Interested in hiring an interior designer
June 27, 2018 7:26 AM Subscribe
My husband and I have talked about hiring an interior designer and that feels weird to type but here we are. How does this work?
My husband and I have been living in our condo for more than three years. In that time, we've found time to have a kid but not so much with hanging up pictures. Plus we have this open floor plan where the (small) entry way leads into the kitchen - dining area - family room and we've never really figured out how to make that work. I mean, it works - we haven't taped it off with caution tape and we use the space but I feel like we could be using it better.
It feels weird to say but I feel like that space could look really great. It could "wow" people. It already gets a little "wow" when people visit and we have barely done anything with the space. So I think if someone designed it who knew what they were doing, it could really be something.
That said, we have a 2 year-old who colors on the wall and a cat who is barely alive and two full-time jobs that make it tough for us to do much. And I'm interested in moving in maybe two years. Looking at interior designs, I feel like there's a lot of gilded stuff or things that appear to be like, an enormous pot with sticks by the front door. That's not what I want. You know how the Ikea rooms look nice? That's what I want. But maybe less Ikea. Should I just go to Ikea??
We can afford Nice Things and are okay with spending money on things we love but I don't want an enormous pot with sticks. How do most designers work in terms of getting paid? How do you find designers? I just looked on Yelp and reached out to a few people to get started. One wanted money to talk which I understand but I thought I'd try people willing to give us a consult for free first. I want to be fair and pay people for their work but I also feel like this is something where the right designer for us might not be someone with a huge portfolio. Maybe the right person for us has gone to Ikea with a lot of friends with new apartments and helped them make something they really love. Or maybe it's someone who will run away if I mention Ikea. Though that's probably not the person for us.
TL; DR:
How do interior designers get paid? I realize it probably varies but what is typical?
How do you find The Right interior designer?
How does the process work with an interior designer?
Thanks!
My husband and I have been living in our condo for more than three years. In that time, we've found time to have a kid but not so much with hanging up pictures. Plus we have this open floor plan where the (small) entry way leads into the kitchen - dining area - family room and we've never really figured out how to make that work. I mean, it works - we haven't taped it off with caution tape and we use the space but I feel like we could be using it better.
It feels weird to say but I feel like that space could look really great. It could "wow" people. It already gets a little "wow" when people visit and we have barely done anything with the space. So I think if someone designed it who knew what they were doing, it could really be something.
That said, we have a 2 year-old who colors on the wall and a cat who is barely alive and two full-time jobs that make it tough for us to do much. And I'm interested in moving in maybe two years. Looking at interior designs, I feel like there's a lot of gilded stuff or things that appear to be like, an enormous pot with sticks by the front door. That's not what I want. You know how the Ikea rooms look nice? That's what I want. But maybe less Ikea. Should I just go to Ikea??
We can afford Nice Things and are okay with spending money on things we love but I don't want an enormous pot with sticks. How do most designers work in terms of getting paid? How do you find designers? I just looked on Yelp and reached out to a few people to get started. One wanted money to talk which I understand but I thought I'd try people willing to give us a consult for free first. I want to be fair and pay people for their work but I also feel like this is something where the right designer for us might not be someone with a huge portfolio. Maybe the right person for us has gone to Ikea with a lot of friends with new apartments and helped them make something they really love. Or maybe it's someone who will run away if I mention Ikea. Though that's probably not the person for us.
TL; DR:
How do interior designers get paid? I realize it probably varies but what is typical?
How do you find The Right interior designer?
How does the process work with an interior designer?
Thanks!
I paid a designer for two hours of her time. She came to our home, I showed her our space and described how we wanted to use it. We spent some time looking at online furniture ideas (including IKEA). She made some sketches, too. We took the ideas and implemented most of them. We can afford nice things, but I am very hesitant to spend freely on luxuries. It was worth the money.
I got her name via referral from a friend. My friend has more money than me and much less free time, so the designer also arranged for some purchases where there may or may not have been a commission from the vendor.
There are no enormous pots of sticks in my home.
posted by TORunner at 8:44 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
I got her name via referral from a friend. My friend has more money than me and much less free time, so the designer also arranged for some purchases where there may or may not have been a commission from the vendor.
There are no enormous pots of sticks in my home.
posted by TORunner at 8:44 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
We hired an interior designer for a basement remodel, based on recommendations from friends. They were paid by the hour. Before we agreed to hire them, they came to our house and laid out some rough ideas. Once we agreed that we were all on the same page style-wise we signed a contract for X hours of work.
They delivered rough plans for the remodel, a paint color scheme, and suggestions for furniture, and furniture placement. No enormous pots were involved.
posted by monotreme at 8:53 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
They delivered rough plans for the remodel, a paint color scheme, and suggestions for furniture, and furniture placement. No enormous pots were involved.
posted by monotreme at 8:53 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
Full disclosure: I had a pot of sticks on the front step, with fairy lights. It looked great in winter with snow. In spring, the pot went back to holding flowers. The sticks came from the yard, and shoving them in the pots was kind of spontaneous.
Many department stores or big furniture stores have a decorator on staff. You need someone to not just say where to hang pictures, find the great couch and pillows and stuff, but someone to come and hang the pictures, move furniture around, get the walls painted in the chosen color. I'd look for a professional organizer to help you get a lot of the stuff done. Cheaper than a decorator, more versatile. And then a decorator to help you make the space into what you want. In bigger cities, decorators have access to showrooms with cool stuff and can supply a few pieces that will take it up a notch.
You have a kid and a cat, and this is hard on furniture. Be extremely direct about needing furniture that can be cleaned, and consider slipcovers. If a decorator suggests a pot of sticks, or things with sharp edges, etc., I would seriously reconsider the selection of this person.
posted by theora55 at 8:59 AM on June 27, 2018
Many department stores or big furniture stores have a decorator on staff. You need someone to not just say where to hang pictures, find the great couch and pillows and stuff, but someone to come and hang the pictures, move furniture around, get the walls painted in the chosen color. I'd look for a professional organizer to help you get a lot of the stuff done. Cheaper than a decorator, more versatile. And then a decorator to help you make the space into what you want. In bigger cities, decorators have access to showrooms with cool stuff and can supply a few pieces that will take it up a notch.
You have a kid and a cat, and this is hard on furniture. Be extremely direct about needing furniture that can be cleaned, and consider slipcovers. If a decorator suggests a pot of sticks, or things with sharp edges, etc., I would seriously reconsider the selection of this person.
posted by theora55 at 8:59 AM on June 27, 2018
You will learn useful things even from a designer you don't end up hiring, so don't be too reluctant to pay someone for an in-home consultation. You'll get the most out of an initial visit if you have pictures of rooms that you like and furniture styles, lamps, etc. They don't have to be the specific items you want to buy. Also keep a list of things you don't want... like, such as couch cushions that need to be punched back into shape or busy prints. While you're finding and saving your photos, don't edit them right away... you can do that later. Your own ideas will probably start to narrow down. Think about what colors you'd allow and which ones you definitely want to stay away from. Get an idea of how much "optional" stuff you want to have in the space...that is, decorative items, throw pillows, coffee table books, plants, etc. Do your own research about cat-compatible fabrics and rugs. Be ready to show and tell at the first meeting.
Clippings from Ikea and other catalogs aren't hard to organize. Pinterest is really good for saving images that you like (and don't like). And you can give a designer access to your Pinterest boards before they even come to your home.
Also, I suggest considering art and rugs early on. It's relatively easy to find a paint color to go with your art/rug, and often difficult or unsatisfying to match your art/rug to other decor.
posted by wryly at 10:02 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
Clippings from Ikea and other catalogs aren't hard to organize. Pinterest is really good for saving images that you like (and don't like). And you can give a designer access to your Pinterest boards before they even come to your home.
Also, I suggest considering art and rugs early on. It's relatively easy to find a paint color to go with your art/rug, and often difficult or unsatisfying to match your art/rug to other decor.
posted by wryly at 10:02 AM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
I would expect to pay for consultation from a good design professional, especially if they are coming to your house. Check out their online portfolios and see if you like some of the things they do. Make a Pinterest board or print stuff out to show them. You are not obligated to hire them after the consultation if you don't feel like they get you, but every consult should give you some good information, even if it's just figuring out what you don't want. That's worth paying for too, in the grand scheme of things.
An interior designer is not going to move the furniture around and hang photos though- they will be able to recommend people to do so.
posted by oneirodynia at 7:05 PM on June 27, 2018
An interior designer is not going to move the furniture around and hang photos though- they will be able to recommend people to do so.
posted by oneirodynia at 7:05 PM on June 27, 2018
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posted by permiechickie at 8:08 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]