Everything you need to know before you hire an interior designer
Are you in the process of planning a home renovation and considering hiring an interior designer? If so, you're probably wondering what the process entails and what to expect. In this post, we'll walk you through everything you need to know before hiring an interior designer, from what they can do for your renovation project to the different design stages.
Living room design by Alison Anderson Interiors, picture by Paul Craig
What you can expect when you hire an interior designer
Designers all work in their own particular way, so before your hire an interior designer, find out what their processes are and what their design package includes. It can vary enormously, so do make sure you know what is and isn’t included.
To give you an insight into what’s involved, here’s a brief summary of how I work.
The brief
The starting point is determining the brief. This is a chance for me to find out about your project and then put a fee proposal together.
The design concept
Once this is agreed, a measured survey is required, which is essential for the design work. I’ll also start working on the design concept. This starts with the big idea, which answers the design questions and ties everything together. This could be based on the architecture of the property, the location or the client’s lifestyle. Once this is tied down, I can start working on the concept mood board.
The concept mood board
This includes 2D layout plans and material samples. This helps clients to understand;
· How the design answers and solves their design dilemmas
· How the different elements work together to create a cohesive design
· The furniture layout of the rooms
· The materials and colours used
· How the design tells their story and reflects their personality
A summary of our interior design process
Presenting the design ideas
For lower cost packages the concept mood board presentation can be done over a video call. Face-to-face meetings are better for larger projects with lots of samples. There can be a lot to take in, so I don’t expect an immediate answer on all the design decisions. However, I do gauge instant reactions during the presentation meeting. Any changes are then confirmed and submitted before moving on to the developed design phase, where all the final details are checked, tweaked and confirmed.
Furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E)
Once the design process is complete (the time scale for this varies from a few weeks to months, depending on the size of the project), the next phase is sourcing and purchasing furniture and accessories. Some designers will provide you with a shopping list, so you can purchase the specified products and accessories independently. If you don’t have the time, want to make the most of a designer’s trade discounts or would rather leave this to a professional, designers can take care of it all for you. There are different ways of working when it comes to procurement. Some may act as a principal, which means that they are acting as the retailer so will be supplying the products directly to you. Others will act as an agent, which means that they will be buying the products on your behalf. Some designers may act as both, depending on the project and what they are sourcing. This will affect how you return products and faulty goods, so it’s worth establishing which approach your designer takes to ensure that it works for you.
Bedroom interior design using SketchUp
In a nutshell
There are several stages of a project, which starts with understanding the brief and then moves on to the design concept and then the developed design. Once this has all been approved, the FF&E element kicks in. Designers work in their own way, so you’ll need to establish how your chosen interior designer works before signing on the dotted line.
So now you know what’s involved, how much does it all cost? To find this out, I’m afraid that you are going to have to wait for my next post. I’m sure you are all on the edge of your seats in anticipation.
If you can’t wait until then and want more insider know-how and tricks of the trade, why not come and visit us over on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/alisonandersoninteriors/
I look forward to seeing you there.
June 30, 2020
