Reclaim your space in the New Year!

Interior Designer or Decorator

 

Interior Designer or Decorator, what is the difference?

At times these terms get interchanged, and the best analogy is of someone mistakenly calling the chef a cook. You may not need a chef to make you a sandwich, and you wouldn’t expect a cook to prepare you salmon tartare tostadas with citrus and dill sprinkles. Get where I am going with this? (Sorry if I just made you hungry….back to design!)  The differences in focus are vastly different.

Interior design is both an art and a science in understanding people’s behavior in a space. An interior designer will incorporate creative and systematic solutions while also anticipating the needs of those that use the space. They have been trained to create spaces that are both functional and beautiful.

What does an Interior Designer Do?

An interior designer is involved with the building of a project from start to finish. They are part of designs with structural changes, renovations and space planning. They create spaces following design principals and building regulations.

They create rooms that are environmentally sustainable and energy efficient. They use their training in ergonomics and anthropomety, which is a science of how the body’s measurements affect the space they live in, and make suggestions on the ideal design for a space that is most functional.

They create a design and style, select furniture and color palette for the space.

Additionally, interior designers cultivate relationships and have exclusive resources with trades professionals, showrooms, manufacturers, and vendors.

 

What is does a Decorator do?

A decorator is a person that can provide decorating advice based on their natural inclination. 

They are able to put colors and patterns together, and will focus on the presentation of the room.

They have “flair” and style, but no education or professional training in architecture or design fields.  

Decorators may have relationships, but often not as extensive as an Interior Designer.

Education:

An interior designer is required to have been professionally trained from a college or university.

A decorator is not required to have any training.

Skills:

Interior Designers use methodical and creative solutions based on their training and follow regulatory guidelines for the way they tackle a project especially focusing on space planning.

A decorator is someone that will only focus on the aesthetics and accessories.

As you can see the difference with these two professions are very different. When planning your next project it is important that you can tell them apart. Starting your project with the right person doing the job can save you a lot of time and money.