How I’m Using AI in My Interior Design Business

Design: Elevated by Sam Vanek / 3D Rendering: AI

I’ll be honest, up until about 3 weeks ago I was pretty anti-AI. I had a lot of fear around it and I didn’t really have an interest in exploring it because I didn’t see how it could possibly help with Interior Design. I very strongly believed, and I still very strongly believe, that nothing can replace the creativity of the human mind. When I started this business it was because I had a love for interior design and I have a natural skill at it, and I wanted to use my talents to help others and to create expansion in peoples lives. When I thought about AI I felt like using it would take all of that away from me, I would no longer be the creator behind my designs and it’s so incredibly important to me that my business, my work, and my brand are 100% authentically me. 

What changed for me was actually my Husband, he uses AI quite often in not only his work but also various areas of his personal life. I was telling him about how much of a headache Marketing is for me and he suggested that I play around with AI and see how it could help. I was blown away…then ChatGPT released 4o image generation and it became very clear to me that AI could potentially be an incredibly valuable tool in my business and my design process.

Now, as a mother of two kids under the age of 3 and a self-employed business owner, I am incredibly grateful to have such a powerful tool at my disposal and I kick myself for sleeping on it for so long! So without further ado, here are 4 ways that I am using AI in my interior design business!

Marketing

I use AI to create the schedule for all of my Marketing campaigns, including Instagram posting, email marketing, ads, all of it! I DO NOT use AI to create any of the content though, that all still comes straight from me. As I mentioned, the most important thing to me is that I am 100% authentic in my business. 

3D Rendering

Ok I am by far the most excited about this!! In the not so distant past I would outsource for my CAD drawings and 3D renderings and it would take days to get them back. And if I or my client wanted to tweak something or see the bathroom shower with a different tile, that was another 2-3 days to get back. Now with ChatGPT 4o, renderings can be done in a matter of minutes, and any changes we want to see made are also done in a matter of minutes!

Now, it’s not perfect. I’m not saying that I’m going to throw out my CAD process tomorrow, but I am so excited by the potential because it is not too far from being pretty close to perfect. The skill of prompt engineering is also crucial, you need to be able to prompt AI in the most precise way in order for it to produce a rendering that exactly matches the design you’ve drawn up. I foresee this shaving a good amount of time off of my overall design process and providing me with valuable time back to do what I love the most, which is designing and being creative!

Construction Documentation

This one I’m still playing around with, but again I am beyond excited by the potential! To be honest, the construction documentation is probably my least favorite part of the job. I am not a left-brain analytical thinker, and construction documents feel very left-brain to me. This is another area where I anticipate reducing my construction documentation timeline and freeing up more time for the design and creativity aspect (which is why we hire interior designers!!)

Strategic thinking partner

Being a solo entrepreneur, I don’t always have someone to bounce ideas off of. I’ve found AI to be very helpful in flushing out an idea and coming up with pros and cons that I may have missed. It’s pretty much become my assistant at this point!

I understand the fear that surrounds AI, but I do believe it is here to stay so I’ve chosen to embrace it and find different ways that it can streamline, enhance and shorten my processes.

AI will never replace the human brain, and there is something to be said about the creativity and individuality of our minds. AI will only ever give you trends and what’s popular in the moment. You will never get thoughtful, unique, intentional design from AI. 

Design: Elevated by Sam Vanek / 3D Rendering: AI

I chose interior design because I truly love it, and because I’ve seen how much our surroundings can shape the way we live, feel, and show up every day. I also got into this business because I love the personal connection it creates with my clients, and with the designs that I create. When working with an interior designer it’s much more than just having someone design your home for you, it’s creating a genuine connection and understanding so that you are represented in your home at a soulful level. AI will never be able to do that.

If you’re ready to make your home more intentional and uniquely you, book a complimentary discovery call and let’s chat!

P.S. No, I did not write this blog post with AI!