AYN Advice

Decorator or designer, how do I know which one I need?

DECORATOR OR DESIGNER?

QUESTION: I want to make some changes in my home and I am thinking about calling in a designer or a decorator, but I don’t know which I would benefit most from, what to expect or how to go about it.

ANSWER: A decorator decorates; (s)he will use colour, texture and pattern found in wall, window and floor treatments, as well as in fabrics (upholstery, pillows) and accessories (table lamps, artwork). Anyone with talent can decide to call him/herself a decorator as there is no mandatory education required and it is an unregulated field.

An interior designer is actually the professional that fills the gap between decorator and architect. A designer is a space planner, technician, artist and more, and must have the required education (and insurance) to rightfully use the term “interior designer”. Your project will be looked at first in terms of function, then aesthetics. Function can include anything from opening, removing or relocating a wall or other element such as stairs, to changing a ceiling height, changing the layout of the cabinets in your kitchen, or even making your home wheelchair accessible. Some designers also do decorating work and others work with a decorator for the finishing touches. A designer will provide you with technical drawings (blueprints) of the changes to be made, and can even help you find a contractor and “manage” the project as the actual work is in progress. Also in a designer’s job description is making sure that your project respects building codes.

The best way to go about selecting a decorator or designer is to make sure that you can define what you want or do not want in simple terms (for instance “I want a casual feel to the room without it being too modern or too traditional and I do not like blue.”) I often suggest to clients to make a list of likes and dislikes and to even include pictures from magazines if they can. From there, call in a few local decorators or designers; look at their portfolios, listen and watch how they react to you and your project. Your home will be in this person’s hands so if you feel at all uncomfortable with him/her then this is not the person for you to hire.

Whoever you do hire should be able to work with and respect any reasonable budget that you have. It is a misconception that hiring a designer or decorator is a costly venture. Decorators usually charge hourly, and designers will either charge hourly, based on size, or fixed fee depending on your specific project and their policies. Under some circumstances, the fee will be a percentage of the total budget. Some, including Idealspace Design, offer a free initial consultation for you to meet the designer, for the designer to become familiar with you and your project and for things like budgets to be discussed so that misconceptions are minimized right from the start.