You’re ready to renovate or refresh your space and poised to meet with your Calgary interior designer. To get maximum results from your designer’s expertise, here are some ideas to help you prepare.
Our profession owes a great deal to HGTV – having watched designers work their magic on television, people now have a much better idea of what designers can actually do for them. A Calgary interior designer certainly has the ability to envision spaces and rooms in completely different ways. This re-visioning can be difficult for a homeowner; it can be challenging to see beyond what is currently there.
Below are some ideas to help you prepare and get maximum results from your designer’s expertise:
Project Goals
- Be as clear and descriptive about your goal for your renovation (or decorating) project. Do you long for better storage, room for multiple cooks, seating for eight when entertaining, easy-to-clean surfaces, jaw-dropping lighting, a spa-like retreat, cheerful and bright?
- Describe how your family lives in the space. Tell me in detail about what’s not working: poor storage solutions, room for only one cook, inadequate lighting, not enough drawers, disorganized pantry, not enough electrical outlets, no room for towels or supplies, etc.
- Define how you would like the space to function for you including specific activities that occur in each room: cooking, file storage, homework, meditation, studying, or dining.
- Tell me about how and when you entertain. Do you like to host formal dinner parties or is a buffet on the island more your style? Do you gather to play games or is a fireplace to be the focal point in the room?
- What’s your cooking style? Are you a pastry wizard or is take-out your thing?
Project Inspiration
Whenever I am meeting clients for the first time, I ask them to prepare for our meeting by pulling some photos that appeal to them from the internet (houzz.com is a great source of images) or from magazines. If you’d like to take it a step further, creating a mood board to communicate with your Calgary interior designer would be ideal! We wrote a blog about this very process. Find it here. When we meet they are a useful tool to discuss what is appealing in each photo and why it speaks to the homeowner. (It can be equally useful and sometimes easier to start the discussion with what you don’t want).
- What colours do you love?
- Do you have a favourite place like a beach resort or even a treasured piece of art that inspires you?
- How do you want to feel in your home? Feelings are incredibly important. Our homes should nurture and restore us so that we can offer our best selves to our families and our larger communities. Do you want to feel inspired? Calmed? Nurtured? Energized? Expansive? Protected and cozy? What will inspire joy for you?
Tools and Resources
Gather up floor plans and drawings and whatever technical information you can regarding your home. What year was your home built? Are you able to get a copy of your home’s floor plans? Having these at the ready can save time and money in the preparation of project drawings. If the drawings are complete, they will provide valuable information regarding the structural design of your home.
Great design comes as a result of three factors coming together in a cohesive way:
- the clients desired outcome for their homes;
- the realities and requirements of the structure itself, and;
- the sensitive blending of aesthetics and function that the right designer will bring to the conversation.
A good designer will be intensely interested in you and your family – the goal is to make your home feel and work better for YOU – not to impose the designer’s vision on your family.
Krista Hermanson Design & Construction is a Calgary interior designer and construction company. We have worked with many families in Calgary to help bring their visions for their homes to life. Perhaps these tips will inspire you to get started with your design journey.
Want to get in touch with us? Lets Talk.