I KNOW what you’re thinking…
Interior designers cost money – they don’t save you money, right?
Not necessarily true. While you have to pay a designer, oftentimes the money they can save you far outweighs their expense.
When we kicked off our Big Fat Home Renovation a few months ago, I reached out to my friend Monique’s social media client, TWF Designs. TWF Designs is run by Tom Foster, a San Diego interior designer. I explained our plans to him and got a consult.
Here is what I want to share with you about working with a designer.
They Can Save You Money on Materials
Designers often get contractor pricing on materials – and I don’t just mean things like construction supplies. That granite you had your eye on? Or what about that beautiful flooring you’ve been pinning to Pinterest? Chances are that a designer can obtain those products for you at significantly less cost than you could obtain them at retail.
One thing I learned from working with Tom – even though we’ve purchased granite more times than we can count – is that now many granite yards are selling prefabricated slabs. As you may know, the biggest expense with granite is the custom fabrication that is required. By purchasing a prefabricated slab, you can save a ton of money on countertops. This knowledge is helping us in our master bathroom vanity area, where we now think we’ll be able to get a high end slab countertop for what we would have spent on tile.
They Can Save You Money On Labor
A designer who has been in the business for a long time will have a big fat list of construction contacts. These are contacts that have proven themselves for quality and price. By working with a designer’s trusted vendors, you can be assured that you’ll get a better end product.
They Can Be Your Sanity Check On Aesthetics
Tom Foster has been a great sanity check for us on our kitchen renovation. He has validated some of our design choices by saying, yes, this is a good option, and it’s timeless and won’t go out of style tomorrow. In other cases, he’s raised red flags about certain choices – whether it’s the shape of a cabinet or whether we really want to wall in that butler’s pantry. This objective third-party input has helped us refine our plan and think through the details before whipping out our checkbook and maybe regretting the choices someday.
They Can Help You Repurpose Items You Already Have
Most of our furniture is…blechy. It’s a mishmosh of various styles that got thrown together over the years with no real thought or concept behind it. I’d love to chuck it all and get new, but that’s not realistic. I have a hard time thinking outside the box with the pieces I have and where they might be utilized. A designer can help you look at what you have in a new way and minimize what you have to purchase new.
They Can Help You See The Big Picture
When doing a renovation, it’s easy to slip into the mindset of just getting through the next set of urgent decisions, whether it be cabinets or flooring or furniture – and you never step back to see the big picture of how it all will fit together and flow. The problem is that when you approach a renovation in this way, the end result might not feel as cohesive as it should. A designer can help take this perspective on your behalf – again, saving you from making costly mistakes.
So that’s it! I’d love to hear your thoughts. Have you ever worked with a designer?
Disclosure: TWF Designs provided me with a consult in exchange for this post. I received no other compensation, and all opinions expressed here are my own.
About the Author Gigi Ross
I'm a blogger, social media geek, mom and wife, foodie, reality TV addict and Jason Mraz fangirl. Not in that order. I write here about parenting, blogging, technology, social media and pop culture.
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I am a believer in a good designer. We have an open concept house – meaning the rooms all blend together, but I wanted to define “the kitchen” from the “family room” even though they were right next to each other. We literally bought 30 paint samples (NOT CHEAP) and put them on walls all through the house trying to come up with something that was compatible but different from one area to the next.
Finally, the painter got tired of me saying, “I just haven’t decided on a paint yet” and suggested we call the interior decorator that he works with all the time (and HE paints her house!)
She came to our house, I explained the problem, and within one hour she picked the paint colors for 5 rooms (and got me a red wall around our fireplace) and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE every color she chose.
And yes, that was a long-winded story to confirm what you said, hiring a professional decorator will save you time, money and FRUSTRATION when re-doing a project.
The only thing I can say is that we were “in the ballpark” when it came to colors, but just didn’t have the expertise or confidence she has. I knew what I wanted, and could recognize that what she picked was absolutely the perfect choice, but was never able to achieve it.
I would definitely use her again!
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