Consultancy Services

Design Consultancy Services are available on an “ad-hoc” basis and are charged out on an hourly rate. These services include, but are not limited to:

Interiors Health Check Mood Boards Spatial Planning Colour Scheming Sourcing Personal Shopping Advisor

Interiors Health Check

The first step to investing in an interior is to review what exists, both the positive areas and the areas for improvement. An Interiors Health Check of a single room or area would typically be no more than an hour, during which time the designer will make a critical review of the existing space.

"An Interiors Health Check concentrates on the principles and practices of good design."

Please note that unlike the full Interior Design Service, an Interiors Health Check does not consider client-specific needs, but concentrates on the principles and practices of good design. The full Interior Design Service, amongst other benefits, extends this service to layer-on individual client-specific needs.

Following an initial Interiors Health Check, should a client then decide to proceed with other Consultancy or Design Services, the fee for the Interiors Health Check will be offset against the cost of these additional services.

Mood Boards

A Mood Board is a helpful accompaniment to the colour palette suggestions available through the Colour Scheming service.

Typically up to 45cm x 60cm (24 inches x 18 inches), a Mood Board conveys not only suggested colour palettes for a scheme, but through the use of certain images – often including furniture and decorative accessories, together with more abstract images - more fully conveys the sense of the overall mood to be achieved in a room space.

Spatial Planning

An appropriate spatial layout and planning of a room is essential in not only making best and full use of all living space, but it is necessary to ensure effective “traffic flow” throughout a space.

"The planning of smart layouts results in an environment which suits and promotes our lifestyles."

By understanding the uses of a certain space, and the priority of those uses, an appropriate design and use of space – for example, how much and which type of storage might be appropriate – may be achieved, thus creating and helping to maintain an harmonious living space.

"By understanding the uses of certain space, and the priority of those uses, an harmonious living space may be achieved."

An often used example of a well-planned space is the use of a “golden triangle” in a kitchen, whereby the dishwashing, food cooking and food cold storage - the dishwasher and sink, the oven and stove, and the refrigerator - are all positioned in a triangle in relation to each other, thus ensuring the optimum and most “user friendly” use of space.

The planning of “smart” layouts which interlink between the living space (including kitchen, dining, living/den, and study areas), the sleeping areas, and any other areas key to a particular client’s circumstances, results in an environment which suits and promotes the client’s lifestyle.

Colour Scheming

Colour scheming is a service whereby a palette of colours is suggested for a room scheme. Perhaps a favourite colour, a piece of artwork, or a particular mood or style dictates or suggests a certain base colour.

"Colour scheming provides a palette of complimentary, contrasting, or mood enhancing colour suggestions for walls, floors, furniture and accessories."

Through the Colour Scheming service, a client is provided with a palette of complimentary, contrasting, or mood enhancing colour suggestions for walls, floors, furniture and accessories.

Attention is also paid to the effect of colour on our moods, and advice is available on best use of colours to achieve desired moods.

Sourcing

This service fulfils a requirement for a specific product or list of products. For example, a client may require a specific piece of furniture made from specific materials, or a specific piece of furniture to suggest a certain mood. Or, perhaps the requirement is for a certain object or piece of artwork to complete a room scheme.

"The sourcing service fulfils a requirement for a specific product or list of products, but often a whole room scheme will be sourced."

Often, the designer will source a whole room scheme, or a series of room schemes, from wall and floor surfaces, to furniture, accessories, lighting, technology, fabrics and soft furnishings.

Depending on the fuller design brief given, certain trade discounts available may be passed onto the client.

Whilst this is a similar service to the Personal Shopping Advisor service, Sourcing is more usually undertaken without the client, with the client receiving a final shortlist of potential options to meet the given brief.

Overseas Sourcing is available as required, with the principal designer regularly visiting interiors trade shows and design weeks in London, Paris and Milan.

Personal Shopping Advisor

This is effectively a personal shopping service. A designer will accompany the client to the retail outlet of his or her choice, or to “trade outlets” where trade discounts are often available, to advise the client on interiors purchases.

These potential purchases on which advice will be given (such as suitability of an item for a particular scheme) may range from a single decorative or ornamental item, to whole room settings or series of room settings.

"This is effectively a personal shopping service. The client may benefit directly from certain trade discounts."

Depending on the overall brief from the client, the client may benefit directly from certain trade discounts which may be achieved.

All of the above services are available on a stand-alone basis (for example the spatial planning of a single room) or on a combined basis (for example, the planning layout of a single room together with a colour scheme for that room, and possible sourcing of items for that room scheme). Please contact us for up-to-date hourly rates for these services.