7 Things You Should Know About Designers - Tuesday Topics

This weeks Tuesday Topics revolves around the place that we as adults spend most of our time. Our job. I am an Interior Designer.....not to be confused with a decorator. I went to school and got a degree in my field of study. You do not have to have a degree to be a decorator. There are many miscommunications about what an Interior Designer actually does and what I actually do at my company.

1. Interior Design involves more paperwork than you would initially think. I tend to do a lot of the filing in our office so I see the amount of paper that it generates; from printing plans, to applications at city building departments, emails interfacing with clients, property managers and contractors. There is so much to keep track of.

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2. We have a lot more knowledge of building construction than just your basic selecting the pillows or hanging the draperies. We look into all aspects of a building and make sure that it is aesthetically pleasing yet still functional and of course structurally sound. We interface with many consultants i.e. structural, mechanical, plumbing to make sure that our build outs pass all the proper city codes as well as have knowledge of the laws in California such as Title 24 (dealing with proper use of energy consumption) and Americans with Disabilities Act to make sure all public and now most residential spaces are adequately built to accommodate people with disabilities.

3. I use the computer A LOT. With technology what it is and with the internet, we have every resource at our fingertips. We are constantly doing research for our clients to make sure that we are providing them with the most up to date and functional products. We also use AutoCAD in our office to create construction documents and space plans to make sure that our designs not only layout appropriately but at the most accurate of scale.  

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4. Not every design we present is accepted as is. We work with our clients to make sure we understand the vision that they have for their space a to make sure the design is timeless enough to last many years. Building spaces are leased for 10+ years and we hope when we are finished and we go back in ten years to re-visit the space, it doesn't look dated.....I'm talking to you avocado kitchen's of the 70s. Design is always evolving and we can go from one end of the spectrum to another within the course of one project. Our ultimate goal is to provide beautiful work that our clients will love for years to come.

5. We do site verification also. We go out to buildings and measure each space using laser measuring devices to get the most accurate as-builts of our spaces. We then utilize these drawings to create our plans off of. Sometimes we have some surprises during construction....a random column hidden in a wall, or plumbing lines that cannot be moved. However for the most part we are pretty knowledgeable about the space and these surprises are few and far between.

6. I love to pick finishes. It's really fun to start from a blank slate and be able to pull an entire space together with my fingertips. From floor to ceiling we like to make sure every aspect of our spaces are thought through and work together as a whole. No elephants in the room here.

7. Sometimes we can go months before we see the finished product ourselves. Going back and documenting our projects is something that I love to do because photography is a hobby of mine. Seeing the before and afters of any space always makes us smile.....even if if has been a year since it's been installed.

There you go! 7 things about my job! I truly enjoy what I do and always love to see a completed project!