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Achieving the perfect balance between style, comfort, and function is tricky for an Interior Designer. Whether you’re planning a complete home renovation or just dreaming of ways to spruce up your living room, Amy Lee McArdle, an interior designer from Jupiter, Florida, believes that the five phases of interior design can help shape your vision.
The process takes you through gradual steps, from dreamy inspiration boards to carefully planned color schemes and furniture plans. The ultimate aim is to end up with a fully furnished space that meets all of your needs while also looking great.
What is Interior Design
Interior design defines the surroundings and living environment where people live, work, or otherwise spend time. This may be a house, building, hotel room, restaurant, and so on.
The term typically means multi-disciplinary professional work, including specifying colors and materials for surfaces such as paint, wallpaper, and furnishings and knowing architecture and construction techniques such as space planning and window coverings. The interior designer is responsible for interpreting the needs of the people they are designed for to create an appropriate balance between form and function.
Amy Lee McArdle understands that each phase starts with careful research into different styles or fashions, then moves on to finding the right pieces for each room; before finally allowing you to put it all together in a practical way. So whether you’re hoping for rustic chic, Scandinavian minimalism, or traditional style, make sure you keep scrolling for our five phases of the interior.
The 5 phases of interior design are all about making sure your home reflects you in every way.
Strategic Planning Phase
The first step is to set the scene, and the best way of doing this is by figuring out what you want from your space. Are you hoping for somewhere that’s cozy and practical? Or somewhere that’s stylish but also full of character? Maybe both? Amy Lee McArdle feels that only once you’ve figured this out can you get started on more detailed research into decorating styles.
The second step is to identify your style, including the kind of furnishings that will suit you well. If you’re someone who loves bold colors and striking accessories, but you also love minimalist decorating styles, then this won’t be a problem at all! However, Amy Lee McArdle believes that if you’re more on the traditional side and less adventurous with decoration, you’ll need to find some basic pieces at first before moving on to more adventurous pieces later.
The third step is to set a budget. The obvious answer here would probably be to go for it and spend as much money as possible! But that may not be the most sensible thing to do – so take a moment to think about what’s realistic for your budget and stick to it.
Conceptual Development Phase
While you could focus on your favorite styles or décor elements, it’s wise to think about how to make the most of your space. Consider the size, purpose, and shape of each room. Then if you have any existing pieces that need to be worked into the design, you should think about how best to integrate them into the overall look.
Design Development Phase
This is the fun part: choosing accent colors and furniture for your room. Once you’ve done some research and taken your initial inspiration board as far as you can then, Amy Lee McArdle believes that it’s time to start imagining how each element of the room would look if it were there. If everything seems too overwhelming, remember that even small changes can make a big impact.
Documentation Phase
It’s time to take a step back and ensure you’ve got all of your ideas down on paper. Having already decided on the look and feel of each room, now it’s time to think about the practicalities: floor plans, layouts, dimensions, and even furniture measurements. Everything is likely to change as you move from one phase to another – but having a solid plan in place will help you figure out how everything fits together. These documents are then passed on to their respective contractors to get an estimation and finalization.
Construction and Administration Phase
Finally, you get to see all of your planning come together. Suppose any changes were made during the documentation phase. In that case, it’s time to make sure they’re followed through by talking to contractors and making decisions about lighting, paint colors, and overall décor. This is also the stage where you’ll need to think about which pieces of furniture will be delivered on the first or last day and their arrangement in each room.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there’s a lot to think about when it comes to the 5 phases of interior design. We often say that good planning is half the battle, but it is true in this case. Whether you’re doing an entire renovation or want to refresh your current space, thinking carefully about what you want beforehand will ensure everything goes smoothly.
If you follow these five steps closely, it should be fairly straightforward – but if something ever feels overwhelming, remember our expert decorators are always on hand for help and guidance along the way. The 5 phases of interior design are all about making sure your home reflects you in every way.