Feeling of wellness in those spaces?

13:23

Yes, and shui are very much aligned with the wellness movement and the wellness. Uh, as you mentioned, it's, it's booming at the moment. So, uh, definitely a great consideration.

rhiannon: 13:35

Is there any missteps that you see designers make when they're experimenting with feng shui or principles like that in practice?

13:43

Yes. Uh, and that is thinking that they need to incorporate all of those five elements. In the one space. Yeah. And also thinking that the this energy map that I talk about, there's a lot that's out there about these feng shui grids where you've got fixed pattern of energy and that wherever you live, like the front door is your career sector and, and that sort of thing. And it's fixed. Uh, that's really not*true. So there was a simplified version of Feng shui that was brought out to America in the seventies, and that has proliferated and it's just. A simplified version. It's not the real deal, it's not authentic. A

rhiannon: 14:28

palatable version for people who are like too long didn't read and just like, get a quick tip and off they go.

14:34

Yeah. And so you see this approach in books on the internet through all through ai, and it's really just it doesn't,

rhiannon: 14:42

it's just scratching the surface. I think we find that in the industry as a whole lot of gurus, a lot of people, there's so much content to consume now, and people just look for the hashtags that are trending or the things that are going on. And everyone's an expert and you're like, exactly, how are you an expert at that? That's just regurgitating what you Googled. That could be frustrating for everyone.

15:01

Yeah, and, and I think just sort of reading a book or. Studying a weekend course is not enough to actually know feng shui. Mm. As you say, it's ancient. Yeah. Or be able to practice it or say that you can incorporate it into, into your designs, which you, you, there are some things that you can absolutely get value from out of books like mine, for example, from a, in terms of physical layouts. But when it comes to that intangible energy layer, there's so much more to it.

rhiannon: 15:33

Yeah,

15:34

and give the book a

rhiannon: 15:35

plug. I can see it behind you just in case anyone wants to listen. I'll put some stuff in the show notes anyway so that we can check it out and have a look because I think there are designers who are really interested, but, you know, we're interested in so many different elements of design and as I said before, you know, that's why reaching out to someone who's got that additional level of expertise is really the way to go. But some quick wins are always helpful. Is there anything that you think absolutely. That we can implement, like imagine into the next project? What would be Yes. A quick step that a designer could be like, okay, well that's just like a given.

16:08

So if you've got the space in the front entrance, try and organize a foyer area where the energy can land and settle. So it's ideal to have a focal point. It that you can see from your front entrance to draw the energy inside. We don't wanna mirror opposite the front entrance because that reflects energy and opportunities back out again. So if you want to have a mirror, have it along the side, but not, not directly opposite the front entrance. I'm interrupting my conversation with Jane just quickly because I wanted to remind you that Penelope, my proposal generator is launching on. Tuesday the 16th of September. Now she is a custom GPT that will extract all of the scope of work and client brief and all the details you need. I also give you a Canva proposal template to populate, you know, copy and paste from chat GBT. Into a beautiful template that you can brand in your own branding. And then we export all of those images and upload them into Style Source Book to deliver a dynamic two-way client portal where you can communicate, present your fee proposal. This proposal system is generating yeses. I had a designer today who. Specifically sought me out to coach with her as she was losing a lot of proposals and the one that we most recently sent out was using this proposal system, Penelope, and she got a very quick yes. This is a system that works. This system was designed for you. It's taken me nine months. It's$427 plus GST. It is an affordable system. Everybody can get this and plug this into their business and start turning around same day proposals in less than 15, 30 minutes. 30 minutes max if you have no prior learning. I have recorded six video tutorials. They're super simple, super easy, you know, 10 minutes here, 10 minutes there, and you will learn how to do this end to end and be able to deliver uniform looking documents, a uniform system, something that is so rinse and repeat. Even my 9-year-old can do it. Okay, back to our chat. I.

rhiannon: 18:11

Which I think is interesting'cause I, reflecting on all the designer work that I know, the only time a mirror would be in that area, it's usually above a consult and it's like on the side of, it's on the wall reflecting back to the other wall or whatnot. And then whereas homeowners, I will often be invited into in-home consults or whatever, and open the door and there's the mirror on that nib wall staring straight back at you. So it's almost an education piece. That trickles down, isn't it? Because we tend to come in and the first change that you make is like, oh, we'll move that and we'll put in, and, you know. Yeah. So that, those are great tips.

18:43

Yeah, it do. And it also makes you feel uncomfortable. When you, when you walk in and you're you are faced with a, with yourself. Yeah. It's like, oh, I'm having a bad hair day. Yuck. And you're bringing that

rhiannon: 18:56

energy into, into the space, which is not ideal. Which mirrors is still nice, I think on the way out. Just double check. There's no spinach in your teeth as you run out the door, but you know, it's true on the side. Very functional

19:07

and um, it's great to have mirrors that are reflecting a beautiful view. Or if you need a mirror from a functional point of view where you really need to expand a space and bring more light into a space, that also works from a yin and yang point of view as well. Amazing. Yeah. And so if you've got a situation where the front door is in direct alignment with the back door, what you do there is you slow down that energy flow. So it's about creating a meandering energy flow throughout the property. So when it's not moving too quickly in straight lines and escaping out of the. Out of the building. Yeah. So we wanna slow that energy down. Things like having artwork down a hallway or having beautiful pendant lights that help to circulate the energy or a rug like round rugs, uh, are great as well. So cut ground it right there so that you stood

rhiannon: 19:54

on the rug.

19:55

Yeah, so it circulates that energy flow. So if you think about an entrance, if you can have something like a beautiful pendant light, if there's enough space for that, that's always really great to sort of ground that energy as well and to circulate that so it moves more

rhiannon: 20:08

slowly throughout

20:09

the home.

rhiannon: 20:10

Very interesting to me that those are all choices that I would innately make, but not because I had any education that that is what it's actually doing. Like it's really lovely to hear the, the why behind the how. Like we just do it and don't realize, I, I'm sure we make thousands of mistakes, but, um, hearing that it's like, oh, that, that does make sense.'cause you do wanna slow down and appreciate the house, not just race straight out that back glass door.

20:33

Yeah. Well the thing is that feng shui should be. Aligned with great design. So a lot of the de design elements and principles that would be used from a design professional should be consistent with feng shui. So if you see anything that's a bit weird or off. Then, uh, think again.

rhiannon: 20:55

Yeah. And I think that's something that we do naturally assess too, not from the lens of feng shui, but certainly as though when you get into someone's house, like there's a lot of potential for you to make a wow moment as you walk in here or like to change up the lighting or to do this. Yeah. Again, it's like this innate feeling of like, I know what feels better or flows better. Yeah. And it's not because we have any working understanding of why, but it's nice to know that it sort of aligns. I know this is jumping around a little bit, but talk me back to how you found yourself in this world and educated and award-winning and speaking on stages all over the world. Like was it always this, was it straight out of school and into Feng or, or what was the kind of journey there? No,

21:36

there was, there was a big change in my career, uh, when I had my first child who's now 19. Oh wow. Yeah. I, um, I, so I, previously in my career, I was an accountant. Mm-hmm. So I've pivoted quite, quite hugely from one, from one side of the brain to the other finance to Feng. I love it. Yeah. And I met a psychic. She was the catalyst that got me doing what I'm doing now. So she said to me, the corporate career is over. You need to need to go and study interior design. And that's where it all started. So I started studying interior design and then, then, uh, found that the great design college, there was a break in the course and I was frustrated because I wanted to finish that design certification as soon as possible. So I went back to the. Psychic. And she said to me Right now, you need to study feng shui and combine the two, and I see you being really successful at it. And I thought, oh, that's a great idea. It'd be great to have a niche. And so then I went to, I started studying feng shui, and as soon as I opened those books, I knew that that was where I needed to be. But instead of it being interior design with a bit of feng shui on the side, it became feng shui practiced in a beautiful and practical way. I've been doing that now for, since, you know, effectively since 2006. And my business started in 2008 and I've just been, I started helping friends and family and then from there it became it just grew. And I've started working with clients and commercial organizations, even government. Yeah.

rhiannon: 23:13

How cool to have a strong niche coming out of study. You know, you're not just coming outta study another, without, without bagging anyone out, but like another interior designer who doesn't really, you know, who's just doing whatever the homeowner asks for or whatever. I think that's amazing to have direction and have carved out a space that other people aren't really doing straight from the get go. So lucky to have a psychic. I, um, saw a psychic many years ago. She told me not to run downstairs'cause I'm gonna knock my front teeth out and I've been taking my stairs very carefully ever since. Oh gosh. So let's hope that yours is right and mine is not.'cause I, um, yeah, I must admit I never go downstairs without thinking about what she said. So they do have an impact sometimes. And you, you know, if, if it feels aligned, if it feels right after you've spoken to someone, I think that's amazing.

24:03

Yeah, it was the best, uh, advice I've ever received. And I'm so happy I went down that road because it's a really fun, fulfilling career. Much more fun than being an accountant.

rhiannon: 24:12

There's a, a lot of accountants, a lot of teachers, a lot of healthcare workers. Like, there's a certain couple of industries that I see must really almost rebel against the, take the good things like the detail orientation, but then rebel against the boredom, I guess, of something like that and really wanna explore the creative side. So it's where people are quite good because it's like where your left and right brain works very well. So it's almost a perfect storm to be a designer that can, stick to details, really think logically and practically about layouts and spatial design as well as have those wild creative ideas that wanting to be a bit. Boulder. I think it's the perfect synergy. I noticed when I was having a look at some things that you've done, some, um, media, tv, radio, presenting, that sort of stuff, and, and talking about design property, events, all sorts of different things. How easy was that to get into, as up and coming? Like was that something that organically just. You fell into or did you go after that? Because I know lots of designers, like I wanna pitch myself to for PR or like, that's quite a scary thing. How was that for you?

25:24

It came about quite organically. Occasionally I would put myself forward to a writer, but most of the opportunities actually came to me, which was really cool. And I guess hanging around people who were doing that sort of thing rubs off. Yeah. So I started, I started making friends with people who were in that space and who was speaking, and then I started to get invited to, to speak as well. Yeah,

rhiannon: 25:50

that's good, isn't it? Because it is a. It is a bit daunting the first time that you're doing that, or, and I know I didn't get to, sadly I didn't get to see your conversation at, the design show we met after the fact, but, it was a pretty busy time and I think there was a lot of, there was a really great amount of talks going on across the three days, and I caught quite a few of them. In terms of yours, what do you think some of the key takeaways were and what were people really excited to hear about and learn about?

26:19

I think they were really excited to hear that feng shui is very contextual, that it should be aligned with good design. I think a, a lot of people are, are, can be a little bit scared of it and think it's going to ruin their designs. I've had an architect say that to me once in a meeting, oh, they're here to ruin the design. But we're not, uh, it's, it's just about. It's about enhancing it making the most of the energy in the space. And I'm not there to be the Feng Shui police. So if I give you my recommendations and the client or the designer doesn't want to follow those, then, then that's over to you guys to, yeah, make that ultimate,

rhiannon: 26:59

ultimate decision. And also just that it's being considered. I think if you're getting a consultation with any expert, it's not that, as you say, they're not the sheriff or the police, they're not gonna come back and tell you, well, you didn't take my advice. But if you never sorted, then you have no idea to know that it's what should be done in the home to get that outcome.

27:20

Yeah. And then during my presentation we also go through a bit of a room by room, so I give a lot of people tips on different spaces, on different land forms as well. We're talking, even talking about things like where the house is positioned, if it, if it's on a T junction or if it's on a, if it's on a corner block, like what are the implications there? The shape of the property. There's so many things to consider. Which do you think is the hardest room to work on? Oh, that's a great question. The hardest room to work on. It depends on how bad the energy is in the space. I was about to say, does it

rhiannon: 27:59

depend on the couple, like the, oh, the, the, um, master bedroom's a little bit tricky on this one, or, you know, the li living areas. If there's not harmony in the family or there's not harmony in the space, I imagine it makes. The general entertaining, like it will come down to their personalities and what's happening. Is that right? Yeah,

28:16

that's right. So if we think about a bedroom that certain, sometimes I will come to a home where they've got mirrors directly reflecting the bed, and I'll say to'em, oh, that's not the best from a Feng shui point of view, tacky and eighties. But I know, can we change that please? Or sometimes it comes down to the physical layout, so. The ideal, ideal for a bedroom is that you want to have the bed in a, in the space that's diagonally opposite the door, along the solid wall. Hopefully, you know. Ideally, we don't want the solid wall to have windows on it. And then not to have the bed aligned with other doors like the en suite and that, that sort of thing. So we have a real contained space where the bed is located that gives this occupants a feeling of security and protection.

rhiannon: 29:07

So I always feel like I'm. Again, without knowing. It always all about like who's closest to the door, where, who's near the window. Like when you get to a hotel, when you go to other places, it's not your usual place. It's always, you know, I'll happily swap my side of the bed if it means I'm not going near the door. Yes, I want that block item and put my husband over there. Like, or I think people just naturally can relate to the, those principles and that idea, because we can be a bit like that.

29:34

And one of the trends that I've seen lately with bedrooms is having skylights above the bed.

rhiannon: 29:41

Yeah. Which

29:42

not great from a fun shape. Well,

rhiannon: 29:44

skylights everywhere if you're watching this season of the block. Yeah. And you really need

29:49

to have that balance of yin and yang. We can't have the energy escaping everywhere. There needs to be containment, there needs to be a balance of flow and containment. And I think just you, you can't live in a fishbowl. So we need to have that balance of the, of windows and skylights, uh, with solid wall. So definitely, you know, if you have the choice, I wouldn't have a skylight directly above the bed. If it has, if it, if you need to have the skylight in, let's say you've got a walk-in row that's fine. But make sure that you can close that off so that it's not. Bringing all that light into your room when you need it to be dark.

rhiannon: 30:28

Oh my gosh. I know I have very young children, so that is a living nightmare to me. The idea that there'd be like star gazing all night, and then also like waking up at 4:00 AM with the birds and being like, well, I saw light coming through. Like, I, I feel like that's not for me. Yes, exactly.

30:45

Even having the open bathrooms open to a bedroom isn't the best from a feng shui perspective. Ideally, you wanna be able to close those spaces off to create that containment and that sort of nurturing feeling.'cause we don't like to mix bathroom energy with bedroom

rhiannon: 31:01

energy. And I know that you wanna have your cozy womb like feeling in the bedroom. Don't, and you wanna have this like all enclosed. And do you see that design is changing a lot when it comes to, I know for a long time floor plans had switched to being very open plan and then, post COVID, I saw a lot more walls coming back.'cause people were like, well, hang on, we don't actually like living as one harmonious movement and no walls. How are you seeing the future of floor plans and, and what's changing or trending? Well, I think getting

31:30

your floor plan right is, is number one. So some, sometimes people are just obsessed with the cosmetics and making the kitchen look beautiful and having the finishes and all that sort of thing. But if the floor plan doesn't flow well, and if the floor plan doesn't feel right, you're always going to limit your. How you feel in the space and ultimately your property value as well. So getting the floor plan right, and also having that balance of openness and enclosure. Having a space where parents can retreat to, to close the doors to still be part of the home, like maybe it's behind behind glass. But to be able to create a contained space where you can escape from the noise and the chaos, uh, is so important.

rhiannon: 32:18

I feel like it, I feel like I'm always hearing, you know, the kids need a little reading nook. They need a tent, they need a place to go. They need a place to be. I'm like, where is my tent? Where is my reading nook? Where is my place to be? So I can absolutely, uh, agree with that.'cause we are currently in a h home that we are outgrowing. So our family is bigger than the, the design of the home was designed. And it just, it doesn't have that great flow. It has what, like it has, um, pocket slider doors on both sides of the bathrooms and toilets. And you can walk through the master bedroom through that and back through around the kitchen like it's like a circular home so the kids can ride their little tricycles right around in a circle. And I'm sure you're cringing at all of this, but it definitely. It illustrates to me how important getting that flow right is. And my father-in-law designed the house, so I can't bag it out too much publicly. But you know, the kitchen has this huge U shape and there's a dance floor in the middle that no one uses. And the dining room's too small. The dishwasher has to sit outside of the kitchen. So the whole thing needs super, like we've got renovations planned, but it's those sorts of things that I can tell straight away that had he had the kind of consultancy that you do and someone had actually said, wait a second, do you wanna have, you're creating this like little baby tornadoes'cause they can go round and round and around. Is that what, how you wanna live your life? He may have thought twice. That's so cute though. That sounds gorgeous. If it's not happening in your house, they have three boys and they're all young, and if they can go round and around and around in a circle, it is wildly distracting when you can't be in any room in the house without noticing that behavior. Right. So there isn't pockets to go and sit quietly, it's just, it's on.

34:02

Can we talk about study nooks as well? Because this is another thing that's come about as, as a result of COVID just putting study nooks under stairs and in little corners. Yeah, just like a

rhiannon: 34:12

wheel up to a piece of bench and being like, that's where we do our work, work from home under like Harry Potter under the stairs. I don't think so.

34:20

Yeah, it's great. I would rather sit at a dining table than sit under stairs like that. But if you're sitting at the dining table, sit at a place, not where you eat. Change it. Change it up for me so that you're not sitting there thinking about. Subconsciously that you are about to have your dinner, um,

rhiannon: 34:37

instead of doing your work or vice versa. Because when it's dinner time and you wanna connect with your family and you've been sat at that same chair all day and you've been working, do you really have your mind on being present with the kids and being like part of that? I would not. I would definitely be like, I'm still. Thinking about that email I have to send'cause I was here 15 minutes ago sending emails.

34:57

Yeah, so true. And also I see clients that have, that would have a spare bedroom for when someone might come and stay over, you know, once every six months and then work at this in this little dinky space where they could just think about prioritizing themselves and their own needs and. Changing that spare room into a study.

rhiannon: 35:18

Get a fold out bed.'cause you're only gonna fold it out for two nights in every, you know, eight weeks or something. And then you've got a nice, I've got a beautiful sofa here in my studio. And I think that would give you a lot of space Right to work.

35:32

And work in work in luxury. So think about the, what I say to clients is think about the person that you are becoming and what you aspire to achieve, and whether your space in your study or home office

rhiannon: 35:45

is reflective of that.

Jane: 35:47

Hmm.

rhiannon: 35:47

I did notice a lot of people during COVID and other times start to prioritize. Like I remember doing a lot of consultations because I marketed this particular service on Zoom backdrops and designing people's backdrops and just their like, I. The shelving behind them or the, the bookshelves or whatever. And I think that's quite funny when you think about a service that's born out of a particular weird time, like I don't think anyone would book me to do design their zoom backdrop now. But that was so popular.'cause all of a sudden people went, my boss is coming to my house. You know, like ever doing that. I think it's so interesting that you talk about you. Create the space for the person you wanna be and not who you are now and things. I think there's a lot of opportunities. A lot of my listeners will be working on their dining table. They will be working in, not everyone is lucky enough to have an external studio. Is there any tips that they can, that could help maximize their productivity or in the space that they're in? Things that they can use Feng to, to support that? Absolutely.

36:51

So if you can sit with your back towards a solid wall. That gives you protection and support and have a view of the entrance and also a view out to nature to enhance your creativity. I've just clocked all three, the hat trick. I've got the wall behind me, the window here, and the door over here. So fabulous. And, um, having a plant in the room is great too, especially if you don't have that view to nature. So having some sort of connection to nature is, is really handy. Now, if you can't sit with your back towards a solid wall, just a solid high back chair is helpful. Just to give you a bit more of that support and protection and just decorate with things that you love and things that inspire you. So I'm a big, I'm a big fan of doing things like vision boards.

rhiannon: 37:40

Do you do those as well? A whole bunch of things, but they're not really vision boards. These ones, these are more client work and mood boards and just things that are relative. Absolutely that is one thing that I think. I do each year when I do my planning, but I also save it as my, um, desktop on my laptop. So I see it every time I open up or like on my iPad or I explain it to my children properly and break down what we're trying to do this year and why, and get them to be part of that and then celebrate that when that. Comes to fruition. So, you know, if we are going on this huge epic family holiday, if we are buying a new car, we are doing something. Talk about, remember in January when mommy was saying that we wanted to do so? I'm very much like educating them in that, um, but I think that is an incredibly effective way to, you can't be what you can't see and you can't have what you don't look for. I just feel like you kind of do need to keep on top of what, what do you actually want in this world?

38:33

And that takes me to managing the energy in your surroundings. And it's not just about the physical things and, and the walls and the, and the furniture and so forth, but it's also about what you are consuming in the media, for example.

Jane: 38:46

Mm-hmm. What.

38:47

The books that you're reading, the music that you're listening to, the people that you're hanging around, it all has an energetic impact on you, even the food that you're eating, obviously. And, and the movement that you are doing. So I call that the feng shui lifestyle, and I'm all about maximizing the feng shui lifestyle to help you to

rhiannon: 39:04

to be your best self. Yeah. And that's so important. You mentioned connections before speaking things, and, and I always think you're only as. You can only rise to the level of the five people around you or the people that support you, or you know, you wanna be in the room where people are doing amazing things so that you can see that amazing things can be done and you can see the roadmap of how you actually do those things. So, um, yeah. I also really think it's important to never minimize your place. A crowd and in, and in a group because you, if you are not the leader you can be the follow, you know, you can just be learning. And, and we are not, we are always lifelong learners, I think. And there's always a, a handful of people in that room who can teach you things and almost everyone can show you a way forward.

39:47

And even if you don't know, like you mentioned the top five people. Having the most influence on you, even if you don't know people that are at the level where you want, want to go to. Just doing things like reading, surrounding yourself in the wisdom of books, audio books, podcasts like this one really will change your energy.

rhiannon: 40:08

Yeah, that's, well, I'm always plugged into an audio book or podcast, so I feel like I must be choosing wisely. Although I don't know what true crime really says about me. I'm not what that actually says if my top five people are all serial killers. But anyway. I joke, I do listen to a lot of business podcasts and a lot of things that are obviously bettering me as a parent and a person and but yeah, true crime gets sort of a scene as well. So I think that's where I just go immediately to giggling about that.'cause I'm like, oh gosh,

40:39

one of the things that helped me to be a better parent was when I started following what I called the feng shui lifestyle, and I started incorporating certain rituals into my. Day, which would include gratitude, journaling. Mm-hmm. Affirmations and meditation. And I feel like that made me a lot, a lot calmer as a parent and uh, just helped me to focus more in my business.

rhiannon: 41:05

And even micro versions of that, like if you don't have time to meditate, sometimes it's just. Good. It's just enough to take a breath before you respond. Like parenting is hard. Yes, parenting is hectic and sometimes it is. I'm just gonna face the wall can of four in, can of four out. Then I'm gonna reply to this situation that's happening because otherwise, you know, obviously it's very easy to become that banse in that environment or whatever's going on. So, I'm. Go quite gently on myself sometimes.'cause I'm like, I'm not gonna have time, or I don't have time, or I don't, or I don't prioritize meditation and gratitude journaling and so on. But I do know that I take time to reflect on things that I'm grateful for. I take a time to take a breath. Like, it's like it could start in baby steps too.

41:50

Yeah. Yeah. It doesn't it and it doesn't need to take that long as well.

rhiannon: 41:54

I love that. Is there anything that you think my listeners. Need to understand about what it is that you do or, where can they kind of grow that knowledge if they are deeply interested into it. Like, I'll put all the context for you in the show notes, but what is a good, we talked earlier about there being just a lot of noise out there and a lot of bad advice or like, not necessarily helpful things about Feng SRE out there. Where would you demystify everything and find out everything that you need?

42:27

It's probably not just one place, but a good place to start is my book, which is called Feng Shui, A Homeowner's Guide to Abundance. And in that book I talk about what Feng shui is, some, the origins and some of those main principles that you need to be aware of. And we also go through a room by room. Walkthrough of the home and with a lot of tips and a lot of ways that we can improve the energy and maximize that flow.

rhiannon: 42:55

Beautiful. And that's for home, like in the title for homeowners. Was there any concerns when you wrote that around? I know sometimes I speak to designers who, like, I don't wanna teach people to be designers. I don't wanna teach people to do my job because then they won't hire me for my job. And I have very strong opinions about why that doesn't reign true. But what were your thoughts when you were publishing the book?

43:15

That's a really good question. I just gave as much information as I could in the 40,000 words that I've, that I've written, and I gave as much information about the physical layouts as I can. When it comes to the energy map of the home, it's so specific for people who it's so specific in terms of their unique home that you can't really. You can't really teach people how to do that themselves. They need help. Yeah. So I guess that's where, that's where, uh, people could reach out to me if, uh, if they wanna take it further.

rhiannon: 43:50

I love that. So then you're not gatekeeping giving the advice, but ultimately you're still gonna need an expert to look over your individual circumstances. It's generalized advice and generalized information. And I think that relates to that same thing that when designers are worried, it's like you're only telling them the rule of three. You're not telling them which three things look good, or you're only telling people like a general, you know, la, la la, but you're not taking their bespoke home into consideration at all. And you'd have such different advice if you were. Yeah, that's right. Well, thank you so much for joining me. I've learned a lot, and sorry if you're like, this is the most basic knowledge of Feng shui ever, but I think that's good.'cause it, it is probably what some of, some people listening will be the same as me, is like, I'm, I'm mildly aware of it, but tell me what I'm actually supposed to know. Yeah, absolutely. So good to speak with you today. Amazing. We're looking forward to catching up soon. I'll put all the things in the show notes so that my listeners can go and get the book, get more knowledge, come and follow you, check out what you're doing, and learn from someone who knows what they're talking about.

44:52

Thank

rhiannon: 44:52

you. Thanks, Jane. I'll chat to you soon. Okay. Bye for now. Bye bye.

44:56

That wraps up another episode of Designing Success from Study to Studio. Thanks for lending me your ears. Remember, progress over perfection is the key. If you've found value in today's episode, go ahead and hit subscribe or share it with a friend. Your feedback means so much to me and it helps me improve, but it also helps this podcast reach more emerging and evolving designer. Just like you for your daily dose of design business tips, and to get a closer look at what goes on behind the scenes, follow at Oleander and Finch on Instagram. You'll find tons of resources available at www.oleanderandfinch.com to support you on your journey. Remember, this is your path, your vision, your future, and your business. Now let's get out there and start designing your success.