Top Tips for Working With an Interior Designer

So you’ve found your interior designer — the person that will, in theory, make your visions become reality. How do you ensure that your working relationship is such that they really do get your vision?

Any good interior designer is experienced in filtering out the noise and getting to the beating heart of your future home. Not only can they be trusted with your vision, but they’ll add things into the picture you might never have thought of. After all, it’s possible to become blinkered and fixate on the details — it’s the interior designer’s job to see the details as a part of the bigger picture and draw them all together.

But blue-sky ideas, long-standing visions, and key details can’t come to life without a healthy working relationship. Let’s take a look at some top tips for working with your interior designer so you can get the best out of the process.

Know the process

Understanding the process of luxury home interior design will help you understand how much involvement you need to have and what should be happening when.

1. Site visit & getting to know you

The first thing that needs to happen is for the interior designer to meet you – and your home. A site walkthrough and an open conversation will be needed at this point so that the interior designer can begin to form the brief.

Pre-prepare your answers to questions such as:

• What do you love about the home you live in currently?
• What would you change about the home you live in currently?
• Are there any key items you specifically would like to keep or want to take centre stage?
• Who are the members of your family and what are their needs?
• Do you have frequent visitors?
• Do you have any hobbies that you would like to be taken into account?
• Do you carry out business from home?
• Are there any particular design styles you love?
• How do you envision the spaces? What words would you use to describe how you want each of the spaces to feel?
• What mood do you want each room to create?

2. Appraisal & brief

The interior designer brings together ideas for layouts and designs for approval. In your meeting, you’ll talk about spaces, functionality, and aesthetics.

3. Concept design

Building on the appraisal phase, this stage involves converting ideas into sketches. Illustrations are made of site plans, elevations, and floor plans — including rough ideas of furniture pieces and fabric schemes.

Using the reference imagery, be sure you voice the things you really love and don’t like at this point. Your interior designer is keen to get it right for you, so it’s better to speak now than speak too late!

But also be aware that they have your best interests at heart — they may be seeing a cohesive picture you’re not yet seeing, and an idea that sounds crazy will more often than not be one that pulls off. They’re the experts with a passion for luxury home interior design, after all. Having said that, if you feel you’re missing something, be honest.

4. Design development

This phase is where creativity really starts coming to life and the interior designer begins getting into the details. Now’s the time where selections will be made for: specific furniture, finishes, lighting, and bespoke commissions for things like kitchen cabinetry, bathroom taps, millwork, and more.

You may find yourself quite involved in this process and beginning to get excited about what your home will look like. Selections are confirmed by you ahead of procurement.

5. Technical construction drawings

Now that you have your blueprint, your interior design team will create detailed drawings for your construction team to work from. All specifications are included and the construction documents are then processed in order to estimate cost.

At this stage, it might seem like everyone’s got their heads down in paperwork. This is true — but if you have any questions, keep in mind that your interior designer is open to them.

6. Construction

The final phase begins with construction and ends with a finished, polished home! Making changes now is possible, but can cause significant delays. In an ideal world, all you need to do at this stage is sit back and watch it all come together.

Our key tips for working with an interior designer

While we’ve covered off some of the things to keep in mind throughout each of the steps above, we wanted to outline our general advice to make the process a more seamless, enjoyable experience.

1. Discuss communication early on.Agree how often you will meet/speak on the phone. When you do speak, be sure to make the time for them with minimal distractions.
2. Be honest and transparent— these are absolutely key here. If you change your mind, let your interior designer know. They will do the same for you. Designs change throughout the process, so it’s crucial that you stay on the same page.
3. Trust your interior designer. Keep an open mind and your interior designer will open doors for you into spaces beyond your wildest dreams. Trusting the experts you hire is vital — they’re there to do the heavy lifting for you. It’s also never a good idea to ‘outshop’ your designer by buying pieces that look like ones they’ve drawn up, as they’ll have put a lot of thought into why it should be a certain way.
4. Get involved! While it’s important to give your interior designer space to do what they do best, that doesn’t mean you need to keep your distance. It’s your future home we’re talking about, and they want to make it right for you. So send swatches, Pinterest boards, and pictures of rooms you like — as well as those you dislike.

Lastly, and most importantly…

Enjoy the process

The working relationship you establish with your interior designer will be key to great collaboration and, ultimately, the creation of your dream home.

It’s not just the final destination that you should be able to enjoy, but the journey you took to get there, too. Let creative sparks fly, get involved, and get excited; you’re all working towards the same thing — a luxury home you can enjoy for a lifetime.

For beautiful luxury homes built with integrity, you can rely on Aspire to exceed your expectations. Our team of interior designers, construction professionals, and project managers will take you from A to Z and beyond. Find out more about us here and discover our previous commissions here.