Interior Design Projects: Budget & Project Scale Considerations

Clients will often approach us with hopes of improving the liveability of their homes though will have concerns of overcapitalising their properties. More often than not, our professional opinion is that if you are going to be there for another 5 to 10 years, it doesn’t matter too much. You’ll capitalise that expenditure over time and enjoy living in it. If you do something that’s well designed, that suits your needs, that will naturally attract a fairly large sector of the market later when you do sell. We recommend not designing with future occupiers in mind unless you’re selling soon. Overall, there can be a balance and a reduction in risk of overcapitalising when a client doesn’t make their home too specific for them but rather, rely on us as professionals to make that space work no matter who’s using it. Good design will always come back to the intentions of efficiency and usability. Which is a priority that quite often, comes above looking good. Looking good comes as a natural predecessor.

If you’re considering an interior design based project, doing a bit of research is always helpful so that you can arrive at an initial meeting being able to communicate your ideas and what you want to achieve clearly. We find that it’s better if a client has a brief that’s outcome based rather than specific. If we have a brief that says, “We really want the space to be better connected to the rest of the house, large, fresh and open.” There will be several ways of achieving that and we would test those ideas.

Another common thing we hear clients saying is “we don’t want to do something that will go out of date.” Our approach is that good design, including good interior design, will stand the test of time. In ten years, you may have something that was designed in 2018, but it will still be a nice space that’s enjoyable to be in. This differs from following fashions that come and go with a much shorter lifespan. Paul our director explains, “I think the key to good design is responding to the space and the situation. If you respond to it in the correct way, then something’s not going to date.”

Though an understanding of current fashions is important, our design approach tends to be client based rather than trend based. Some people are more flamboyant in their selections, while others more pared back. It’s also reflecting on the fact that no one is going to replace all their furniture, change who they are, how they dress, or how they reflect their personality in their living space. Quite often, it’s a balance of infusing a personality into a space while also considering the extra layers that come into a space once it’s inhabited.