Shaynna Blaze is a name synonymous with Australian design and television. With over three decades of experience, she has transformed countless spaces through her interior design business, Blank Canvas Interiors. Her expertise and charismatic presence have made her a household name, particularly through her roles as a co-host on Selling Houses Australia (2008–2020) and as a long-standing judge on The Block (2012–present).

Beyond the screen, Shaynna is a passionate advocate for social change. She founded the charity Voice of Change, aiming to use the arts to engage in meaningful conversations to break the cycle of domestic abuse. Her commitment to this cause was further highlighted when she won Celebrity Apprentice Australia in 2021, raising significant funds for her charity.

We are delighted that Shaynna will be speaking on Friday 18 July at Decor + Design from 11am – 12pm, in an inspirational session on how ‘Good Design Equals Good Lives’. You can register for the show and the session here. In the interim, we asked Shaynna to share the ways in which design transcends aesthetics to impact lives profoundly, from pioneering dementia care environments to domestic violence awareness.

At Decor + Design, you’ll be speaking about how good design can genuinely change lives. Can you share a moment in your career where you saw this happen in a tangible way?

I was privileged to work on a project in Queensland as a world first Micro Town in Australia for Dementia and Aged Care.  It was based on a new approach in Amsterdam on how to treat this disease and give dignity back to the people there.

I designed different styles of houses to accommodate the research. There was a salon, a barber shop, a day spa, grocery store, restaurant, music room and outdoor meeting areas. Within a week of some of the residents moving in, their behaviour has changed and their connection with their families had changed for the better.  My mother suffered from this disease for sixteen years, she passed away before I was engaged for this project so I knew how important this was. It was so successful the creator won Telstra Business Woman of the Year.  It is one of the most rewarding things I have done not just design wise, but personally.

You’ve worked across so many different platforms – television, books, your own private design firms. How has your own approach to design and aesthetics evolved over that time?

Human connection has always got stronger as time goes on.  When I started in design it was all commercial and retail with the focus on function, business  enticing the customer.

As I moved more into residential and even TV it became about the stories of those who live there, how life shifts and changes and we need to ‘allow’ the home to grow with us. I have taught design and my books were very instructional on the rules, the structure, planning and the execution.

Kyneton Project, Designed By Shaynna Blaze

But once you jump that hoop the project is bigger. It’s the environment you live in, sustainability, the economy and the crazy shifting of what the nuclear family used to be. The more I design the more curious I get and the more I get lost in extracting the story from the people who live there to bring it to life.

Your charity Voice of Change aims to use the arts to engage in meaningful and active conversations to break the cycle of domestic abuse. What inspired you to start the charity and how does it intersect with your work?

My kids wanted to make a movie and the subject of family and domestic violence kept coming up. My son loves fantasy movies so he wrote the script about the relationship of the son and the mother and showed through fantasy what they were going through. There are many tender and suggestive moments of what is really going on in home and I think that is what really cuts through.

To release the movie we looked at impact marketing and the more research we did we realised that harm prevention was not talked about. We hear the statistics, the crimes and the terrible reality of violence but if we focused on cultural change and shifting our attitudes we could see that was the way to make a difference. There are so many incredible charities supporting women and children in crises and we didn’t want to take away from that but instead the goal is to stop it before it starts and bring it out from behind the shadows.

Why do you think creative expression is such a powerful tool for social impact?

We have a fear of talking about family and domestic violence as though it is some taboo, but in reality we all know someone affected by this, and the more we brush it under the carpet the longer it will stay behind closed doors.

New Direction Cafe, Designed By Shaynna Blaze

The arts is inquisitive, emotive and naturally evokes conversation and connection.  It gives us a chance to step back and look at something that has a message without feeling like we are spoken ‘at’, but rather being able to give our own thoughts, our own perspective to talk about or even sit and ponder the message.

What have been some of the most memorable or impactful projects that Voice of Change has brought to life so far?

Our major project is the movie The Fort that has been shown to corporates, individuals and group sessions.  We have had incredible support from the police department, government and people in the sector letting us know that this is what people need to see to understand what coercive control is. This July we are screening the movie followed by a Q&A at Cambridge University at the World Congress on Family Law & Children’s rights.

We are launching our new national campaign ‘I Stand Up’, with tools for the public and in corporate and social businesses and organisations with strategies and a simple but much needed approach to being an active bystander to inequality and disrespect.

We have two projects we are discussing, a public art piece, a musical performance and a long term 8 part series called, “I wish I knew”.

What do you most want the audience at Decor + Design to walk away thinking or doing differently?

I want designers to look beyond the picture.  Look beyond the brief.  Look beyond what is wanted and tap into what is needed.

As professionals we want our work to stand the test of time, not with the context of ‘trends’ but how a design shapes a home, moves with the lives of those who live and engage there and always be engaged in what the interior can give back to everyone that is in there.

This is more than a seminar – it’s a call to action for designers, decorators and industry professionals to think beyond aesthetics and design with compassion, purpose and humanity. Don’t miss Shaynna Blaze at Decor + Design 2025, Friday 18 July from 11am – 12pm. Register now and reserve your place – places are limited.