Being an interior designer

A working log of being an interior designer.  There is more to this job than pretty sample boards....read on for my personal log of the other side of interior design.....

I get an awful lot of people coming on my interior design courses (www.interiordesignworkshops.co.uk)  thinking of making a change of career to interior design.  Yes, its a creative job and yes, it can be glamorous, seeing new collections of furniture and fabrics, visiting clients, going to private views, shopping for accessories etc., etc.,  And then of course there is the creating - putting together schemes using wonderful materials, producing visuals and sample boards! Great!    ......

But I would not be totally honest if I omitted telling prospective interior designers that there is an awful lot more to the job than the aforementioned .

So, what about the writing of fee proposals,the Budgeting, the writing of specifications, the supervising of site work, the constant decision making,t he regular visits to workrooms, the ceasless chasing for deliveries, the project supervision, the deadlines,the troubleshooting, the endless paperwork, the running around - time-wasted looking for parking spots trying to find that certain shape of hook for the bathroom robes in that particular suppliers showroom- I could go on and on and on......

Taking the hassle for suppliers letting you down with delivery dates changed at the last minute - having to re-schedule the whole programme. 

This is the other side of interior design and needs to be known!

Take for example just today:

Phone call from furniture maker (I have designed some side tables in solid oak with triangular tops in glass) to say that the glass suppliers have mucked up and will now have to be re-cut. Great.  A simple phone call from them - was there an apology?  For me that means cancelling a van and three strong men - plus my time allocated to oversee the installation which now impedes on my working committments.  See what I mean.  Tip:  Don't re-arrange the van and three men until the furniture makers beg me to have the units collected - they might just not be ready..... also have to let the security department at the clients residence know about the change of arrangments, can't accessorize until the units are in so back to re-scheduling, completion will have to be put-back.  fortunately client is abroad!  All this and I had tried to schedule completion so I could concentrate on designing the sets for "Midsummer Nights Dream" my son' end of school production ....there are always committments to other people so be aware that a career in interior design  can impinge onto home life , it is never 9-5.

So, there it is....I'll keep you posted on developments.....

Sandy McMorran

www.interiordesignworkshops.co.uk

Comments

[Christine Knight]

Sounds like you need good friends to keep you sane, plus plenty of wine to help you through this assignment! Wine after hours, of course! Keep the good work up - it'll all be worth it in the long run!

[Sara Crosland]

Ditto the point about wine! I too am finding out how stressful this design lark can be! Now getting the "bitten off more than I can chew" feeling... Design work coming in slowly but can't stop decorating our house and rental property! Driving husband up the wall!

[JN BERT]

Dear Sandy
I loved looking at your web site. Looking forwards to your ideas for our house in the South of France.
Jean-Noel

[Cindy Maciak]

Hiya
Im a Painter & Decorator, living in Oxford, but im fed up, i wont more out of my career, ive been thinking for some time now, about becoming an Interior Designer, but i dont know where to start.
Has anyone got any advise for me, i would be very grateful!
Many Thanks

Cindy Maciak