Episode 134

134: Creating a Non-Toxic Home with Sophia Ruan Gushée of Ruan Living

Published on: 31st October, 2023

This week I’m talking with nontoxic lifestyle expert and author Sophia Ruan Gushée about the common toxins that show up in our homes. As holistic interior designers, this is an important topic we’re becoming increasingly aware of and needing to share with our clients, who often look to us for information and resources. Educating ourselves on the most common toxins will help us create a safe, clean, and peaceful space for our clients (and ourselves). 

In this episode, Sophia shares how she came to learn about these toxins, what led her to write her book, A to Z of D-Toxing: The Ultimate Guide to Reducing Our Toxic Exposures, and the first steps we can take to create healthier homes and living spaces now.

Sophia led a special workshop for Design Coven Pro members to dive deeper into what we can do for our clients, and the replay is available now to all Pro members. To join our community and watch the replay, visit thedesigncoven.com/join.

About Sophia

Sophia Ruan Gushée is a nontoxic lifestyle expert. Sophia is the author of A to Z of D-Toxing: The Ultimate Guide to Reducing Our Toxic Exposures and several detox workbooks. Praised by experts in both medical and wellness fields for her practical approach to avoiding toxins and cultivating a healthier home environment, Sophia served on the Brown University School of Public Health Advisory Council and Well+Good Council. She has been featured in the most popular media outlets such as Health, Elle, W Magazine, Fast Company, the Dr. Oz Show, and more. 

Sophia has helped thousands of people enjoy healthier lives by simplifying nontoxic living, while protecting your joy and ease of modern life. She is the founder of Ruan Living, a wellness platform that empowers others to improve their health by mindfully reducing their exposures to hidden toxins like heavy metals, EMFs, and chemicals in their everyday lives.

A graduate of Brown University and Columbia Business School, Sophia lives in New York City with her busy family and three daughters. Her passion for empowering others to enjoy nontoxic living began with the birth of her first daughter in 2007, and everything she creates is a love letter to her children and the hope for a healthier, more mindful world.

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Are you an interior designer or are you interested in Holistic Interior Design? Check out my membership program, the Design Coven! This program is a real-world industry mentorship for Holistic Interior Designers that has everything you won't find in traditional design school curriculum. You'll learn from practicing interior designers working on real life projects, and get access to cutting edge vendors, suppliers, furniture makers, textile designers, and design resources that I've curated over my 17 years of design experience. As a member, you'll have the opportunity to build valuable relationships of your own. Learn more.

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About the Podcast

Holistic Interior Design Podcast
Designing with Intention promoting health and well-being.
Welcome to The Holistic Interior Design Podcast — where your space becomes a tool for healing, alignment, and beauty.

I’m Rachel Larraine Crawford, your host, guide and interior designer. I work with conscious homeowners, wellness practitioners, and boutique hospitality brands to create intentional spaces that feel as good as they look.

This podcast is an invitation to get to know me, my process, and what it really means to design from a place of energy, emotion, and soul. Whether you’re redesigning your home, refreshing your business, or just craving more clarity and connection in your environment, you’re in the right place.

Each week, I share raw, unedited episodes full of:
Energy-shifting design tips rooted in Feng Shui and intuition
Rituals and seasonal inspiration for your home or business
Real-life design audits and answers to your questions
Behind-the-scenes insights into my holistic design work

This podcast is interactive — I want to hear from you. Submit your design dilemma or question, and it might be featured on the show at speakpipe.com/hid

Whether you're holding space for yourself or for your guests, this is where beauty, purpose, and energy meet.
Ready to design a space that reflects who you truly are — and supports who you’re becoming? Let’s begin.
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About your host

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Rachel Crawford

Rachel is a Mystic, Reiki Master, Tarot Reader, Feng Shui Practitioner, Energy Healer, and Holistic Interior Designer, whose intimate connection to her intuition and ancestral roots enabled her to rise above a challenging childhood and blossom into the powerful and impassioned healer she is today.

Committed to empowering others by teaching modalities that support connection to intuition, Rachel hosts workshops and retreats focused on the ancient practices of Feng Shui, Tarot, crystals, herbs and oils, ritual and ceremony, astrology and metaphysics — in addition to live and virtual new moon and full moon circles.

Rachel also lends her harmonious and balancing acumen to the creation of energetically aligned spaces through Holistic Interior Design. Since earning her Associates Degree and Certificate in Interior Design 2005, she has created and collaborated on a multitude of award-winning residential and commercial spaces, including Realm of the 52 Remedies (with Onairos Design), all while becoming certified in Classical Flying Stars Feng Shui through the International School of Feng Shui (2015), studying the practices of Land Healing, Ritual, and Ceremony under Amanda Sophia & Alex Stark in Ireland, and with "House Whisperer," Christian Kyriacou.
Rachel's work has been featured in several exhibitions, including KAABOO, a music, comedy, culinary and art festival held in Del Mar, CA, where as part of an experiential art installation by Carly Ealey and Madeleine Tonzi, she created a crystal grid below the piece, clearing the participating auras before entering the installation. Her designs have been published in San Diego Home/Garden Lifestyles, Modern Luxury Magazine, San Diego Magazine, Exquisite Weddings, Style & Decor and Serendipity Magazine.

You may also connect with Rachel on a regular basis through Patreon, where she is is creating Mystical Rituals and Sacred Spaces, providing Tarot Readings, and nurturing spiritual connections.

Her Interior Design Projects can be found here Tigerveil.com