Interior Decorator - Good Idea or Bad Idea for FTBs?

itchap2

Hi,

We're about to close on our first house! but we need help!

I'd be really grateful if some of you experienced house owners would offer your advise on Interior Decorators if you have some time to spare?

The house is a new build and comes with a kitchen including appliances, fitted wardrobes throughout and tiled floors in the kitchen, hallway and bathrooms. All other floors including stairs are bare. So basically we have a white canvas

Unfortunately due to work commitments we have little or no time to decorate and furnish the house before we need to leave our apartment and move in.

So we're considering hiring an interior decorator and would be very interested to know what to expect with regards to your experiences, standard prices, timelines, pitfalls, and basically anything we need to know.

Any advice is welcome!

Thanks
itchap

Sleepy

One word to keep in your mind as the thing to look out for: "notions".

Hiring a painter / decorator might make sense in your situation but I really don't see any value in the services offered by most "designers". I can see the value in, and would be happy to hire, a good architect, but when it comes to furnishing and decorating a property a designer is going to charge you a substantial amount of money to decorate your house in their taste or to whatever happens to be "in" at the moment. It really doesn't take long to decide wall colours or the type of furniture you want, there's nothing wrong with a white canvas either, I quite like the look myself. Living with it for a month or two will help you get a feel for the house and which rooms would benefit from a warmer colour etc.

itchap2

Thanks Sleepy, some good advice there. Think you're point about settling in first to better understand what a room needs

jlm29

Some paint shops offer a service where someone will come out and suggeSt colours for all the rooms. I know pat McDonnell does it- I've no idea of cost, but I'd imagine if you were buying all your paint there, the service would be priced to reflect this.
I'd be worried about someone else doing things to their taste too- I'd be more concerned withbuying furniture that reflects your needs- and as you've already said- you don't yet know what they are.
If you have a blank canvas, you shouldn't be in too much of a rush- spend a few hours on Pinterest and get and idea of what you want- if you figure out flooring and wall colours, the rest of it can be done as you go!

meeeeh

Personally if building again I would go with good architect with a vision for the whole house including interior. I have a lot less regard for interior decorators with preference for color matching cushions, wallpaper and candles. I agree with suggestion to first move in and get the feel for the place and what you want from the rooms. Then when you have clearer idea you could talk to one but make sure that you get someone that has good sense and knowledge about how space works and about what you want. You don't want to live in someone else's show house.

itchap2

Thanks very much for the advice guys!

gabsdot40

I went to visit a house a few months ago and I was struck at how nicely decorated it was, lovely pictures on the walls, a few ornaments and lamps and lovely colours.
The owner told me that when he bought the house he hired an interior decorator to do the interiors and he hadn't decorated since. It was 14 years old and hasn't dated at all.
So based on that a good interior decorator is well worth it.

GeorgeOrwell

I'm sure a decent painter-decorator could give you the same design advice and do the decorating work too.

Professional decorators are much more efficient at painting than you or I would be, and they have all the specialist equipment needed, so you could end up saving money by employing a professional decorator and not wasting paint and time.

firlodge

Hi all,
I am an interior designer & for several years have been following this forum and been offering advice as much as I can- (so many of the questions do not need a professional response so I leave it to others) but I'm afraid the time has come for a rant!
Please try not to dis all interior designers and the interior design profession - some of us work very hard & do a good job and deserved to be paid for our time just like everybody else!
Yes there are bad designers out there - as in all professions & word of mouth for recommendations is very valuable.
I am very long doing what I do and do it very well and help make life easier for lots of people.
Please give interior designers a break!
Thanks

KFiddles

I have always found that a good designer adds an incredible amount of value to a project. They have ideas and sources I would never have imagined and a good designer is always diligent about putting their clients wishes and tastes ahead of their own.

I find that they usually save me money as I get a result I'm delighted with and don't have to think or respend on the same stuff twice. And if I do go over budget it's because they've thought of a solution that I thought was worth the spend.

GeorgeOrwell

KFiddles wrote: »

I find that they usually save me money as I get a result I'm delighted with and don't have to think or respend on the same stuff twice. And if I do go over budget it's because they've thought of a solution that I thought was worth the spend.

Could you give some ballpark figures in terms of what you saved, and how?

I'm tempted to go with an interior designer, but it'd be good to see exactly what sort of savings I could get.

witchgirl26

I honestly think that you need to live in the house a bit first to understand how you use the rooms. If you have just enough furniture to get you by, then you'll be ok. It means that if you're doing it yourself, you can decide exactly what works and if hiring an interior designer, you can explain to them how you use the rooms (which will mean that they'll be able to choose more appropriate to you items/colours etc).

I have completely different ideas now for my house than I did when we first moved in. I thought we'd use some spaces a lot more than we actually did and others more than I thought.

jlm29

witchgirl26 wrote: »

I honestly think that you need to live in the house a bit first to understand how you use the rooms. If you have just enough furniture to get you by, then you'll be ok. It means that if you're doing it yourself, you can decide exactly what works and if hiring an interior designer, you can explain to them how you use the rooms (which will mean that they'll be able to choose more appropriate to you items/colours etc).

I have completely different ideas now for my house than I did when we first moved in. I thought we'd use some spaces a lot more than we actually did and others more than I thought.

This is exactly what I meant by my post. I wasn't trying to knock interior designers at all!