FAQ’s

Interior design impacts every aspect of your life, but only you can decide whether or not you need an interior designer. Proper planning not only eliminates costly re-works, but it also expedites the completion of the project. There is more value in experience than in inexperience, and since interior designers have worked on many projects, they can provide solutions which may not be obvious to you. You can definitely benefit from their objective viewpoint, and they can offer guidance about products which are new or specific to your needs.

In evaluating this question, first ask yourself if you can dedicate the necessary time to all the project details. If the answer is no, then you should consider contacting us. Our interior design services are offered on a consultation basis, and you can purchase as little or as much help as you wish. When you consider the vast experience of our interior design staff, you can actually save money by eliminating costly errors and wasted time on trying to locate correct products for your project.

Since there is no education required to provide interior decorating services, interior decorators may or may not have formal training.  They focus on selecting products based on aesthetics.  Many decorators simply “have a knack or flair” for creating pleasant interior settings.  Decorators may not be familiar with applicable building and life safety codes.  Interior designers are trained in the technicalities of design–spatial relationships, efficiency adjacencies, building and life safety codes, traffic flow, product performance qualities, furniture layouts, project specific lighting and electrical requirements, acoustics, and color psychology.  Interior designers are educated, experienced, and tested for competency in the art and science of interior design.  They also address the aesthetics of the project. Interior designers are, for the most part, graduates of 4 or 5 year curriculums in interior design.  There are some exceptions to this, so before you hire an interior designer, ask about credentials.

The earlier the better.  Interior designers can interview the client and help develop the course of action required for personalized design solutions.  They can create “footprints” which reflect the spatial relationships and required project adjacencies;  they can develop project specifications;  and they can engage other professionals required to complete the project.  This process eliminates confusion and saves the client money by assuring that all tradesmen are providing “apples to apples” pricing.

Each of our interior designers has personal tastes, but those are not imposed on our clients. We do not believe in creating “cookie cutter” designs based on current trends. It is our job to engage you, to listen to your wants and needs, and to assist you in creating a space which is totally reflective of your personality, your lifestyle, and your specific design needs. It is our job to apply the principles of design and to assure that you do not make costly mistakes through lack of oversight or lack of understanding of the design process.

Our interior designers provide data gathering/programming (determining exactly what is needed); problem solving; space planning; furniture specifications and layouts; finish specifications and schedules; technical drawings (blueprints, elevations, schematics, perspectives, etc); electrical and acoustical planning; circulation and lighting analysis; barrier-free and code compliant design solutions; product purchasing and installation services; and project management/oversight.