How to find a great interior designer
December 7, 2022 3:52 PM Subscribe
Recently bought a 900 sqft condo in the US and I appreciate thoughtfully furnished spaces and want my place to look great. But I have no idea how to decorate on my own. Willing to spend $50K+ on furniture, etc. But I don't know where to start in looking for a good interior decorator / viewing portfolios to see if we have similar tastes, etc.
I move into the place in 10 months.
Any advice on how to get started?
Response by poster: @minervous Houzz seems a little too basic.
posted by jtothes at 4:52 PM on December 7, 2022
posted by jtothes at 4:52 PM on December 7, 2022
I would start with some of the professional associations for Interior Designers and go from there.
Interior Design Society has this page for homeowners looking to get started.
The American Society of interior Designers has a Find a Pro section.
posted by hydra77 at 4:58 PM on December 7, 2022
Interior Design Society has this page for homeowners looking to get started.
The American Society of interior Designers has a Find a Pro section.
posted by hydra77 at 4:58 PM on December 7, 2022
I don't think Houzz is particularly basic. I've met with (though never ultimately hired) designers who routinely work on multimillion dollar projects via Houzz. Every designer I have worked with, most of whom are pretty high-end, have portfolios on Houzz. That's not to say that I think Houzz is the best place to find them because there are also lots of not-so-great designers there. But I've found that it covers the whole range. It may be regional, I don't know.
Not to be too obvious, but the best success we've had in hiring designers is by getting referrals from people who have had them do similar projects. If a friend has a house (or room) we love, we'll ask them who their designer was and we've had good luck with those people. If that route is not available to you, I agree with hydra77 that the professional associations can give you some starting points. I've only used ASID's site, and am not familiar with Interior Design Society.
My biggest piece of advice in hiring a designer is to hire someone who has a track record of doing the kinds of projects you have, in the style you want. So you're on the right track when you mention looking at portfolios for similar taste. My experience is that many designers will claim to be able to do any style, but most of them are far better at some styles than others. At this point, no matter how nice the designer's work is, I won't hire them if they can't show me examples that look very close to what I want. It's just too much of an uphill battle to work in a style that is not their natural taste, IMHO (I know many professional designers vehemently disagree with this; all I can tell you is that this is my consistent experience after working with numerous designers on many projects in several houses).
And if they don't routinely work on projects of the type and scale you have, they may struggle. E.g. I would not hire someone who specializes in bathroom remodels to do a whole-house design (but if I was just doing a bathroom, I'd favor people who specialize in that).
posted by primethyme at 5:13 PM on December 7, 2022 [2 favorites]
Not to be too obvious, but the best success we've had in hiring designers is by getting referrals from people who have had them do similar projects. If a friend has a house (or room) we love, we'll ask them who their designer was and we've had good luck with those people. If that route is not available to you, I agree with hydra77 that the professional associations can give you some starting points. I've only used ASID's site, and am not familiar with Interior Design Society.
My biggest piece of advice in hiring a designer is to hire someone who has a track record of doing the kinds of projects you have, in the style you want. So you're on the right track when you mention looking at portfolios for similar taste. My experience is that many designers will claim to be able to do any style, but most of them are far better at some styles than others. At this point, no matter how nice the designer's work is, I won't hire them if they can't show me examples that look very close to what I want. It's just too much of an uphill battle to work in a style that is not their natural taste, IMHO (I know many professional designers vehemently disagree with this; all I can tell you is that this is my consistent experience after working with numerous designers on many projects in several houses).
And if they don't routinely work on projects of the type and scale you have, they may struggle. E.g. I would not hire someone who specializes in bathroom remodels to do a whole-house design (but if I was just doing a bathroom, I'd favor people who specialize in that).
posted by primethyme at 5:13 PM on December 7, 2022 [2 favorites]
I can't recommend a designer but often find inspiration by looking at the spaces that come up from googling Apartment Therapy Small Space Contest, which is an annual contest for people with space slightly smaller than your own.
posted by dobbs at 6:06 PM on December 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by dobbs at 6:06 PM on December 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
Check out theexpert.com - you can filter through designers (by style, location, price, etc) , book a video consult, and if you like them and their style - I bet you could hire them for a larger scale project. Good luck!
posted by girlalex at 6:33 PM on December 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by girlalex at 6:33 PM on December 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
Do you have any regional/state lifestyle magazines in your area? Often those types of publications will do spotlights on area designers complete with pictures etc. Or have advertisers that may interest you.
Are there any higher end furniture stores in your area? Find a store where you like the style and ask them if they know any designers.
posted by domino at 9:41 AM on December 8, 2022
Are there any higher end furniture stores in your area? Find a store where you like the style and ask them if they know any designers.
posted by domino at 9:41 AM on December 8, 2022
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if you have a style you're already interested in, you could pick up a corresponding magazine and peruse both their editorials and their ads to get names of designers. For example, if you want an english country house vibe, you grab a World of Interiors, or minimalist modern, Dwell.
posted by minervous at 4:22 PM on December 7, 2022