How to plan your design project

So many people feel total overwhelm when they come to renovate their home or to even update and decorate a single room. There are many factors to consider and surprisingly they all have a knock on affect.

I often get asked by clients how to best approach a project and it's generally the same regardless of size of project.

Firstly you need to know what you want the space to look like, how you want it to function, the ambience and overall feel of the space. Do you need to factor in storage? If so what type of storage, will this include lighting? What type of seating do you want - corner sofa, single sofas, multiple chairs etc - having some idea of how you envision the room enables you to then plan the space better.

Once you know where you want your furniture then you can plan the lighting and electrics. So where you want that side table with a lamp - is there a socket there?

Or for example having an idea of bedside lighting - do you want lamps, wall lights, hanging pendants? All of these factors need to be considered in the early stages as although these can be added at a later date you will then be making more work for yourself if you have already painted for example. Electrical work is generally the first thing to have done so although you may not have every room planned out it's actually pretty crucial to do so as there is nothing worse than regretting not having a socket or a light in a specific position.

Designers offer different services and one service I offer is space planning - this can be plotting the best layout with furniture but it can also be drawing up lighting and electric plans too. But you can't necessarily do this in total isolation of all other factors of the project.

So my top tips are to plan the overall finish of the room taking into account any design details/features that will impact other things such as lighting, electrics, flooring etc.

Always think of the project as a whole as going through each stage in isolation will mean you may miss something or not plan as well.

Essentially you work backwards from the desired end result. Projects will start with the lighting and electrics first but this and colour scheme almost come at the end of the planning once you know your preferred layouts, any limitations of your design ideas.

Ordering a new bed? You will need to know what size you want to put the sockets the right distance apart? Which wall will you put it on, is that the best layout? Have you explored all options?

Are you having carpet, LVT or engineered wood flooring? The chosen flooring depends when you will then need to fit the skirting and architrave. Understanding the best order means you can plan accordingly and have a smoother renovation, or you don't limit your options if you have gone so far with the build/redecoration and realise you can't have engineered wood because you've already fitted your skirting boards as an example.

I hope this helps and if you need any help with segments of your design I can certainly offer services such as space planning, lighting and electric plans, design mood boards etc so do get in touch to enquire.

Thanks for reading.

NB x