Are you looking to remodel but aren’t sure if you could afford to hire an interior designer? The best interior designers will work with you to achieve your vision for your home or office: when you meet for the first time, talk to them about the budget that you have in mind. Maybe you can invest in a few conversation pieces but save a little money when it is time to reupholster your furniture. Attractive designs are so varied that you may be surprised how much your interior designer can accomplish on a shoestring.
Every design website has differing advice about how to decorate: some recommend grouping pictures and other pieces of wall art into threes, while others encourage their readers to arrange their pictures on book shelves around the room. What do you prefer? Modern designs are only limited by your imagination: we’ve seen beautiful rooms with extremely organized walls and eclectic rooms with ten pictures to a grouping. Talk to your interior designer about your preferences: can you handle a busy room or are you more a minimalist? Often, you can preview designs on a software program that is made to show you the finished project in advance.
Take stock of what you like — or dislike — about the room you are planning to revamp. What works for you and what would you like to change? Are you looking forward to a monochromatic design or are you happiest when you’re mixing patterns. Ask designers to give you their opinion about what works well in the room you’re looking to redo: sometimes, you may be able to do a “mini upgrade” and change a few key pieces until you’re satisfied with the outcome. Again, a professional designer will work with your budget and with your tastes; you should always be happy with your finished room or office. After all, the interior decorator is there to help you express your vision and your designs.
You may want to check out paint colors on your designer’s computer before you select a final color. Looking to brighten up a space? Paint all four walls a light tan or pastel yellow, then paint the ceiling white. It’s an old design trick that works well for most homes. Offices can also benefit from more color: we spend more than one-third of our weekdays working. You may want to divide one wall in half horizontally and wallpaper underneath the line. You can paint the top half in a muted color to match the wallpaper; we do not recommend installing more than one wallpaper pattern per room, however, without the advice of a professional interior decorator.
Your final designs are limited only by your imagination: you may be able to repaint or refinish bookcases and major furniture pieces. Why not give existing items a facelift? Refinishing a bookcase, for example, should take about one afternoon to accomplish. You will want to cover the fabric part of your furniture before attempting to strip or refinish the legs or exposed wooden armrests. If you are going to undertake an upholstery project on your own, then allot yourself most of a weekend to get it all finished; always strip and refinish the wooden parts of your furniture first, and always do these kinds of projects outside.
Above all, use your imagination when it comes to interior design. Your home decorating specialist will give you their input, but if you have always liked the color green, for example, be sure to mention that. If you can’t stand the thought of staring at stripes for eight hours every day, then talk to your designer. They want happy clients who are satisfied with the outcome of their home or office redesign, and can work with you if there are any particular colors you wish to leave out completely. Interior design, ultimately, is about making your dreams into reality.
