What Can an Interior Designer REALLY Do (and Not Do) For You?

Answering common questions about an interior designer's job scope.

Most people know that an interior designer is someone you go to when you need to renovate your home according to your lifestyle and preferences. But beyond that, there seems to be some ambiguity surrounding the specificities of what they do, and the services they offer their clients/homeowners.

Well, look no further – because we’re addressing some of these questions and more below.

What’s the difference between an interior designer, contractor, and interior stylist?

To go with an interior designer or a contractor – that is the question almost every prospective homeowner has prior to their renovation journeys.

On a surface level, engaging a contractor may be tempting as their services are cheaper than those of an interior designer.

However, the scope of their services tend to be more limited. They don’t design or plan the space for you – rather, they take specific design instructions from you (like the height of your countertops or material of your feature wall).

They may not always help manage your renovation either, meaning you have to be the one coordinating material deliveries and subcontractor schedules.

In contrast, an interior designer’s services are much more comprehensive, where they do everything from providing design and spatial ideas to coordinating your renovation. Of course, this means higher prices, but what you get in return is peace of mind, as well as a home that is professionally designed to cater to your lifestyle.

Explore: Should You Engage a Contractor or Interior Designer?

Conversely, interior stylists are purely focused on the visual aspects of a home, enhancing it through furniture/decor curation and lighting choices.

This is who you go to if you want to spruce up your existing home without undergoing an entire renovation, which can take 2-3 months on average.

What does an interior designer usually do in a day?

You may have heard that interior designers are busy people who work late into the night and sometimes during the weekends. But what, exactly, are they busy with?

For starters, an average day can involve driving multiple site visits to oversee their existing renovation projects, ensuring that everything is running smoothly and that the quality of the work is up to par.

They may also need to head back to their office to meet up with new or prospective clients and discuss their renovation requirements, which can easily take between 1-2 hours each.

Other things they do include:

1. Doing up 3D renders of their clients’ homes,
2. Accompanying their clients to shop for materials
3. Inspecting the carpentry that is in the process of being built.

What does a design fee in my quotation involve?

On the topic of design fees, they usually cover services that require the designer’s expertise to make the home come together. That includes services such as:

• Spatial planning
• Coming up with 3D drawings/renders
• Detailed drawings of carpentry and other features
• Furniture shopping
• Styling services
• Project management and coordination (more on that below)

Explore: What You Need to Know About Renovation Design Fees

What does project management entail for a home renovation?

Many interior designers tend to double up as project managers. That is, sourcing for materials, applying for renovation permits, coordinating employee schedules, and so on.

If you think that doing all that on top of designing a home is time consuming, you’re absolutely right – which is why individual project managers are becoming increasingly common in interior design firms.

This way, they can take care of the logistics of the renovation, while allowing the interior designer to focus solely on the design aspect.

Do all interior designers provide 3D drawings/renders?

Yes, most (if not, all) interior designers provide 3D drawings and renders as they give clients a clear visual of how their home is expected to look like.

But if you’re meeting multiple IDs in the hopes of getting multiple renders of your dream homes, don’t expect to get them for free. While some IDs do provide them for free out of goodwill, others only give them to their clients if they’re confident that said client will engage them for a renovation.

Otherwise, it’s common for IDs to charge a small fee for those renders – after all, it takes about 2-4 hours of their time to create!

Can I only request design services from an interior designer?

Yes, you can request for design services without signing up for a full-blown renovation.

In fact, some IDs we’ve spoken to have mentioned that this is becoming more common, especially among homeowners that have friends or relatives that work as contractors, or those that want to save costs but don’t possess the necessary design know-how.

But don’t assume that all interior designers provide this service – make sure to ask about it at the beginning of any meet-up to ensure that everyone is on the same page.

Do interior designers go furniture shopping with clients?

Technically, furniture shopping isn’t something most interior designers do as they mainly take care of the structural aspects of the space. However, some designers do go furniture shopping with their clients as part of the service covered by the design fees.

There are also some that do so out of goodwill, or at the very least, provide suggestions as they want the theme of the home to remain cohesive throughout. Ultimately, this will depend on the interior designer themselves – again, it’s better to ask upfront to avoid any miscommunication.

Do interior designers accompany their clients to property viewings?

As this falls into the realm of property purchase (and not the interior), most interior designers do not accompany their clients on property viewings.

However, there have been a few rare occasions where IDs have done so. Usually, these clients are those that possess very specific requirements about the layout (e.g. fengshui reasons), and want to know if the property they’re viewing is ideal for incorporating features they already have in mind.

Outside of that, the most you can do is show your ID the floorplan of the property you’re viewing and ask if it’ll suit your lifestyle needs.

For example, if you’re keen on having an open kitchen and are currently viewing a home with a central household shelter, your ID will likely tell you that it may not be suitable.

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