I grew up on a fourth-generation family farm in Southeast Queensland, in a home built by my great grandparents over a century ago. Living in a home like that gives you a very real understanding of what a home needs to do. It’s not just something you create for now, but something that holds people, experiences, and emotions over time. At the same time, I also experienced what it feels like when a home doesn’t fully support the people within it. That contrast stayed with me, and over the years it became clear that the environment we live in has a direct impact on how we feel, how we function, and how we experience life.

That understanding has been the driver behind my work.

I established Betty-Jo Interior Designs in 2013, after working across tiles, bathrooms, joinery, and kitchen design. What I saw early on was how disconnected the process had become. Clients were moving between multiple trades and showrooms, trying to piece together a cohesive home while managing different opinions, timelines, and pressures. The result often felt messy, with too many influences and no clear direction. My intention was to bring that process together, to design each home as one complete and considered outcome rather than a collection of separate decisions.

Over time, my role became about more than just the visual result. Clients would often comment that I was able to present exactly what they wanted before they could fully explain it themselves. That is the intuitive side of my work, supported by practical experience—the ability to identify what will work, what won’t, and where problems are likely to arise. Alongside this, Feng Shui continued to present itself in my work. It wasn’t something I set out to pursue, but something that became difficult to ignore. As I began studying and applying it, I understood why. Feng Shui provided a structured system that gave a clear and precise diagnosis of what people were experiencing within their homes, allowing me to understand how layout, orientation, and environment influence the way a space performs and supports the people living within it.

I now practise within a 39-generation Feng Shui lineage and will soon step into the role of a 40th-generation holder. Learning within this lineage has been both humbling and defining. It is a detailed and precise system that can reveal underlying patterns within a home, including challenges that are not immediately visible. Through this work, I have also been able to understand and process significant experiences within my own life, including the passing of my father, which deepened my respect for the role environment plays in our lives.

This training has directly influenced the way I design, particularly in areas such as kitchens and bathrooms where placement, flow, and function have a lasting impact. It reinforced the importance of planning properly and not rushing decisions, as the early stages of a project determine how well a home will perform over time.

In 2024, after twelve years of studying Feng Shui, I created The Environmental Alchemist as a platform to bring this work forward, with the intention that it would sit alongside my design practice. The two now operate together, allowing each project to be approached with both practical design knowledge and the structure of Feng Shui from the very beginning. This is also when Feng Shui is most effective, as it avoids the need for costly adjustments later.

A well-designed home should feel supportive to live in. It should function with ease, create a sense of comfort, and be a place people want to spend time in and share with others. Many clients come to me with a level of discomfort in their homes, often without being able to fully explain why. Through considered planning and the integration of Feng Shui, those issues can be addressed at the root rather than managed on the surface.

The work requires trust, respect, and clear communication throughout the process. In return, clients are supported with a level of detail and foresight that brings confidence to each decision being made.

At its core, my work is about creating homes that function properly, feel right to live in, and support a better way of living over time.