working with surf road: 4 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Sign the Contract with an interior designer

When you’re choosing whether or not to work with an interior designer, and which one, you're choosing whether or not to invite someone into your life, trusting them with your intimate space. So it's no wonder it can be one of the most important decisions you make in your home renovation or remodel project, because it's so important that it’s the right fit for both you and the designer.

1. Find out if their mission statement aligns with your vision.

To take an example, If you’re someone who chooses to live in a simplistic fashion for moral reasons, you won’t be happy with a designer that works with abundance. Do your research on not only the designers past but also the mission behind their work. You can look at designer's blogs, reviews, and simply ask them in the initial outreach to find out more details about their mission, ethos and fundamentals.

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2. Of course find out if their design aesthetic matches yours!

Designers will have a portfolio of past projects that you can browse. Make sure you like their eye and their vision. This means the style of furniture they choose, the textures and colors they choose, and the overall feel for each room.

As you move forward with a designer, this relationship should be beneficial to both parties. If you choose a designer based on a vision you’ve seen elsewhere (i.e. from someone else!) rather than the skillset and creative vision this designer has displayed it can leads to frustration on both sides. So, while there is always wiggle room and creative genius in this field, it is still best to choose your designer based on a genuine respect of their past work!

3. Is this in my budget?

Hiring a designer is not inexpensive - but it definitely pays off (and can even save you money in the long run)!

A quick check in on your own budget to determine feasibility is always helpful. When you’re making this decision it's important to add in space for changes. Sometimes the originally planned piece of furniture isn't available and you’ll need to source a more expensive one. You need to allot for this and also trust that your designer has your best intentions at heart.

4. Do I Trust This Person

Which brings us to the last, and possibly most important, question to ask. Similar to when you go to get a haircut you have to trust the artist's ability to do their job, Interior designers need the same trust. Before hiring your designer ask yourself: am I ready to give over control of this space? Am I ready to accept their skillset and trust in their decisions that I maybe would have made on my own - because after all - that’s why we’re here. Contact us if you'd like to learn more about getting started on your next project with Surf Road.