Monday, July 26, 2010
Tips for Working with an Interior Designer
It’s exciting and fun to plan the new look of your home. But, it can also be overwhelming to think of doing it yourself with everything else on your plate. How do you know if you should do it yourself or hire an interior designer to assist you? And if you hire an interior designer will you lose control of the process and really be happy with the results?
Here are a few good reasons to hire a designer:
- Since they do this all the time, they’ll know when it’s a good idea to splurge and when you should save money.
- They can help you avoid decorating mistakes and help you see new creative options.
- They have access to many more products, fabrics, and furniture choices than you’d have in retail shopping.
- You can hire them by the hour or for a specific project and still do some of the work yourself if that’s what you want to do.
- They know how to pull all your great ideas together so it harmonizes without being boring.
Have clearly in mind the look you want: the mood, the colors, and the style. Consider making a design ideas folder. Collect pictures of rooms you like, and identify why you like them. Is it the colors used? Is it the overall feel that attracts you? Is it the furniture, upholstery or carpeting that you like? Do you have examples of what you don’t like? If you can’t decide yet, it would be good to visit show rooms, watch home decorating shows, and look at a lot of books and magazines with a critical eye thinking, “I like this because… or I don’t like this because...”
Communicate what you want to the designer. Your design ideas folder will help you communicate exactly what look you’re trying to achieve. Be sure to describe how your family will use the room, so you can consider traffic flow and livability. And if you want to do some of the work yourself let them know that, too.
Establish your budget. Everybody has one and there’s nothing wrong with extending your project over a couple of years so you get it right. A designer can also help you blend in the items you already have with the new.
Buy the best you can afford. That doesn’t mean necessarily the most expensive. It means purchasing quality items that will last and that you won’t quickly tire of when new trends appear.
Be sure you really love something and aren’t just settling. You’ll regret letting someone talk you into something you know in your heart just isn’t you.
Keep the lifestyle of your family always in mind. It doesn’t make sense to decorate in a way that doesn’t work with your lifestyle. If you have children you’ll decorate differently than a person who is a serious collector of breakable objects.
At Simplify believe that your home is important – it should be a stress-free haven. If you live in the Silicon Valley, ask us about our interior design services or feel free to request a complimentary in-home consultation for any of our home concierge services.
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