The Design Work Session is what I call our initial consultation. If you are wondering what it’s like to work with an interior designer this is where we start. Maybe you’ve used the free design services at a big box store and wonder what we do that’s different.

For instance, you’ve lived in your current home for a while and you want advice on the best design changes you can make. Or, you are building a new house and you need help choosing materials, colors, and “all the things” that will make it feel cohesive. In addition, it could be that you are selling your home and want a list of recommended changes that will help you sell for top dollar.

Therefore you’ve decided to call us because you have no idea where to start and all the choices leave you feeling overwhelmed. After that, you may want to know why the stores don’t charge for a consult and interior designers do.

Call us what you will – designer, decorator, home stager, re-designer, etc. – we all have one common goal for the design of your home.  Each of us  has a different way of getting there. Our ultimate goal is for you to be happy with the design of your home.

Is that it? No. There is so much more to our work than that. I will say, that I like free advice too. However, I have found that the advice given out for free is typically very general. Also, it reflects what’s most popular or trendy and won’t be specific to you.

At the store, you are limited to what they sell. Not all in-store designers are trained in interior design.

Here’s what our Design Work Session is for:

Determining the Usefulness of a Room

First, the spaces or rooms designed for you should be useful and each one should serve at least one purpose. Some rooms will have more than one use and a good designer will give you a space that functions for all of them. The comfort, support and functionality of a room is important. Without these three things you won’t want to spend much time in your home. Not a very sexy concept, but interior design serves a basic need.

Discussing Cost-Effectiveness

This isn’t only about the budget, which is absolutely important. It’s also about saving time, resources, materials, and even the environment. Your lifestyle wants and needs determine where we allocate that budget to maximize the return on your investment. In other words, designing and decorating your home are investments. You are investing in your well-being and peace of mind. Again, not always a fun concept, but necessary.

Finding the Beauty of Your Space

Now we’re talking! The fun stuff. This is the part you are waiting to see in the end. The result. Beauty is personal and subjective. Interior designers help you find what’s beautiful to you and that takes time on both of our parts. Sometimes you don’t truly know what you want. That’s okay. It’s a process and we will help you discover it. That is one of the goals of our initial consultation.

Determining Your Personal Design Style 

Your style. Your likes and dislikes. The colors you love. The colors you hate. What type of materials and fabrics you want touching your skin. How you want it to sound when you are walking through a room. How you want to feel once you enter that room. You.

The investment you are willing to make into the design of your home will dictate just how personalized the décor will be. This one is up to you. Our goal is to help you bring these concepts from ideas into reality. Within the possibilities determined by your budget, of course!

Learning About the Lifestyle You Envision

Who are you? How many people live in your home? How do you spend your time? What is important to you? A good designer will take all of these factors into consideration. Also, the more homework you do about yourself before our initial meeting will determine just how closely the resulting design matches your vision.

This is the Design Work Session

Our initial consultation is not about showing you pictures or examples of other design results. Selling a design concept or my business is not a part of this meeting. That happened in our Discovery Call conversation.

Some designers do use the initial consult as a sales pitch. That’s why they don’t charge for their time. I don’t do that. In our meeting, we will be working on the beginning stages of your home design. We wouldn’t have gotten this far if you weren’t interested.

The initial meeting is, however, all about YOU. This meeting is me taking the time to get to know your wants, needs, budget, time line, floor plans, and personal style. All of this information will be my basis for a unique, beautiful, and livable picture of you that will show in the very fabric of your home.

Our Design Work Session is research, and work. In addition, the more illumination you can give me about yourself before we meet will enable me to give you more ideas about what your design will include during our consult. This way, when you get the final design concept, you will love it. The design concept will speak volumes about who you are and you will see the value of our time together.

Do I charge for this time? Yes. Learning about you is part of the process of good interior design. It is only the beginning stage of a method that will determine just how happy and satisfied you are with the home you are providing for yourself and your family.

Without this information, the design will fall flat and the result will be far short of your expectations. It may not seem like it at first glance, but the time we spend together in the beginning is integral to the rest of the design. I cannot choose what will go into your home without learning about the most important element – you.

---

Many people want a beautifully furnished home, but don’t have time to figure out every small detail. Christina Rodriguez of Diva by Design guides you through the process of creating a personalized and pulled together space. Then you can relax stress-free in your fully finished home or office. Let us take care of the details so you don’t have to!

CLICK HERE to contact Diva by Design. CLICK HERE to schedule your Design Work Session.

©2020 Diva by Design. All Rights Reserved.