Myth #2: I can’t afford an interior designer
This is one of many myths about the interior design and decor field, over the following few months I will be discussing, and hopefully dispelling these:
- Interior design myth #1 – There is no difference between interior designers and interior decorators.
- Interior design myth #2 – I can’t afford an interior designer.
- Interior Design myth#3 – My home will look like your style, and wont reflect my personality.
- Interior design myth#4 – I can do it myself, I see it on TV all the time.
- Interior design myth #5 – I can get free designer advice in a salon or shop.
- Interior design myth#6 – Good design is trendy
- Interior design myth #7 – Interior designers are “artsy weirdoes”.
- Interior design myth #8 – Even if I don’t like the design, I will still have to pay.
Another approach to this myth is my reply “can you afford NOT to hire an interior designer?”
Yes interior designers charge for their time, if we didn't we wouldn't be viewed as providing a professional service. Would you go to a doctor and not expect to pay for the consultation, and just for the medication? I thought not.
When you actually know what services interior designers provide it might be clearer; one example might be that we can do a basic scaled furniture layout before the foundations are cast, this will allow for positioning of light fittings as well as plug points, this prevents a situation where there might not be a power point where you need one, and in the same right a plug point staring you in the face where you actually don’t need it ; or selecting an incorrect floor or wall finish; incorrect sanitary and brass-ware; not to mention selecting an incorrect kitchen that you may hate for years to come when installed -these variations on a building or renovation project add up quickly, and before you know it, this bill is often times more than the fee you would have paid an interior design professional. You can decide to what scale you would like the designer to be involved, and this hourly fee is a small sacrifice for a professional service that will save you from making costly mistakes.
Our job is to make your space practical and safe for you to inhabit eliminating mistakes, and allowing you to complete the project once, properly and within budget. We work with your realistic budget, even if it means getting very creative with design concepts and re-using existing furnishings, when at that stage of the project.
Working with an ethical interior designer or design company means you won’t pay more buying anything through a designer than you will pay doing it yourself, only with the advantage of dealing with one central contact, not to mention all the relationships the designer has built with suppliers and manufacturers through working in the industry. Protect your investment by hiring a professional design team for your project.
Dale Dennis (B-Tech Interior design TUT)
