Meet Our Team: Portland Interior Designers
A small, collaborative team of Portland interior designers, drafters and tradespeople who guide every decision and handle every detail with care.
Rylie Benjamin - Marketing + Administrative Assistant
Storyteller. Traveler. Coffee shop explorer. Organizer.
Rylie keeps Design With Refinement running smoothly behind the scenes and helps share our work with the world. A recent graduate of Pepperdine University with a degree in Integrated Marketing Communications, she brings experience in social media, content creation, public relations and influencer marketing, along with a passion for creative storytelling and thoughtful visual communication.
She's always been drawn to beautiful spaces and the way design can shape how people feel, which makes DWR a natural fit. Outside of work, Rylie loves traveling, discovering new restaurants and coffee shops, spending time outdoors, and being with friends and family.
Refinement Wagner - Founder + Principal Designer
Collaborator. Nature lover. Avid reader. Community builder.
Raised in a yurt on a Washington commune where nothing was wasted, Refinement designs homes that are built to be lived in and made to last. She sources American-made furniture, one-of-a-kind vintage and pieces from local Portland makers.
With a degree in sociology and a background in project management, Refinement brings both curiosity about how people really live and a calm structure to the creative process. Collaboration is her favorite part. She loves getting to know her clients, trading ideas with her team, and building something together that feels personal and entirely theirs.
Refinement is deeply rooted in the Portland community. She's active in the Interior Design Society's Portland chapter, served on the Pacific Northwest Leadership Council for Children's Cancer Association (JoyRx), where she helped design the Caring Cabin meditation pavilion on the Oregon Coast, chaired the Ambassador Board for CASA for Children, and helps lead her youngest daughter's Girl Scout troop.
Off the clock, you'll find her camping and hiking the Pacific Northwest, lost in a good book, hunting estate sales for the perfect vintage find, or on the trail with her daughter and their sweet puppy, Nala.
Amy Hayes - Senior Designer
Former math teacher. Storyteller. Precision lover.
Amy took the scenic route to interior design, and her clients are better for it. Before following the dream she'd had since she was a teenager, she studied literature, spent a decade in commercial printing, and taught math for nearly another. That mix shows up in everything she does: a storyteller's eye for what makes a home feel personal, and a math teacher's precision when it comes to measurements, layouts and making sure every piece fits.
At Design With Refinement, Amy leads much of our kitchen and bath work and our remodel selections. She guides clients through tile, countertops, cabinetry, fixtures and lighting, and brings plans to life with scaled floor plans and 3D renderings. Her favorite projects pair beautiful finishes with spaces that truly work for the people living in them.
Amy is an active member of the Interior Design Society and the National Kitchen & Bath Association. She lives in NE Portland, and when she isn't designing, you'll find her cooking, reading, or hiking.
Lynn Conti - Senior Designer
Adventurer. Animal lover. Detail devotee.
Lynn has been part of Design With Refinement since day one, bringing a rare blend of creativity, precision and heart to every project. With nearly four decades in the design world and a background in high-end custom furnishings, Lynn sees what others miss. She considers every angle and finds solutions that are as beautiful as they are intentional.
Whether she's guiding clients through a full-home transformation or fine-tuning the finishing touches, Lynn brings calm confidence, endless ideas, and a genuine passion for creating spaces people love coming home to.
Outside the studio, you'll likely find her exploring a new destination with her husband, playing games with her grandkids, soaking up live music, or tending the donkeys and sheep on her farm in Costa Rica.
