Anyone hire an interior decorator/designer?

[adela76]

I'm shamelessly copying Bonny's thread, this time focusing on the interior. 

What was your experience?
What did you have done?
$?
What did you learn?
What would you do differently?


I enjoy watching remodeling shows (Love It or List It and Property Brothers are two of my favorites), but I have absolutely no talent for design or decor.  I know reality TV isn't "real", but I would love to have an expert lead me though the process.  

[Bonny]

My mom hired a decorator about 10 years ago when she bought her condo and basically gutted it.

I think she and the decorator bartered for services. My mom was a real estate agent and a Life Coach. Apparently the decorator had problems retaining clients (which became obvious after working with her for a while. ).

I think hiring a decorator is a highly personal matter. I wouldn't expect to recoup that money.

On the positive side the decorator had some great contacts. The faux finisher she called in was extremely talented and did some great work.

On the negative side it seemed to me that she purposefully recommended some items meant for churning. For example in the kitchen my mother used blue corian countertops and blue tile. Although blue is my favorite color I would have gone with something more neutral on the expensive stuff and painted a wall or two blue. Much cheaper to paint a wall than change out countertops and floors.

BTW Some friends of ours hired a color consultant for a couple of hours to help them match furniture and paints/fabrics. That's a service I could probably use. I think they spent about $500. I didn't see the result but they sounded very happy with them.

[wyouser]

We have two grandchildren, they redecorate and redesign our home every time they are there . (big secret.........they do it for free )

[Deleted]

My ex-MIL was very talented when it came to furniture coordination, placement, accessorizing, etc. She actually ran an antique shop.

But even she would hire a designer occasionally to come "tweak" her house. And it did make a subtle difference.

By the way, this is one of those fields where you shouldn't assume credentials.  Anyone can call herself/himself by this title.  But there are design programs and certifications in this field as well. I'd ask to see a portfolio, references, etc. before I hired someone.

[tskeeter]

Feb 18, 2015 22:23:05 GMT -5 adela76 said:

I'm shamelessly copying Bonny's thread, this time focusing on the interior. 

What was your experience?
What did you have done?
$?
What did you learn?
What would you do differently?


I enjoy watching remodeling shows (Love It or List It and Property Brothers are two of my favorites), but I have absolutely no talent for design or decor.  I know reality TV isn't "real", but I would love to have an expert lead me though the process.  

DW and I are accountants.  What that translates into is our choices in home furnishings are functional rather than beautiful, neutral colors (think beige, on beige, on beige; no "statement" wall for us), and everything is arranged in geometric patterns, mostly rectangles and symetrically (one tall candlestick on either side of the fireplace mantle).

We benefit greatly from the assistance of a decorator for color choices, the selection of a variety of appropriate decorative items to collect dust, placement of pictures, selection of some furniture appropriate for the scale of certain rooms, etc.  So, we've used a decorator as a consultant, rather than to do a complete design and furnishing of the house.  Cost about $100 an hour for her time.  Not cheap, but at least the house doesn't look like it's occupied by some young, single guys sans empty beer bottles.   

[gooddecisions]

I hired a stager to help me decorate my rooms. She charges $65/hour and has helped me select window treatments, furniture, paint colors, decor and bedding as well as move around what I already have. I'm happy with the results and the money spent. Alternatively, I could have paid an interior designer $125/hour a $1500-3500 design fee per room. That was too steep for me, but the portfolio was impressive and I'd probably have a much more dramatic result. I want a home I love, but I also want to retire one day, sooner rather than later!

[Deleted]

One thing to understand about designers is that they often, in addition to what the client pays them, get a "commission" (or kickback, if you prefer) from the places they buy furniture, etc. from.  As I said, my ex-MIL ran a shop. Back then standard was 10%. That is not insignificant if the designer is doing an entire room.

[gooddecisions]

Feb 19, 2015 12:50:51 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

One thing to understand about designers is that they often, in addition to what the client pays them, get a "commission" (or kickback, if you prefer) from the places they buy furniture, etc. from.  As I said, my ex-MIL ran a shop. Back then standard was 10%. That is not insignificant if the designer is doing an entire room.

The person I hired, passes on her discount to me. Anytime she suggests something, she gives the price with her discount. Maybe it's because she knows I'm cheap and won't buy anything if it's not a good deal, but I definitely appreciate it.

[Deleted]

Feb 19, 2015 12:56:56 GMT -5 gooddecisions said:

Feb 19, 2015 12:50:51 GMT -5 @southernsusana said:

One thing to understand about designers is that they often, in addition to what the client pays them, get a "commission" (or kickback, if you prefer) from the places they buy furniture, etc. from.  As I said, my ex-MIL ran a shop. Back then standard was 10%. That is not insignificant if the designer is doing an entire room.

The person I hired, passes on her discount to me. Anytime she suggests something, she gives the price with her discount. Maybe it's because she knows I'm cheap and won't buy anything if it's not a good deal, but I definitely appreciate it.

Maybe so. The ones that came in my MIL's shop asked for two receipts,

[gooddecisions]

Yeah, my retail friends at places like Pottery Barn have also told me that's what designers do. And, honestly, I don't see anything wrong with it.

But, she gives me the retail prices and then says less 40% or less 10% or whatever she can get it for. I decide if I want to buy it and it usually involves me searching for the item online and finding every price available. The price she gives me with the discount is always the lowest by at least 10%, so it's worth it to me for her to order it for me.

[Deleted]

Feb 19, 2015 14:11:59 GMT -5 gooddecisions said:

Yeah, my retail friends at places like Pottery Barn have also told me that's what designers do. And, honestly, I don't see anything wrong with it.

But, she gives me the retail prices and then says less 40% or less 10% or whatever she can get it for. I decide if I want to buy it and it usually involves me searching for the item online and finding every price available. The price she gives me with the discount is always the lowest by at least 10%, so it's worth it to me for her to order it for me.

I see an inherent conflict of interest, but that's just me. Your designer disclosed it and is passing it on. 

I am not sure that all designers do. My ex-MIL didn't deal with MSRP, which is where you can find discounts of 40%. She based her prices on what she needed to make a profit. Sometimes the 10% was there; sometimes the price had to be inflated to give that 10%. Either way, the "discount" was expected.

I was just trying to disclose something that people hiring a designer for the first time might want to know.