Photo by Aubrey Odom
Most of my interior design clients are smart people who simply got stuck. They knew they wanted a new room, and they had some ideas about what should go into that room, but the project never went any further than that. So, they hired me, and I got it moving.
What if you don't want to hire a designer? What if you really want to be your own designer? Well, you've come to the right place. I'm going to tell you exactly how to restart a stalled renovation.
Here goes:
- Take all of the work you've done so far and file it. That might mean creating a physical file, a folder on your computer, or simply parking it mentally. Consider it research. It's valuable, and you've saved it so that you can refer to it later.
- Resist doing further research. Just stop Googling, surfing Houzz, and perusing Wayfair. There will be plenty of time for that later.
- Go back to the beginning of any project, defining success, and start over. You're stuck because you've skipped something. You're trying to make a decision that you're not prepared to make yet. So, go back to the beginning, identify what you missed, and move forward methodically. If you're not sure what steps you should be following are, check out this blog post: Five Phases of an Interior Design Project.
Figuring out where you skipped a step and starting from there will get your project moving. It's worked for me and my clients. It'll work for you too.
She didn't know it, but Jackie Lopey's days as an advertising executive were numbered when she bought and renovated a 1950's bungalow. She soon went back to school and started her own design studio. Jackie is an award-winning, certified interior designer and the founder of Wide Canvas.