Your Interior Design Questions Answered!
The Most Common Questions I’m Asked During an Interior Design Consultation
When I sit down with clients for an interior design consultation, there are a few questions that almost always come up. One of the most frequent is: “I want to change the colours in my home, what do you think would suit?” Choosing colour is one of the most frustrating processes when it comes to decorating and usually results in purchasing too many paint colour samples and dabs of colour all over the walls, that you loose track, am I right? So let’s dive into the most common questions and more importantly, the answers.
Q: Choosing Colour
We provide an in-depth colour consultation which goes into more detail, but for now we will cover a general question during a consultation. If you would like a colour consultation fill in this Paint Colour Questionnaire and let’s get started.
Answer:
We take everything into consideration, the flooring, furniture, light and how you use the room.
Remember that wood flooring or tile is a colour, your furniture is also a colour so while we look at your sofa, curtains etc., we are taking everything in as a whole. With our colour samples we can lay the colours against the flooring in the room to get some idea how the colour looks.
How you use the room is also a good indication on the look you want to achieve. Is it mainly used during the day? Are there activities in the room, i.e. watching t.v. reading, homework, working from home? Or is the room used mostly in the evening where you can relax, have friends over, listen to music or read. Answering these questions will give you an idea of how you want the room to look and feel, a light and bright space or dark and moody for example.
Q: What furniture do you think suits the room?
Answer:
This is a big one, and it’s something that many get wrong. Choosing the wrong size furniture. The sofa that’s too big in the room but looked ok in the showroom and was such a bargain you couldn’t resist.
Having a scale floor plan of your room is important, you want to see how the traffic flows through the space, you don’t want to be banging your knees on the coffee table to get to the sofa. TIP: An easy way to do this is to mark off the size of your sofa or any furniture for that matter, using masking tape or lay newspapers on the floor to the correct size of the furniture you want to buy, this will give you something solid to walk around to get a feel for the size in the room. Remember you need to also measure the doorways or entrance door so that the furniture actually fits in the room! You don’t want to have to take windows out in order to get your sofa in. Yes, this did actually happen but not on my watch :)
Q: What lighting do you think I should go for?
Answer:
Lighting should be top of your list when it comes to redecorating especially if you’re building your own home, renovating or purchasing a new build. Get the lighting right and everything else will sing.
Again, think about how you use the room and the activities, side table placement for table lamps, having a mix of ceiling, floor, table lamps, wall lights create a warm and inviting space. Are there enough sockets? Where is the Christmas tree going, you don’t want trailing wires and extension leads everywhere.
Q: Would you put curtains or roman blinds in this space?
Answer:
This is one of my favourite questions in interior design, curtains, roman blinds and soft furnishings is our speciality. It’s not just about choosing a pretty fabric, we want to make the most of natural light coming in to the room and having the correct pole, track or pelmet installed will help with the correct window treatment for your home. Roman blinds are great for a tailored look or if you are limited on space, allow more light in by having your roman blinds installed on the face of the window.
Curtains provide warmth and insulation, they also help to furnish the room, nothing quite looks as elegant as made-to-order curtains and soft furnishings.
You can learn more on window treatments including awkward shaped rooms or bay windows, which is also a question we receive or get in contact for a consultation for complete measure, sourcing fabric and installation.
Q: I don’t want something that will date, what would you suggest?
Answer:
More clients prefer to invest wisely in their homes especially if they are having items made bespoke. They don’t want something which will date and need replacing in a few years.
Choosing investment pieces like your sofa, kitchen or bedroom furniture that stand the test of time will ensure greater longevity and enduring style. Try something classic in style for these items which are timeless and not too “trendy” or of the moment, unless of course you do want to replace them when the trend disappears.
Q: Everything looks bland and unfinished, I don’t know how to do this.
Answer:
Don’t worry, that’s what we are here for, not to judge - we will extract from you what your style is, even if you don’t think you have one by asking leading questions on our design questionnaire and during the consultation. We take into consideration your ideas, your dreams and visions for the space that you would love but find difficulty putting into action, along with the practicalities of how you live, including Bozo the dog!
A really useful way to get some inspiration is to go on Pinterest, it is fantastic and so easy to use (we can help you with that) if you’re tech savvy, take screen shots and open a folder on your phone or try the old fashioned way, cutting out images from magazines and sticking them onto a board.
Make some time for yourself, pour your favourite cup of something, light a candle and start dreaming how you would love your home to look.
