What Renovation Mistakes Do Designers Help to Avoid?

It’s a common misconception that interior designers only know how to select colours for paint and attractive furniture to match. While that may be the focus of some designers, others have the expertise to handle material selection for renovations as well. These designers work hard to help their clients optimize the functionality, safety, and beauty of their homes all at once. They work with their clients’ needs and wants to find the perfect design that encapsulates it all. In our experience, professional interior design has proven to be a key element to the success of any renovation project. A construction project that starts with a solid design plan and clear material selections will ultimately run more smoothly and efficiently. Working with the right designer helps homeowners avoid many potential mistakes and keep the project organized from start to finish. 

Getting to Know You for a Personalized Design 

It all starts with a series of conversations between you and the designer. They’ll get to know you and your family and come to an understanding of how you use your home. Discovering the differences between your lifestyle and your home’s current layout will guide the personalized design they provide for you. A skilled designer must get into your head to understand how you think and feel. It is the designer’s job to understand your tastes to provide you with the best design solutions. 

Combining Functionality and Beauty in One Package 

Good designers ensure that the renovated space is both beautiful and functional. All too many interior designs you’ll find in magazines or on websites today are focused too much on the look of the space and not its function. A truly great designer creates a space that maximizes functionality while being unmistakably yours. Every square inch is utilized to fit your personal needs while also looking great at the same time. 

In addition to being expensive, renovations can take a lot out of you physically and mentally as well. It only makes sense to ensure the end result is visually pleasing if you’ve decided to take on all of the risks associated with renovating. However, in pursuit of beauty, it can be easy to overlook functionality. Having an experienced designer on your side will keep you on track and grounded in reality. Designers know how much space you need inside the shower to move around, the minimum shoulder room when you are using a toilet, and the ideal distance between your kitchen island and fridge door. 

Keeping the Peace and Balancing the Family’s Needs 

Even with just one partner to consider when planning a renovation, you can end up with plenty of disagreements on how the home should be used. For bigger families, it can become an outright fight about the various ideas and needs of everyone. A good designer will act as a liaison between everyone involved, hearing what matters to each person involved, and finding unique solutions that meet the needs of all parties. Since they’re not as emotionally invested in the project, they can bring a balancing focus to the design that keeps one particular party from overriding the ideas of others.

Visualizing the Necessary Changes

Designers have the unique ability to visualize how a space can look before any work is done, and before any money is spent. They may start out by doing this all in their heads, but they’ll work to create digital models, mood boards, accurate drawings, and other visual representations of your potential designs. They can visualize the space in different dimensions, allowing them to show you the potential for functional layouts that perhaps you had not thought possible. To share this vision with you, they will create a 3D sketch rendering to give a tangible look at what every inch of the space will look like when it’s done. This allows you to actually see the end result before making a decision. You get to make clear, thoughtful decisions before committing to construction. Knowing and seeing the end result before making a commitment will ensure that the end result will not be a disappointment. 

Making Great Material Selections

An interior designer works with many homeowners, suppliers, and manufacturers over the course of each year. Because of this, they stay on top of the pulse of the changes in building materials and supplies. Each product and fixture has its pros and cons. The designer can guide you to choosing the right ones with their hands-on experience and knowledge. 

A good example would be a homeowner who has found a brand-name kitchen faucet at a good price from a well known store-sounds ideal, right? 

What if the faucet is too high and causes splashing issues all over your countertops? Maybe the faucet won’t work with your current sink, leading to thousands of dollars of work just to match it. Perhaps it’s a knockoff and you didn’t even get the deal you thought you were getting. An interior designer can ensure that you pick the right fixtures and faucets, not to mention safe non-slip tiles, durable countertops, and higher quality light fixtures. They’ll warn you that the tiles you’re considering will need large grout lines, leaving you scrubbing the floors more often than you expected. 

Designers can educate you on options for fixtures and elements you may have never considered. This will avoid costly or even impossible changes to rectify issues resulting from the wrong choices after construction begins. Because of their unique abilities and training, designers often select affordable materials that look undeniably luxurious when installed the right way. We have seen too many cases where homeowners take on the design role and select expensive materials and fixtures that don’t work together or aren’t a good fit for the space. Avoid all of these issues with our help. 

Purchasing and Handling the Materials 

Some homeowners really like going to warehouses full of counter tops and cabinetry and picking out their own materials. If that doesn’t sound like your idea of a good idea, don’t worry. Hiring an interior designer as part of your renovation project can eliminate the need to examine, purchase, and handle the materials yourself. You can still rest assured you’re getting exactly what you want due to the expertise of the designer, but you can eliminate a lot of weekends spent trying to decide between two almost identical floor samples. Let the designer handle the materials. 

Identifying Labour Challenges 

Working with an experienced designer can also help you prevent construction issues that you likely have no awareness of as a homeowner. Designers don’t have to swing hammers or install tiles themselves just to have an understanding of the general installation process. They can help spot issues that might lead to delays or increases in labour costs. For example, a designer can point out that your current bathroom door will clash with the placement of the freestanding tub you want. They can work with you to find a solution by moving the tub or choosing a different way of opening the door. If you don’t have someone overseeing these details, there may be many delays and changes to the cost of the project as it proceeds. 

Controlling Overspending 

A designer will keep a close eye on the different components of the project and their costs throughout the duration of the project, keeping your priorities in mind. Saving money isn’t going to be their top priority in every situation, but that’s actually a good thing. They’ll balance the costs with the quality of the materials and fixtures. You’ll know when you need to spend a little more to avoid headaches and more spending in the future. They can warn out that what seems like a great deal on flooring or plumbing will only put you at risk. The designer will help to determine the areas where money can be saved safely, and where it makes sense to invest more, getting you the best long term value for your budget. 

Coordinating the Project to Avoid Scheduling Nightmares and Stress 

Trying to manage your own renovation and hire half a dozen different contractors can leave you feeling overwhelmed. A project that is not organized properly will not only cause stress, but will also add costs and create delays. A designer has experience in coordinating everyone involved in completing a renovation project. This includes the contractors, suppliers, and other skilled professionals.

Even with the best of intentions, there are so many ways a project can go off the rails. A designer with knowledge and experience will know how best to avoid and minimize these issues, keeping your project on time and on budget. 

As a design build firm, Sosna brings a combined approach to renovations that always starts with a thorough planning stage. Get to know our designers and learn how they can help you by exploring Our Design Process. Or go straight to the testimonials of our happy clients to see what we’ve done for them.