Small steps for a professional home makeover

Before you even start planning for your interior design project, you need to narrow down your own personal style.

Instead of looking through hundreds of magazines and thousands of pictures on social media; take Designbx’s FREE visual style quiz , to match you with a style that truly reflects your personality. (also gives you downloadable trend and style boards.. so you can’t go wrong).

When commencing your interior design journey, it is important to plan ahead to avoid ending up with a miss matched style and an empty pocket to show for it. As Benjamin Franklin said “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

Now you have your personal style narrowed down, and style boards to give you guidance, it’s time to follow the steps to guide your project and give your interior design a professional look.

1. The Design Brief
 

This step is crucial, to ensure your interior design project doesn’t end up being a comedy story for friends and family.

You want to first picture exactly what the end result will look like and map out the room. Once you have your idea, set a reasonable budget that doesn’t break the bank. Also consider the lifetime of the design; you don’t want a winter wonderland feel, in the middle of summer. Lastly, set an end date to ensure your project isn’t drawn out for months… or even years.

2. The before-you-go-shopping-crazy phase
 

Prior to jumping in the deep end and walking around aimlessly through several (or several hundred) home wear shops, do your research!

Compare prices and alternatives of major items, to ensure you aren’t sitting on a $10,000 couch and hating every moment of it. Check original brief and measurements when considering furniture (hot tip: cut newspaper to the size of the furniture to get a real feel for living with the item). Another popular idea, is to splurge on ONE big feature item.

3. Resisting impulsive buys
 

Something occurs between the design stage and the moment people walk into a store… unnecessary items are brought, the budget is blown out of the water and people are left with 7 different styles of furniture and an empty bank account.

To avoid this outbreak of impulsive buying; always keep your mood/style board handy. Always try to buy products with warranty, to take the weight of guilt off your shoulders. Also, consider the furniture’s functionality (a two seat couch is no good for a five member family).

Unfortunately our design can’t come to life with the click of our fingers, so if things are taking longer than expected, don’t be put off. If you are in doubt about your decisions, consult in-store designers or online designers (such as Designbx), who can provide a design service from the comfort of your own home.

Kerena Berry is co-founder and Head of Interior Design at Designbx.com, Australia’s first online interior design solution.

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