Decorating by Committee

by Myrna Simon


     Let’s pretend you are planning to “re-do” your home. It certainly can be an overwhelming task. Where do you start? How will you place your furnishings? Will you be keeping what you already have, or will you be purchasing something new?
    You have had your house painted in plain white, or in boring beige for the past ten years and you would love to have a change. What colors should you be painting, and what would the intensity look like on the walls? Where is your sunlight showing through? What side of your house enjoys the sunlight?
     This is now becoming too much for you to endure, so you decide to hire an interior designer. The most important part of hiring a designer is the chemistry between you and her/him. Of course you want to make sure that you understand each other, but be sure you are not being intimidated, and know that the designer is listening to you.
     Your designer has been trained to listen; to look around your home and see how you live; to notice colors that you enjoy living with; the formality or informality of your home. Are there children? Are there animals? What type of fabrics will work with your family, your lifestyle, etc? As I mentioned in an earlier blog, a good idea is to keep a little folder with ideas you may have taken from magazines or newspapers. This can be a great reference for you and the designer.
     So, when your homework has been done, what is the next step? Will you hire this designer? Or, will you decide to call in your best friends for their opinions? (This is referred to as your “Decorating Committee “.)You will then discuss what the designer has proposed. You will share with your friends the colors which have been selected, the fabrics, the furniture placement, etc.
     Here are some problems that may arise. Your friends may be very talented, but do not agree with your designer; one friend will tell you that you should definitely be using warm colors when you are looking forward to a very cool palette; or that you should be using florals instead of stripes when you specifically advised the designer that you do not want to live with florals, etc. And now, you are in a mess!!!
     I can give you a typical story. You have called in a designer (we’ll call Designer A), who you would like to work with. She/he may have been referred to you, or you have seen some of the designer’s work. Designer A comes to your home, looks around your home and goes over a lengthy questionnaire about your lifestyle, the colors you want to live with, what would make you smile when you get up in the morning, and what you would like your home to look like in the long run. Designer A can get a clear picture of your home-to-be and thus can make recommendations based on your conversation.
     Then, your friends come in, and with all good intentions, talk you into changing your decisions to make your home look like something THEY would like to live in. Designer A concluded that after spending time with you and listening to your ideas, and talking about colors, that you definitely wanted cool blues. Your friends suggest that you use warm reds ‘cause that’s what is being shown now. So, you change your mind. You advise your designer that you would like to go with reds. Your designer has no choice but to follow your wishes. Once the job is over, you hate the outcome. You are in tears, and it has cost you a fortune. Lesson learned.
     The Designer can do an equally good job for the client whether decorating with blues or reds, or whatever color, keeping in mind that colors affect people differently. Yellow may make one person very happy, but can give someone else a headache. Blues can be very soothing to one person, but depressing to another, and so on.
    Here is my advice to you. A good interior designer is up-to-date on new design trends; the many new fabrics, wall coverings; paint colors; flooring, drapery styles and window coverings, etc. From the many conversations with the client, hopefully, the interior designer has been LISTENING, and is able to pick up on the client’s preferences, colors, ideas, and dreams.
     Bear in mind that your friends are designing YOUR home with THEIR ideas in mind. This can only lead to disappointment, and can also be a very expensive mistake. Designers have been trained to design YOUR home with YOUR lifestyle in mind.
    The best advice to a client and to a designer is to be very careful when the client and designer are friends. I’ve seen designers help friends over and over and the jobs are overwhelmingly successful. I have also seen the break up of friendships because of a designing job. If your friend happens to be your designer, I would suggest a very frank conversation before the contract is signed.
    Please consider all this. Friendships are too important to lose over a decorating job. You will want your friendship to continue when the job is over.
    Good luck with your next project. In the long run, and after all the headaches, it’s worth it to wake up in the morning with a smile on your face!! A lovely home can do just that. And remember, at Alicia Friedmann Interior Design, WE MAKE YOUR HOME YOURS!