How do you find an interior designer?

[blinkbonny]

Please be patient with me, I have no home decoration skills. We have always done our own decoration and our house looks "fine" but I know some rooms, especially the living room, could look and work better. Our kids have largely moved out now and we've decided it's high time to refresh our living space.

I don't know where to start.

I would like to get someone with more of an eye to help me figure out how to lay out the room and what options to consider in terms of seating, lighting and decoration. I'm thinking of a total revamp: getting the walls and ceiling replastered, new lights, new rug. So I have high ambitions for change, but no real vision and no skill!

I'm clueless to what I need. I really just want someone with more artistic ability than me to give me some advice on what to consider.

I've googled interior decorators locally but their websites imply that their clientele is mainly people with large rooms, high ceilings, and expensive tastes. I have none of these things.

How do I find a person appropriate to my needs, and how much is this likely to cost?

Ask friends for recommendations?
Book a local interior designer?
Or put an ad on ‘ design for me. com ‘ I’ve done that yesterday and got lots of replies. I’m sure there’s lots of websites that can put you in touch with designers, this is just one of them.

Look at the designers’ portfolio and then book a first consult session which is typically free. In the consult session you’ll see if you both get on and you’re going to get an idea of cost and scope

I’m not in the UK, but around here you’d pay about €400 for a one-off consultation. Hourly rates are around €150.

Thanks, that's helpful for me to make a start. Other ideas welcome!

I had a quote for one recently and she charged £800 per room. We are up north too. They are not cheap in the UK. It that is because it is a really big job. They have to work out how you use the room, what you need, what you want and then where to source all the bits from and they have to be able to make a living from it. I have decided to do it myself.

I am just like you!! And sought one ifor exactly your reasons.

They are not cheap not in their fees but because they can suggest things that are expensive. Mine was about £800 per room but loads more was spent!. She absolutely revolutionised my house it's a zillion times better than I could ever have thought or done on my own. I'd recommend her but she moved abroad (without doing my stairwell sob ... )

I googled like crazy and emailed the one whose vibe I liked. Where the colours and generally look was stuff I liked. Any good designer will listen to you and create the look you want regardless of how high your ceilings are! A bad one will roll out their own style or the same thing regardless of the clients preference.

I found that the ones who specialised in kitchens were the worst and most expensive.

They should take a good couple of hours just talking to you showing you mags and books and asking you to say what you're drawn to and why before they suggest a thing.

What she did was think much much bigger than I would have - fitted furniture, hung a door the other way round, new lights in new places. She also tought me to spend more on finish - so my light switches where a cost I baulked at initially but omg they give me pleasure every time I use them and they look fab. I would never have even realised one could change the light switches and sockets to be things of beauty. I ended up spending approx 10k per room but it was worth every penny and working with her has totally helped me see what I like - "my" look - so if I ever move I'll be way more confident doing up a new place (I won't be moving hence was prepared to spend that much on my home). Good luck. It was nerve wracking at times but the end result and the sense of someone working with you to achieve your goals is absolutely worth it imo.

Before and after

Ugh pics not loading sorry

I would love to see those photos!

@blinkbonny It’s easier to buy home magazines and look at their inspiration sites. Then see what type of design you like and that suits your space, and copy it. Most interior designers will have “go to” products. This is because no one can retain a huge knowledge of fabrics, carpets etc so they use brands that are tried and tested. You too can do that.

DD is an interior designer but they work on utilizing space and pretty high end residences and commercial members’ clubs. Lots of conversions of buildings to new uses. Curtains and cushions are the finishing items but most designers work to a theme and you just need to find yours. Mostly this depends on your room dimensions, age
of house and your living style.

Paint manufacturers have inspiration pages too. I would not pay for anyone until I had looked at the high quality magazines and paint inspiration from companies like Little Greene. Farrow and Ball etc. Look at room inspiration from companies like Neptune and Designers Guild. They are not similar but which one could translate to your house?

@TizerorFizz that's good advice, thank you. I have had the same problems with magazines though - the houses shown all seem bigger than mine. I think I'm just very literal and non-visual so if it's not my actual room size/shape, I can't figure out how it would work. I'm not afraid to invest some money in making the room nice (I mean in the actual furnishings, not necessarily with a designer unless I find one I feel I can gel with), but I'm not confident enough in my ideas to make a decision. It's tough!

I’ve seen designs for smaller houses or room by room. Homes and Gardens had all sorts.

Hi @blinkbonny

I'm an interior designer and work with residential clients in exactly this type of arena. I can help refresh your home! I'm a parent of 3 and have a BA and MA in interiors plus over 7 years experience. My charges are reasonable and I work with clients via Zoom. If you'd like to drop me a message at my Instagram account I'm at vjinteriorstudio. I'd be more than happy to have a chat!

VJ

@VJhome Shameless advertising!

@anythinginapinch I'm sorry, your messages didn't load for me before so I hadn't thanked you for your detailed and helpful response - thank you so much, and I would love to see your photos also if you can get them to work!

John lewis offer home design appointments for free. I've had really good experiences with them, would definitely recommend.

Oh that's a good tip @Okdaisy , I'll definitely investigate that! Thanks!

You could think about starting with the window dressings and get a local curtain maker round, many often dabble in a bit of interior design as well or may know some local designers.

Also a good idea @KimWexlerGoodman - thanks!

I am an interiors consultant so I would recommend choosing an interior design style and colour scheme using Pinterest and then applying some prompts to AI software to see some images. PromeAI is one you could try.