A Decorator Versus an Interior Designer

There are home decorators and there are interior designers. While anyone can call themselves a decorator, an interior design title is earned through a degree. A designer can get down into the nitty-gritty of planning extensive changes in your home while a decorator can work with the existing space on a more superficial level. This is why an interior decorator generally charges a lot more.

The Role of a Home Designer

When you have a large project that you're working with there is a process behind the designer's job. Plans can include a schematic design, the design development, documents for construction, bidding for the building project and administering the construction. All or only some of these design stages may be necessary depending on the project that you need done and how much of the workload you want the designer to carry.

With a home decorator in charge of your project, you can easily transform your living space using your preferred decorative elements. When you bring this professional on site, they will assess your home to see how they can align the space with your vision.

Once you have a plan, they will assist in adorning the space with the right combination of furniture, textiles and decorations. You can rely on these professionals to help you select the right artwork, paint color schemes and more to beautifully personalize your home.

As they work their magic, their changes will alter the ambiance in each room, making the space more comfortable for you and your guests. Their alterations can also improve the function of each room to customize those areas to your needs.

The Role of an Interior Designer

An experienced interior designer can handle an entire project from start to finish by creating sketches and working with the materials that can bring your home to life. During the design stages the interior designer will get connected with an architect if necessary and will start looking for building contractors that will place bids for the job. Once the manual work has started the designer will oversee this work to make sure that it's being done according to specifications.

At all times you should have an open communication line with your designer and you should be briefed about the advancements made on a regular basis. You'll want to be in a position where you're able to ask any questions and contribute your own input into the design project.

You can hire a designer to oversee all the necessary steps involved or you can simply ask a designer for the preliminary sketches and designs based on your consultations. You can either give the ball to the designer and allow her to run with it or you can get in touch with the architect and construction crews on your own and oversee things yourself.

Interior designers can work on simple projects that involve decorating only or they can be used for larger changes to a home. A decorator can only work on surface changes and doesn't need a qualified degree to give herself a decorator label. If you do decide to go with a home decorator, make sure you look through any portfolio she may have. This way you can see her decorating flair for yourself to make sure that it's a good match for your own.