renovating – Interior Design

The day has finally come and you bought your dream house that needs to be furnished or you finally have enough money and time to renovate your bathroom, but… where do you start? After reviewing many options and possibilities and many many many ideas on Pinterest and IG, you can get very fast and easy simply overwhelmed.

Hiring a Designer is a great idea when it comes to renovations, staging and simply creating a space you feel 100% comfortable and yourself.
A Designer knows trades, has experience and gets sometimes incredible designer discounts working close with dealerships and manufactures.

I bet that Google will spit you a dozen designers and some of them are even just in the same town as you are. Great! But, which designer is your designer? Pick out 3 designers, book a consultation and start asking questions.

6 Questions to ask a Designer before you hire one

This article is made for everyone who is looking for a designer and don’t know where to start. I recently had written a full article about how to master the initial interior design consultation, which was giving tips to designers in first place, but can be inspiring for clients as well.

Would you mind walking me through your portfolio please?
There are many many designers with a great portfolio and some of them showcasing a lot of pictures, but not so much of an explanation how they got there. It’s very helpful to understand the designer’s thought and see it through their eyes. The best way to get to know the designer is through his/her past projects and finish/colour/product choices. You will learn very quickly if the designer is on the same page as you, style wise and character wise.
What brands and manufacturers do you admire and work with most?
This question is very interesting as there are many many many manufacturers and possible trades out there. You would like to make sure that your designer has the right relationships with the manufacturers and trades that provide the products you a) love and b) actually afford. Choosing a designer with the right relationships to manufacturers and product experience is necessary.
Do you understand what I want?
Good Design means mainly problem solving. Hiring the right person will help you solve the problems. Good design is only possible if the Designer understands the client’s needs and ideas. To verify that you have been understood 100% by your designer is nothing to be ashamed of. Also, give your designer as much as information as you can, weather it is something you like or really don’t like, to create a solution much faster and based on your desire.
How does a design process with you look like?
This question is very important and should be asked to clarify the whole design process in the very beginning. Hiring a Designer means putting a lot of trust in one person. The bathroom renovation or the big purchase for a new home is a big chapter for you and should be as clear as possible throughout the whole process. The best way to understand the process is having it written out. I call it agreement, some call it contract. It outlines every single step as detailed as possible where the designer will guide you through the process and where he/she wouldn’t. Make sure that you understand the agreement before signing.
What’s the timeframe for this project?
Agreed, it’s not easy to set a firm time frame for an interior design project, but an estimated time frame shall be possible. This should be usually outlined in the agreement as well.
Is there anything else I should know about you as a designer or about the way you work?
Round up the questionnaire with an open and simple question. Is the designer excited about the opportunity to give more information? are you important to her/him?
If the designer is willing to give more insights about the way he/she works and puts effort in to make you understand his/her way of working with clients, you will quick realize if you guys are on the same page. I personally take as much as time as I can during my first consultation. This way it shows potential clients that I am open and listening and giving as much as information as they need to hear to feel 100% comfortable.

I hope this article helped in choosing the right designer for your project.
If you are interested in meeting me and asking all those questions 😉
please send me an email, call or comment below. I offer free design consultations on site or at your nearest coffee shop location within Vancouver, Squamish and Whistler.

Please find my portfolio here.
Happy Tuesday!

xoxo
Sina

Nobody said it would be easy to become your own boss and especially working as your own boss. Besides the marketing, accounting and fun projects, there are first of all those design consultations to succeed to get a job.

How to master the initial interior design consultation?

Set up a meeting.

For a design consultation it’s best to set up a meeting. Once you called your client back, make sure you get the correct address and an overall idea of what the job is about. The worst is to step into a meeting and having no idea what it’s going to be about. It doesn’t hurt to ask a couple more questions beforehand. If you client feels uncomfortable to talk about the budget over the phone, fee that question for the meeting.

Send a follow up.

Once you set up an appointment, make sure that you follow up with your client about the meeting. This can be right after the phone conversation or the day before. This way, you make sure that the meeting day and time is understood on both sides. It’s also important to follow up with your client after the meeting. Guide your client what he/she will expect and what will be done next during your design consultation, but it doesn’t hurt to outline that in an email again.

Prepare.

Most important, for any meeting, be prepared. Make a list of things you need for a design consultation if you attend to forget things. I have 3 most important things: My phone, something to write and sketch and my measurement tape. It will help you being prepared for any questions your client may have.

Be yourself.

Don’t try to be someone else. Be true to yourself. Your client hired you because he/she is interested in YOU and your design, not someone else’s.
With your own energy and drive you will succeed and the client will be more then happy to have met you.

Guide your client.

Guide your client wherever you can. This meeting might be your client’s first design consultation and might not have the same experience as you do.
Everything that seem very usual to you, might not seem usual to your client.
Guiding your client includes as well making sure that the whole design process is understood and agreed. In lots of cases the designer has a certain way of design process, which might not be the perfect way for all potential clients. Which make me switch to our next and last point below.

Communicate with your client.

Figure out what exactly your client’s needs are while you are on site. This is the moment, where you can throw every single question in space and hopefully get your information you need. This is very important to get to know your client and his goals. Your goal is your client’s goal and a smooth process without any discrepancy. Make sure you and your client are on one page before your start the design process.

Write up an agreement.

After your consultation and a follow up email it’s important to write out all the goals and statements in an agreement, that have been discussed. That agreement will be a guidance for your client and yourself. It includes a description of the design process, how much work and hours you will apply to that job and your wage. This needs to be agreed and best signed by your client, before your design process starts.

I hope you enjoyed my little statement. Comment below if you have any questions or anything to add? Thank you.

Cheers, Sina