A renovation is always exciting. It promises renewal, freshness, and is always something a family looks forward to. According to interior designer Annette Frommer, “Your home is your haven; it is your safe space. It is the place where you return to at the end of the day, the place that is supposed to soothe you and the place that should feel most like you”. In other words, your home really should be your castle and should be the place that provides you with a sense of peace and belonging.
It is for this reason that it is essential, when you embark on a renovation, to consult a professional. It doesn’t matter whether it is a total renovation or just a partial remodeling job – this is your safest bet. Why? Simply said, in order to help you figure out what it is that you really want and to avoid major and costly mistakes.
The Vision
A professional may suggest that you search the media available today. There are an unlimited number of magazines, websites, blogs and more with pictures, descriptions, ideas, and pointers. A professional will guide you to shortlist those pictures that visually speak to you, that you like, or maybe even fall in love with. In this manner, you will be better able to understand for yourself what your dream is. Your professional will help you define that concept.
The Space
So many people really do not have a sense of space – they cannot quite configure how much space they have for furnishings, how much room is available for the circulation patterns (think kitchen), how many persons in a household will actually be using a certain room, etc.
A professional will explain to a client what the actual available space is for a certain project and what the existing challenges and/or limitations might be. A professional will suggest solutions to optimize any given space.
The Cost
Everyone works on a budget, even the extremely rich people. A professional will help define your budget and keep you within it. Although a professional costs, in the long run using a professional designer will save you money since major, serious and most likely expensive mistakes will be avoided.
A professional will do all the legwork of finding not only the right furniture, fixtures, etc., but at the right price as well. A professional will also help in bringing new life to some of your old pieces, actually maybe even transforming their function and appearance.
Mood Boards and Renderings
Annette Frommer is an expert at working with renderings and mood boards, fantastic visual tools that offer so much.
Renderings basically show the way a room will look once finished. By receiving a rendering from your professional, you will be getting an accurate picture of the actual finished design. You can then better see what it is the designer meant, and whether it suits your sensibilities. You can then discuss it, request changes if necessary and then approve it.
For example, this rendering gives an actual visualization, computer generated, of the living and dining space. Based on this, the client can better visualize and comprehend the proposed design and layout of the space.
Another rendering of a kitchen and dining area. This is purely a visualization that has been computer created.
Mood boards, according to Frommer, “are the perfect visual tools.” Mood boards communicate concepts, ideas, and materials, and help the client understand the vision.
Using mood boards and renderings save clients’ money, energy, and time!”
To Conclude
As Frommer states: “The skillful and trained eye of a professional, as well as their experience and expertise, will provide a client with all that is necessary to realize a vision and dream. A true professional will create a personal interior for each client, taking into account every extremely specific aspiration”.