How to Hire and Work with an
Interior Design Professional

In my 20 plus years as an Interior Designer I have heard many stories from clients telling me about their experiences with designers. It is so hard to know how to choose a professional designer…and what is a good designer anyway?!?

This question is the best place to start. I always like to preface the term “designer” with the description “professional”. Being invited into someone’s home where you view their private spaces and see how they live from day to day, is a very intimate experience. The client has invited me into his/her home and trusted me to a degree that most people outside of friends and family never experience. I do not take this lightly. Winning a job and being in charge of suppliers, workrooms, fabricators and installers is no small task and can involve thousands of dollars worth of materials and labor.

Why is it then that so many clients assign this task
to someone who is a "dabbler" or someone
who has a "knack"?

The design field is not unlike other professions, we pay professionals every day to perform tasks which we cannot or are not willing to do ourselves. It takes education and experience to make a pro. Unlike dentistry or plumbing which is very inaccessible to the average person, just about anyone can gain access to fabric and paint. Fabric and paint can be dangerous weapons in the wrong hands :-)
These two items are the obvious components of decorating and design but design is a bit like a game of chess. You can play on many different levels from the superficial to the sublime.

The professional designer is thinking about elements of the space in a far more subtle and complex fashion than the person with little or no training and experience. While it may seem that nuance is not important, many a grand decorating scheme has been lost for want of attention to detail that was missing.

Who Is a Professional Designer?

1) Professionals earn their living from their designs; they are serious about what it is they do. They have a passion for their work because it takes someone with passion and perseverance to pursue this profession. Look for someone who does this as their major source of income.

2) Membership in professional associations reinforce the practitioners’ commitments to their field. Many associations insist upon ongoing education as a requirement for their memberships. Two of the most prominent groups for interior designers are ASID (American Society of Interior Designers) and IDA (Interior Design Association).

3) Experience is key. Because each design job is custom and therefore not like any other, there is always a new challenge which hasn’t been seen before. Classroom education can only begin to prepare a designer for working in the field but it’s only when the rubber hits the road that the real learning begins. I have been in the field for over 20 years and I am still learning. While I love to encourage young people and often mentor them, I would want a seasoned professional in charge of my job.

4) Personality and style have to mesh with yours or else there will be difficulty in communication. Communication is essential so that you don’t wind up with someone else’s vision instead of your own. Remember that it is your home and should reflect your tastes and lifestyle. A true professional does not churn out a one-note “look” but is capable of taking your ideas and placing them into a workable context. Be very wary of someone who is known for giving their clients a “look”. This is often the hallmark of someone who is not comfortable with problem solving or creative thinking. They have one or two formulas and make you fit their box…not a good thing!

5) Referrals are my lifeblood and so I make a point to give my clients such a high degree of service that they are more than happy to share my name. This is the ultimate compliment and I like to think that I make a new friend out of each and every contact. Respect is important and listening to my clients is the way I can best serve them. A good designer listens but also is intuitive. Often clients cannot verbalize their needs or just aren’t in touch with what they want. It is a skilled designer who is paying attention to the signals and asks the right questions to get the client to identify his/her needs. You see, no matter how attractive the design, it is absolutely of no value if it doesn’t function. Good design is workable design for not for magazine pages but for real people.

How Designers are Paid
(read on)