Well-Designed Home—Interior Design Process
Transforming your living space is an exciting journey, as well as a significant investment. At Well-Designed Home, we bring nearly two decades of experience to every project, and this wealth of knowledge has allowed us to refine our interior design process. Over the years we’ve developed an approach that consistently delivers outstanding results.
Our project planning isn’t just about creating beautiful spaces. We aim to craft environments that enhance your entire life. This design philosophy leads to a higher level of satisfaction and delight in the completed project.
Our Approach: Balancing Vision and Execution
We know it’s tempting to dive straight into selecting tangible, pretty things like finishes, fixtures, and color palettes. But we’ve learned that a systematic approach to interior design project management delivers far better results.
We want to give you more than a beautifully designed home; we want your new home or remodel to enhance your well-being and your daily life. Our carefully crafted interior design process is the secret ingredient that makes this possible.
We take the time to:
Thoroughly understand your needs and aspirations.
Develop a cohesive design strategy.
Make informed decisions at every phase.
Ensure seamless execution of the design.
Create a budget commensurate with your comfort level and the vision you have for your home.
Let’s explore the design phases we use to transform your interior design ideas into reality.
PHASES OF DESIGN
Phase: Project Discovery
A strong client–designer relationship is the foundation of every successful design process. Our Project Discovery phase ensures that we’re the right fit and lays the groundwork for a fruitful partnership.
We’ll meet at your home to learn about your project in detail, getting a full understanding of your needs and desires. We will assess your space’s potential and answer any questions you have about the process so that you’ll feel completely comfortable leaving your project in our hands.
Our conversation will also help us develop a comprehensive design scope of work and a clear design agreement. These documents ensure clarity from the start, including an outline of our services and the estimated project schedules.
Phase: Project Launch
This phase begins with a kickoff meeting, during which our design team will use a detailed questionnaire to guide the conversation. This tool helps us uncover your needs, hopes, and dreams for this design concept.
Diving into the nitty-gritty details helps us understand how you want your space to look, feel, and function in your daily life. These questions form the foundation of our design approach. From there we will conduct a thorough on-site assessment, where we will carefully measure and photograph the areas slated for redesign, capturing important details.
If you have existing furnishings or artwork you’d like to incorporate into your new design, we’ll take an inventory of these pieces. This holistic approach sets the stage for success.
Phase: Concept Design and Space Planning
This phase is where your dreams begin to take tangible form. We reimagine your existing space and craft a narrative for your new interior.
It all begins with a thorough evaluation of your current space—considering everything from structural features to traffic flow—to determine which changes will best serve your lifestyle and aesthetic preferences. We will explore layouts and configurations until we uncover the optimal floor plan for your needs.
As we refine the spatial arrangements, we also begin to explore finishes and colors at a high level. Our goal at this stage isn’t to make final decisions on specific shades or materials. We are aiming to establish your space’s overarching feeling and style—the story it will tell.
Throughout this part of process, we maintain a collaborative approach that ensures that we find an overall design direction that genuinely excites you. This foundational phase is pivotal in creating a cohesive, functional, and beautiful interior.
Phase: Finishes, Fixtures, and Furniture
We’re ready to start one of the most exciting phases of our journey together. The broader strokes of our design will begin to take on rich, tangible detail as we carefully select the finishes, fixtures, and furniture.
We’ll guide you through cabinetry, flooring, and tile selection so each choice meets your practical needs and personal taste. Next we’ll focus on the fixtures to enhance the space’s utility and ambiance. To make your space truly stand out, we’ll help you source furniture that complements the design changes.
This phase is collaborative and a lot of fun, but we’re doing more than just selecting pretty things. Our interior design team works with you to make each choice with intention, contributing to the overall design story.
Phase: Construction Documentation
This crucial phase bridges our creative vision with the practical realities of construction. During this phase, our team members will translate our design concept into a comprehensive set of technical documents. These aren’t just ordinary blueprints; they’re the road map guiding every aspect of your project’s execution.
We design detailed floor plans that precisely position each element in your space. These include elevations that provide a vertical perspective, illustrating how cabinetry, tiles, and fixtures will appear on your walls. We also create 3-D perspectives, which are lifelike renderings that allow you and the contractors to see how all the elements will come together.
We provide specifications for each item we’ve collaboratively chosen. This detailed documentation itemizes everything from the shade of paint on your walls to the model of each light fixture. It ensures that the design team orders each item correctly and implements it into your new space exactly as envisioned.
As we finalize these documents, we work closely with your contractor, providing them with all the information they need. We aim to leave no room for misunderstanding, facilitating a smooth and successful construction process.
By investing our time and expertise in this phase, we set the foundation for a construction process that faithfully executes our shared vision—bringing you one step closer to your beautifully transformed space.
Phase: Demolition and Construction
This phase marks a significant shift in our journey together. With the creative decisions mostly behind us, our design team members become the overseers and problem-solvers.
We understand that construction can be complex and sometimes stressful for homeowners, so we position ourselves as your advocate and intermediary. We work directly with the contractor to address any questions or issues that arise during this phase, and we remain by your side to ensure that every aspect of our shared vision is brought to life.
Our involvement during construction is comprehensive and hands-on. We conduct regular site visits and walk-throughs with the trades at critical junctures. For example:
After demolition, we visit the site to assess the revealed structure.
Before and after electrical installation, we ensure that lighting and power align with our design.
We verify the fixture placement before and after all plumbing work.
We maintain open lines of communication with cabinetmakers, coordinating closely to ensure that your cabinets are crafted and installed to our standards.
We check in before and after tile placement, as well as during countertop templating.
Throughout construction, we attend any meetings with the contractor that pertain to the design.
Beyond these key moments, we stay present to ensure that our design plan is coming to life as intended. Our goal is to make the entire demolition and construction phase as smooth and worry-free as possible for you. We want you to experience the excitement of seeing your new space take shape without the burden of managing all the details.
Phase: Project Completion and Installation
At last it’s the moment when your reimagined space transforms from vision to reality. This final stage is where all the pieces of our carefully crafted design come together, bringing your dream home to life in vivid detail.
As construction winds down, you’ll see the significant elements of your new space take shape. Cabinets, countertops, lighting, and plumbing fixtures shine in their appointed places. As the contractor finishes their work, Well-Designed Home steps in to complete our shared vision.
Our design team installs the new furnishings and perhaps a few cherished old ones. Each piece is placed according to our plans, from the anchor pieces like sofas and dining tables to the smaller elements that add personality.
This moment is thrilling for us as well; one of the best parts of running a design business is seeing months of collaborative effort come to fruition. The home you’ve been dreaming of is now the space where you live, laugh, and create memories.
Reflecting on the Interior Design Process
Our journey doesn’t quite end here. At Well-Designed Home, we believe in continuous improvement and value your experience throughout this process. We’d love to hear your thoughts on our journey together.
What aspects of the design process did you particularly enjoy? Were there elements that exceeded your expectations? And, importantly, is there anything you feel we could improve for future projects? Your feedback helps us refine our approach to continue to provide the best possible experience.
As you settle into your beautifully redesigned space, we hope you’ll take a moment to reflect on the transformation. This new environment is more than just a collection of beautiful things; it reflects your personality and is tailored to enhance your lifestyle. Welcome to your well-designed home.