You’ve just bought a new house and you want to move in, but you need to make the space your own so you decided to hire an interior designer. Here are three great tips to make the process go smoothly for you and your designer.
1. Know Your Style
Designers are amazingly talented people, however, they don’t magically know what you want. Do some research so you have a solid idea of what you want your new space to look like. After all, you’re the one who will be living in it! Look online or in magazines for images of spaces and think about what aspects you like and why you like them. Another benefit to having a solid grasp on your style is knowing if your designer is a good fit for you. All designers have specialties, and you want to pick one whose tastes match your own. Be sure to look at their portfolio and see what projects they’ve done, and then pick one that you like. Designers can help you solidify what you want by asking lots of questions, but the more you know going in the smoother and faster the process will be.
2. Use Pictures, Not Words
Being able to describe your style is a great start, but the best way to communicate with your designer (and do valuable research) is through images. Creating a collection of images of spaces you like is a great way to find your style, and when you’re done, you’ll have the perfect gallery to show your designer. Houzz and Pinterest are great websites for this; you can create idea books and boards for your remodeling inspiration and send the links to your designer. When collecting your images, take the time to look at each image and think about what aspects you like. Is it that super cool chair? The warm color palette? The funky mural? By looking at the images you found, you and your designer can talk about which elements to include in your space to make sure everyone’s on the same page for the final result.
3. HGTV Isn’t a Good Guide
You may think you know everything there is to know about remodeling from reality TV but just because it has the word ‘reality’ doesn’t mean it’s the truth. The big reveal at the end of the episode just doesn’t happen because you’re involved in every step of the process, meaning that the final design is exactly what you want. Reality TV projects are often incredibly fast paced to fit a TV schedule, and consequently have a lot of missed details in the final design. Designers spend a lot of time making sure your design has maximum functionality so you can get the most out of your new space.
Once you’ve done these three things, you’ll be all set to start the remodeling process with your designer!
Happy Remodeling!!
*Featured photo of Yoko by Eva Baker.
