How to kick start your own interior design process.

Katie Sargent
Aug 8, 2017 · 3 min read

The interior design process should be creative and enjoyable but many people feel overwhelmed and out of their depth when embarking on their project. This is often due to uncertainty surrounding the process and the costs involved.

The first stage of any project is understanding the reason for the design. Are you -

Refurbishing to sell?
OR
Building your dream home?

Perhaps it’s a bit of both? This will really determine the risks you take, the time you invest and of course the budget.

Once you understand why, you can think about the vision for your home. This is the daunting for my clients so don’t be surprised if this part overwhelms. I find that pulling together images of my ideas is very useful and this is something you can easily incorporate into your process. Quite quickly you will have a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ pile and a style or vibe emerges. I suggest magazine tear outs, design books, Pinterest and of course taking from your surroundings and travel as inspiration.

From here I develop a concept document with images and sketches to demonstrate my interpretation of the client’s vision, however what you can do is throw lots of images on a page and then delete them until your favourite’s for each room remain. Depending on the scope of your project, it’s at this point you start talking with the various trades you will need to bring the project to life. This is a big task, and not for the faint hearted. I always say interior design is essentially creative logistics.

For a large scale project, for example a new-build or a renovation, there are two stages to a project. This first stage is the fit-out. This is the shell or the house that you would walk into completely unfurnished. Next is the soft furnishing stage. This is the where the magic happens and a house becomes a home. Think about any existing pieces of furniture that you want to include in the new design, then think about the gaps and any new pieces you want to add and how they will work in harmony with what exists. You would really be shocked to learn how many individual pieces make up a room!

At the moment I am working on a beautiful new-build family home on the Gold Coast for the loveliest of clients. Throughout this article are some excerpts of the initial concept document which show options for various elements of the house. These options open up the conversation with the client about the look they are going for.

Over the coming months I will be sharing the journey and stages mentioned above with you as the Gold Coast home evolves over time. Giving you some of my tips and tricks within the design process.

Katie Sargent is a Melbourne based Interior Designer who’s approach focuses on beauty, timeless style and of course functionality — www.katiesargentdesign.com
Katie Sargent

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Katie Sargent Design is a Melbourne-based interior design studio. _katiesargentdesign.com_

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