If you’re planning a home renovation or building project, then the design will be a critical element. After all, it’s unlikely that you’ll be undertaking such a major project again any time soon, so it’s important to get it right. In this article we share four key principles that will help guide your thinking. As well as being within your budget, the design also needs to be functional, comfortable and look good. So let’s take a more detailed look at each of these principles.
1. Good Designs Are Functional
Whether you are renovating a bathroom and kitchen or building a whole home, the starting point has to be the function of the space. A good design makes the best use of the space available and needs to be appropriate to the size and function of the project. What’s more, it should take account of your needs now and into the future. For example, your ability to negotiate stairs or use that sunken bath may diminish as you get older. And so if you’re designing a home for life, then it’s important you factor in these considerations from the start.
2. Good Designs Are Comfortable
A home is, of course, for living in and so a good design also needs to be comfortable. Everyone’s home should be their sanctuary so the design needs to reflect your character and personality as well as your style. Your home should be somewhere that you can kick off your shoes and immediately feel calm and relaxed. It should also be a comfortable match with the existing architectural integrity of your home.
3. Good Designs Are Aesthetically Pleasing
All the best designs look good too and so the overall aesthetics of the project are fundamental to a great design. Clean lines and a simplistic, minimalist approach that mirrors how you and your family will use the space will result in an aesthetically pleasing design. It will also result in a design that stands the test of time and doesn’t become outdated and old-fashioned any time soon.
4. Good Designs Are Within Budget
It’s important to have a firm handle on the available budget from the get-go. If Italian marble kitchen benchtops are not within the budget, then there are plenty of practical and stylish alternatives – the designer just needs to know so they can create a vision that also matches your finances. As well as being clear about the budget, it’s also a good idea to be flexible. Things change and compromises sometimes have to be made. The budget will inevitably need to be tweaked and adjusted so being flexible about your choices will be useful.
How To Select A Good Designer
A good designer will have an innate understanding of these principles. They listen to their clients’ needs and wants for the space and can translate those into practical visions and plans. A good designer knows the right questions to ask to elicit what the client is truly after, as well as discovering their unique character and personality.
Quite simply, a good designer is able to marry your needs, wants and budget with a design that is functional, comfortable and looks great.