Dabble In Decor

I have been helping customers remodel their homes for close to 16 years. It never ceases to amaze me that some people cannot figure out where to begin. The most important thing is to have a plan. Hiring a designer is a good place to start, but the client needs to know where they are and where they are going. The most frustrating thing for customers and designers alike is not knowing what it is our clients want.

There are many ways you can communicate with your designer. Without communication the entire design process can become a chore. As a designer, I want the time we spend together to be educational and informative. More than anything, your designer wants you to be pleased with the finished product. We don't want the project to be a reflection of who WE are, but rather a portrait of you. Ultimately, it is your home and where you need to feel comfortable and relaxed. When the day is done and the last pictures are hung it is your opinion of the space that matters and without communication that opinion may not be a good one.

Recently while working with a client I felt unable to gain the knowledge I needed to make our collaboration fruitful. During our first appointment there was a lack of direction. She had become frustrated with the decision making process. With all of the many options in today's marketplace she was overwhelmed with choices and was lacking the focus it takes to make an informed decision. Nearly in tears, she had nothing to offer. Her simple bathroom remodel was quickly becoming a project she wanted nothing to do with.

When you are overwhelmed with where to begin, inspiration is the first thing that comes to mind. After a lengthy discussion about what constitutes traditional versus contemporary style, I simply told her that I couldn't make the decisions of what her home should look like without her influence. I needed to know more about what moves her. A good place to start with a difficult project is getting a sense of the customer's likes and dislikes. Getting answers to open ended questions can tell a lot about what someone is looking for. In this case, she wanted to resale her home. She wanted simple and clean lines. She was looking for something that would be appealing to the masses for resale without going to extreme expense. Transitional elements would tend to work better in this situation. Cabinetry and fixtures that will lend to traditional as well as contemporary design styles.

Still not convinced she had made the right decisions, I asked her to take some time to look through magazines, books, and photographs of things that she truly finds appealing. Colors that she is drawn to. Cabinetry designs and placements that she would like represented in her space. Seeing these images can help when nothing else makes sense. A designer can take the images and pull together all of the intricacies that represent the clients taste. These details are what individualize a space.

When you are working on a remodeling project one important thing to always remember is that sometimes things are not always what they seem. Every perfectly planned project has some unforeseen budgetary hiccups. Speaking from experience, something that looks like the simplest project can turn out to be a little more than you may have expected.

During the purchase of a 1950's ranch home my husband and I knew upon inspection that our bathroom was going to eventually need updating. We knew the original concrete shower pan was going to need replacing. The dated vintage tile covering our walls was going to need to be removed and replaced because it continued into our shower. We thought, "Okay, we can do this." I started tearing out the tile. It was easy, as demolition most times is. When we started to tear out the shower surround we made a nasty discovery. Our stud walls behind the shower were rotting. We expected the sub-floor to have damage but never imagined we would have to replaced studs. This started a whole chain of unexpected events. Our plaster bathroom walls were going to have to come down and be replaced. What was going to be a shower replacement quickly became a bathroom overhaul. We had to gut the bathroom and bring it down to studs. Not what we were looking forward to. Our project immediately became bigger than our pocketbook. To save money we did most of the remodel ourselves. Fortunately, that was an option for us. After all was said and done it turned out beautifully.

All of the planning in the world cannot prepare for some unexpected things that pop up during a remodeling project. Patience, planing, and having the right people to help you can make all of the difference. Keeping an open mind, preparing yourself to expect surprises and not letting it overwhelm you are some of the most important things to remember.