Why you need an Interior Designer NOW
Interior Design – not just colours and fabrics?
Interior Design often brings to mind terms like ‘decoration’, ‘colour of the year’, or ‘design trends’. As much as these terms are of interest to Interior Designers they are far from describing the role of an interior designer, who rarely only focuses on the very last stages of the project.
Mainly, interior designers are responsible for working alongside architects & contractors to deliver design ideas for a space, which are fit for purpose, both functionally and aesthetically appealing, to positively impact the end-user. This often means that the main part of the project involves tasks such as designing room layouts, location of services, or considering material choices, making the colour choices just the ‘cherry on top’.
To avoid any design compromises, afterthoughts, or difficulties meeting the budget, architecture and interior design should not be seen as two separate stages of designing a space, one following another. They should interact and develop simultaneously informing & enhancing one another.
What does it mean?
The earlier you discuss your project with an Interior Designer, the better.
Decisions regarding the spatial layout, door and window types / locations, stair design, floor levels, or location of water connections are usually taken early on in the design process. They will also strongly affect your interior design, determining space functions (e.g. kitchen or bathroom location), floor finishes (e.g. their thickness or suitability for underfloor heating), or the overall flow of the building. Therefore, it is beneficial to have an Interior designers’s input early at the beginning of the architectural spacial coordination stage (early RIBA Stage 3).
How can we help?
At Grainge Architects we can input on a range of interior design aspects as well as being well-versed in working alongside a client’s interior designers as part of a wider design team.
Our project examples include large scale NHS projects (e.g. Langdon Learning Development and Autism Unit) to more intimate scale restaurant projects (e.g. Rockfish). Being able to combine architecture and interior design, we can help you make the process of creating the environment you desir as smooth as possible, getting the most out of your space within the budget, and avoiding unnecessary design compromises.
