6 Questions to ask a Designer before you hire one

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.

  1. 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.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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

A Phone Booth in an Office?

Yes! I now it may sound to some of you bizarre, but it’s definitely something that should be given thoughts to.

What kind of Phone Booths are we talking about?

I am not talking about regular phone booths, that we still love visiting in London (don’t we all take that typical tourist picture?).
This is a total different phone booth that helps in a way that employees seeking their space to relax, taking phone calls and just having a break from the outside world inside an office.

SIlen Space Phone Booth – Double.

Why do we need a Phone Booth in the Office?

Nowadays, offices are shifting more and more towards an open office work environment where we love to collaborate and relax in lounge areas, but also work remotely from desk to sofa and back. But don’t we all love our privacy as well?
Some of you may haven’t thought of it, but we may all have experienced a situation where we received a call in an inconvenient situation at work sitting in an open office environment, where co-workers and even maybe your manager can hear every single word, if they wanted to, and we do need to take that call. Aren’t we all searching for another area to take private phone call? Sometimes we’d walk outside or blocking one of the boardrooms?
The worst scenario is having co-workers wondering around with their phone, as they have nowhere to go, but disturbing other fellows while raising their voice throughout the workspace.

Silen Space makes the difference.

With Silen Space Phone Booths employees have the opportunity to take phone calls in a compact place, while everyone have their privacy and no-one gets disturbed. Further more, it’s a private lounge, I’d like to call it.

Silen Space Phone Booth – Lounge Area

Silen Space Advantages:

  1. NO ONE can hear a thing you’re saying within that phone booth – of course only if the door is shut 😉
  2. The Phone Booth comes in different sizes – Single, Double, for 4 or 6 people.
  3. All Spaces have hidden wheels and adjustable legs which make them quickly movable and easily installable even on uneven surfaces. The modules can be attached and detached swiftly and simply.
  4. There is the option to add Plugs and USB to any phone booth variation.
  5. The silent air circulation system guarantees a fresh atmosphere for longer phone calls, conversations and meetings while the presence detector that automatically controls the LED lights helps to keep the energy use to an optimum level.
  6. Silen Space Phone booth users have measured that the noise levels inside our pods are roughly 37 dB lower than outside of them.
  7. All floor sockets are waterproof and all Spaces are equipped with a residual current device that makes them safe to use. 
  8. Heads up: You do not need a sprinkler within the Phone Booth. It will be accepted when inspected as the Phone Booth comes on Wheels and counts as a “furniture” piece.

Additional Features:

  • The Phone Booths are available in different finishes such as the exterior panels come in 3 standard and 29 custom colours. Besides, the exterior panels are made of durable laminated surfaces.
  • Silen Space only uses highly durable materials for the interior wall and flooring. They are hypoallergenic and fireproof. Thats why Silen Spaces are usable from day one, emitting no strong chemical smells during the first weeks.
  • Wait for the technical aspect: For any Silen Space Phone Booth, starting at a double size, the CO2 sensor, inside temperature, presence sensor, light, ventilation, and user data history are all controllable and accessible
  • Depending on your space, you may need the door handles right or left handed. Silen Space offers you to choose.
  • Are you interested in branding your Silen Space Phone Booth? That’s doable by adding a film in whichever shade, pattern or company branding either before or after the installation. You can also cover all glass surfaces in tinted film to add more privacy to your Space.
  • One of the biggest things, clients always ask me as a designer, what the warranty looks like: Silen Spaces come with a warranty of up to 5 years (click for the Warranty Terms & Conditions).

I hope that this article opened up your mind for the need of privacy in office environments in general. The Silen Phone Booths are a great idea to work towards that and a huge advantage for individuals seeking for privacy without disturbing their surrounding areas.

Find more information on their website or contact me.


See yourself and book an office tour with me to simply try the Silen Space Phone Booth. Email me at sina@vanteriordesign.com or Call: 778 899 4849

Cheers,
Sina


Note: Pictures are provided by Silenspace.com