What Are The Essential Questions To Ask When Hiring An Interior Designer?

When building a home or planning to renovate your home you will need the expertise of an interior designer. Always remember if you are hiring an interior designer you must choose the best one that will fit your needs. Here at Elle Designs Co., we will be sharing with you an article about the essential questions to ask when hiring an interior designer. If you think this article will be beneficial to you, we encourage you to keep reading below to find out.

There are a lot of things that you must consider when building a home or renovating it. You must search for the right interior designer to do the job for you. You must choose one that will create an overall design of the home that will reflect your personality and not the style of the designer, so you must know the important questions to ask when hiring one.

Here are some of the essential questions to ask when hiring an interior designer.

1. What are your credentials, portfolio, and references?

You must check the work samples or portfolio, credentials, and their references and make sure that they are legitimate before you hire them as your interior designer. You can also ask about their experiences and their skills. This will give you the idea of whether they are the right fit for you or not.

2. What is your design style?

This question will let you know about their design style so you can decide if it matches yours or not. For example, here at Elle Designs Co., our design reflects the client’s personality. We do not have a particular design style. The design will depend on the client’s style. We do not limit ourselves to a specific style, we always push our boundaries and explore new design styles and make sure that they will match the client’s personality and style. We will get to know and find inspiration from our clients by knowing what they like and enjoy.

If you are not sure of what you want style-wise, you can interview different interior designers and ask them to show you their portfolios. This will allow you to check their previous projects so you will have an idea if they fit your design and style preference.

3. What are the interior design services that you offer?

Interior designers offer different services. You must ask them during the consultation so you will know what you will be getting. The following are the services that an interior designer may offer.

1. Design concepts
2. Design consultation
3. Procurement or Purchasing
4. Project management
5. Site assessment and measurement
6. Space planning

You must ask this important question so you will know what the firm specializes and excels in. It will also help you understand how they think about themselves. For instance, you may need furnishings and decorations for your new home but do not know how to do it. If you are interviewing a potential interior designer, they might mention their experience with creating beautiful interiors, having a good eye for design, and having great brand relationships. An interior designer with experience in space planning and interior architecture may know an in-house architect and even have the connections for custom millwork. Both are great interior designers but if you need a designer for new furniture, you will not have to discuss the architectural aspects of your home.

4. How do you structure your projects?

When choosing an interior designer you must ask this question so you will know regarding their time management and what you can expect from it. You can just start with an initial consultation and ask about their fees before you go through the design process. A reliable interior designer will present a concept before the details of the design are finalized.

5. How much do you charge and what can offer me with my budget?

To make sure that your budget will be enough to handle the fees of an interior designer, you must ask this question. It is important because it may be too late that your budget is too small for the project that you have in mind. When renovating or building a home you must prepare a budget that you are willing to spend. You can discuss your budget with your interior designer and ask what your project will cost you. Before any design is started, you must know first if your budget is enough for the project. An interior designer will let you if the budget is not enough so he or she will recommend other services that will be a good match for you. We always want to help homeowners to get the great service that they are searching for.

Of course, you want to know how much they charge so you will know if your budget is enough to acquire their services. You must ask if they charge a flat rate, a percentage of the cost of the project, or an hourly rate. If you constantly need your interior designer, you will be better off with a flat rate than an hourly rate. However, if you will be content with less consultation you can go for an hourly rate. Interior designers who work for a percentage of the project usually take on bigger projects that will need back and forth and supervising of the installation and procurement processes of the project.

6. How do you plan to present your design ideas and concept?

An interior designer may use different things, through drawing, mood boards, or digital presentations. You must follow up on more questions regarding this topic so you can have a deeper understanding of their process and whether it fits your style or not.

Here are the steps on how a design is presented:

• Comprehensive discussion – This step is where the interior designer will learn about the client’s needs and style. This is the part where you will discuss inspiration images and the overall space plan.
• Creating a concept – This step is where the design team will create a design concept statement that will guide the project’s overall design direction.
• Procurement of materials – This step will be done once the design concept is final. The in-house team will order the accessories, furnishings, furniture, fixtures, etc.
• Installation of furnishings – This step is where the design team will be assigned to install the fixtures, accessories, furnishings, and furniture in your home.
• Revealing the finished design – Once everything has been set up, the design team will welcome you and unveil your newly renovated home to you.

7. Who will work on my project and how will you select them?

An interior designer usually works with contractors. If your designer is a part of a design team, you must also know about their background. They must know and understand your design and communication style. If a lot of individuals will be involved, the head interior designer will ensure that he or she will oversee all the aspects of the project’s design. They will review the design concepts and be present in walkthroughs.

8. Can you recommend suppliers and local contractors?

Your interior designer has connections with contractors so you might benefit from hiring them because there is a possibility that you can get a discount. Although sometimes a discount is not available, your designer can recommend reliable contractors that will be useful when procuring the materials that you will need for the project. A responsible interior designer will not put their reputation on the line so when they vouch for a great contractor it means that they have tried and tested their services.

9. Have you previously worked with similar projects?

This question will help you know about the experience of the interior designer that you will be hiring. If you are searching for an interior designer who has worked on the same projects before this question is important. For example, if you are searching for an interior designer who has worked on apartments before, it will be beneficial for you to see their previous apartment projects. If they have worked on a similar project before, you can request a before, during, and after photo so you can see if you will like the outcome of the project.

10. What was your most recent project?

You can ask about their most recent project and check the outcome. The latest project of the designer will reveal to you if he or she uses the latest design style, trends, technology, and innovation. You can also ask for a reference from the last client to check their review of the interior designer’s work.

If you are searching for an interior designer to work on your project, you must only trust Elle Designs Co. You can check our previous projects here. If you have any questions about our services please message us by filling up this contact form here. We are looking forward to working with you.

Are you searching for an interior designer? You came to the right place; Elle Designs Co. is offering interior design services. Ellen Palmer is the company owner and head designer, with more than a decade of experience, she can help improve and maximize your space. If you are interested to hire us for our services, please contact us by calling 316-641-6321 or sending an email at elledesigncollc@gmail.com. If you want to enjoy a home based on your personality, needs, and specifications, make sure to only trust Elle Designs Co. for all your interior design needs.