Can I Afford a Designer?

Jan 5

A couple of months ago, I did a series of polls on my Instagram feed to gauge my followers’ interest in hiring an interior designer and their likelihood of actually doing so. The interest was high, but I found that many thought it was something out of reach financially, and some just didn’t see the value. These polls helped me build my services list, providing a few options that are more cost-effective than traditional design, thereby making it more accessible. This is all well and good, but there is more to the conversation.

I think that a big part of the “Can I afford it?” or “Should I bother?” conversation comes from a misunderstanding of what a designer actually does. It is not all Pinterest and Instagram, browsing sofas and paint colours. A lot of what we do is about organization and logistics, thinking about how you interact with your space and eliminating any of the small annoyances of life. We are not simply making a space look beautiful, we are enhancing your life by ensuring that every last detail is perfect, allowing the function of your day-to-day to be improved.

When you’re embarking on a new design project, whether you are putting new paint on the walls or tearing those walls down, you are investing in your home. The decisions that you make are likely to impact you on a daily basis for however long you plan to stay in your home, which, if you are investing in improvements, is probably going to be years. When looking at who needs to be hired for the job, the designer is the probably most likely candidate to get chopped from the list for cost savings, or to not be considered at all. I get it, we’re not the ones “doing the work”. We are, however, the ones who are likely to prevent you from making any costly mistakes, the ones to catch oversights and small details, the ones to elevate the project to the next level. We are the ones who will make sure that it is done right the first time, and that there is nothing about the design (or lack thereof) that is going to drive you crazy as time goes on.

Not sure what I mean? Picture this: You’ve just renovated your kitchen - the big reveal! It’s stunning, it’s exactly what you’d envisioned. The next morning, you walk into the kitchen and exhale - you still can’t believe it. You open the cupboard to grab a mug for your coffee (first coffee in the new kitchen!), but when you open the cupboard the overhead light turns off. What the…? You turn it back on, open the cupboard again, and the light turns off again. The knob is aligned with the light switch, and now you have to adapt your behaviour or just live with this. Every day.

Other examples could be a paint colour that was beautiful when you chose it, but now that it’s evening, it looks kind of pink and is not what you had in mind. Or maybe the lighting in your bathroom is right over the mirror, so whenever you look in the mirror you have harsh shadows on your face and it’s hard to put your makeup on, so you use the mirror in the hallway instead. Maybe you didn’t budget for textiles, like rugs and drapery, and your home has a hard-to-place “cold” feeling that you can’t seem to figure out. A designer has the know-how and experience to predict and tackle these challenges.

Hiring a designer is, yes, an up-front cost, but it is the one that will help to take the stress of a renovation off your shoulders and make you truly thrilled with the result. So, here we are, can you afford it? My opinion is that you can’t afford to do without design, and that your life will improve because of it. But I get it, we all have budgets, and my services list was created with that in mind. Take a look below and get in touch if you have any questions or would like to work together.

Laura

Design Minutes $50/hr

Purchase Design Minutes with Common Purpose and gain access to an on-call professional who will be happy to offer their opinion, top-of-mind solutions, or settle design disputes any day of the week.

An affordable and accessible solution for the client who wants expert advice on the fly. Common Purpose can help settle design disputes, help with rug size or drapery dimensions, provide thoughtful insights to guide your design direction, and more.

Home Styling $80/hr

A custom “final layer” plan where Common Purpose sources décor and accessories for your home and styles them to take it to the next level. A great solution for anyone who has a clear direction, has purchased the big-ticket items, but needs help with the finishing touches.

While this is an ideal service for any time of year, clients of Common Purpose often return to this service for holiday styling to create a festive space that aligns with the aesthetic of their home.

One-Time Consultation $200

2-hour in-home meeting to answer your design questions, provide expert advice and guidance. Throughout the meeting, I will take detailed notes and follow-up with a list of topics covered, alongside corresponding solutions with a punch list for you to use to tackle your project at your own pace.

This is the perfect solution for someone who loves their home but needs help with selecting a few new items, a new paint colour, or has functional issues they would like to resolve without committing to a full-scale redesign of the room.

Distance Design Starting at $300

Distance Design is perfect for the client who loves the Common Purpose style but plans on managing their own project. This service fits your project if you don’t shy away from do-it-yourself work and love to dig in and roll up your sleeves.

Rather than in-person meetings, we will communicate by phone or video to gather all of the information required for a custom Common Purpose design. Your design package will include a to-scale floor plan, space planning and elevation(s), colour palette, furniture and décor selections and, of course, a shopping list.

Full-Scale Design $80/hr

Whether you are building your home from the ground up, looking to make structural changes to your existing home, or want to overhaul your furniture and décor, Common Purpose can help.

Common Purpose will be there for you at every step of your design project, in whatever capacity is needed. Think of this service as a start to finish liaison for every decision making process. Clients who are the perfect fit for this service want a transformation but do not have the time or experience to effectively manage a large scale project.

Laura Dorrington https://www.commonpurposedesign.com