Online exterior design consultation
February 12, 2019 2:02 PM Subscribe
I'm looking for recommendations for an online exterior designer / advisor. Ideally, I'd like to provide them with pictures of my house from all directions, show them some of my inspirations and ideas, and have them deliver renderings.
Does such a service even exist? All the designers in my area tend to focus on interior only, so I'm hoping Mefi can help me out. Thanks!
Does such a service even exist? All the designers in my area tend to focus on interior only, so I'm hoping Mefi can help me out. Thanks!
Response by poster: Mainly the latter. I agree about the site visit. I'll keep looking locally.
posted by bjork24 at 2:22 PM on February 12, 2019
posted by bjork24 at 2:22 PM on February 12, 2019
So construction then? Any of your area's bigger home renovation firms will have a design arm. In my dealings with them about 50% of them will have their own ideas about what they want to do, so get multiple estimates and go with the one that fits your budget and listens to what you want.
posted by The_Vegetables at 2:28 PM on February 12, 2019
posted by The_Vegetables at 2:28 PM on February 12, 2019
A lot of this going to depend on your photography skills. Being able to show what matters in a way that is comprehensible to people who have not actually been onsite is a skill that surprisingly few people have.
Looked at from a certain angle, this is pretty much my entire job. I think I can comfortably say that where I work, I am the best at this type of thing, and that there is only one, maybe two other people there who can reliably do the same to an acceptable standard such that a designer who has not visited the site themselves can make a workable plan.
I have literally never seen a homeowner (customer) do this successfully. I have seen it tried many times, but it has never ever worked even for the simplest of jobs. I don't know why this is the case. It just is.
So don't be too terribly surprised if you have a hard time finding a company that performs this service. Also, if you find one that does do it and their system actually works, please please please MeMail me because I would love to get in touch with them and learn how they make it work.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 2:54 PM on February 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
Looked at from a certain angle, this is pretty much my entire job. I think I can comfortably say that where I work, I am the best at this type of thing, and that there is only one, maybe two other people there who can reliably do the same to an acceptable standard such that a designer who has not visited the site themselves can make a workable plan.
I have literally never seen a homeowner (customer) do this successfully. I have seen it tried many times, but it has never ever worked even for the simplest of jobs. I don't know why this is the case. It just is.
So don't be too terribly surprised if you have a hard time finding a company that performs this service. Also, if you find one that does do it and their system actually works, please please please MeMail me because I would love to get in touch with them and learn how they make it work.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 2:54 PM on February 12, 2019 [2 favorites]
Also, you're probably looking for a design/build GC specializing in additions and renovations, or maybe an architect, depending on how fancy your job is. And for what you're going to end up paying and how much time people are inevitably going to spend at your house anyway during the build phase, it's probably well worth it to get the designer there in person for a couple of hours to put their own eyes on your house and talk to you face-to-face. I think if you tried to get a design based just on photographs that you took, you'd kinda be short-changing yourself.
Seriously though, do let me know if you find someone who can do this successfully.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 3:07 PM on February 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
Seriously though, do let me know if you find someone who can do this successfully.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 3:07 PM on February 12, 2019 [3 favorites]
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The only wrinkle is the domain knowledge to do either is very much location-dependent, so finding one that will only work online will be difficult. They will all want site visits, even if they ultimately deliver renderings to you online. In my opinion you should not discount the value of a site visit.
posted by The_Vegetables at 2:18 PM on February 12, 2019