Interior designer - would you, (have you) employ(ed) one?

Look in any house magazine and it is not just the tv is missing, there is never any electronic equipment in the room, no wires, no computers, not even any power points.

Quite simply, as with celebratories, the pictures are all thoroughly air brushed and all these modern contrivances are painted out. The picture is the thing, not reality.

A very well-off relative of dh used one to help her with a huge holiday home in France.

The ID positively bullied her - wanted her to order incredibly expensive items when much cheaper ones would have been fine - ‘An investment - you owe it to your children’ !

Presumably she was on commission for all those things.
The relative ended up sacking her.

winifred01 - nowadays TV's are often cunningly disguised: The print above the fireplace in this photograph is actually a Smart TV.

On a similar theme whilst staying with my daughter in Australia, whose house was for sale - they paid to have a designer "dress" their home for viewings! They came in, boxed up ornaments and some furniture then brought in the latest prints, cushions, side tables, rugs etc. At a cost of £500 for a month. The house sold quickly. Said daughter loved the look they created and purchased many items they had used.

Chewbacca, I'm confident with design but I dislike too much coordination, symmetry and harmony in a room anyway. I love interesting, quirky unexpected elements, like a garden statue on a fireplace, pile of logs or books in a corner or plant pot hung from the ceiling.

I think a mismatched look is cosy and casual yet refreshing, far more welcoming than something sleek and considered.

I don't think I would bother in order to sell a house - I would de-clutter madly, paint everything cream, and make sure everything was clean as a new pin; but for myself I would love the chance to hire the services of a designer.

I'm assuming that they would work with me to decide what I wanted to keep, how we use the house, what our tastes and budget are etc, rather than just imposing a design on us.

I once saw a TV series where people didn't want to move, but felt that they didn't have enough space. The TV company sent in professional de-clutterers to see what could be disposed of/thinned out, then architects/interior designers to create storage and/or design features that would work for the lifestyles of the families and the style of the house. It only ran for one series, unfortunately, but it was really good. I remember one woman had something like 6 fish slices, and a dozen tablespoons . She hadn't realised until they were all laid out for her to see.

The storage ideas were so clever, too. If I could afford it, I would love to have something like that done, but I'm guessing that the cost of de-clutterers, designers, builders and decorators would be way above my budget!

I have had rooms decorated in more neutral terms to put a house on the market. I have also decluttered (the storage room, sorry I mean spare bedroom). I tend to get complimented on my interior design, so I wouldn’t employ a designer, but I would always declutter and freshen-up decoration as needed.

Potential buyers often do want to put their own mark on a house, but many people can’t visualise and you don’t want them to be distracted by clutter, furnishings or bright colours, rather than look at the size of the room etc. You can regularly see people doing just that on TV property programmes!

We have just had a girl from Laura Ashley design to help us with our lounge. I already knew the curtains I wanted but struggled with what colour paint , carpets and furniture would go best with them. Although we haven't completely gone with all her suggestions she was spot on about the colours. But it was easier as we had a starting point with the curtains.

Has anyone noticed that in the interior design mags . there is never a TV in any room?

I know what style I like ,mainly neutral but as I have made 2 expensive mistakes in flooring I decided a couple of years ago.to have an interior designer from Next to look at 2 rooms and go through my likes and dislikes in a home visit ,she came back with mood boards and I really liked the result and I bought mirrors.light fittings,pictures and lamps .It did stop me.making any more expensive mistakes and 4 years on I still walk into my rooms and think Yes I really like the result.The fee I paid was deducted from my purchases as I spent over a certain amount so for me it was worth it.

Think Jane10 has the right idea about a home as opposed to a house. Nobody knows what I like and am comfortable with in my heart more than me. Sometimes takes me an age to achieve but, in general, I get there. Have a bedroom I had reeervations about when I redecorated. Now totally in love with it. Fickle, that's me.

Yes, I used an interior designer to redecorate my whole apartment. She spent a lot of time establishing my likes and dislikes, and then came up with ideas for each room. They are all different, but have some common threads - all walls are painted the same neutral shade, and the same accent colours are used but in different proportions in each room. She was very imaginative and came up with fabric swatches and furniture designs that I wouldn’t have found myself, or even thought of. The whole thing was quite expensive, but her fees were only a small part of that, and I have a look that will last me for many years.

Sorry - that sounded smug. Just lucky probably!

We lived at one stage on a 1930's development of well built houses with stained glass, huge bay windows, and large gardens. Many people spent what must have been a great deal on installing new kitchens, bathrooms, landscaping etc, and when these houses went up for sale they didn't seem to realise much more than others that were very little changed from original. When we came to sell the agents told us that what one person considers an improvement another might throroughly dislike, and it was better to have your home clean, uncluttered and painted in neutral shades so that viewers could use their imagination. Worked for us every time - we have mostly sold to first or second viewers.

No, even if I had the money I would never employ an interior decorator. It wouldn't increase the value of the house either, as the first thing anyone does when they buy property here in Denmark is to repaint the entire house and install a new kitchen and bathroom.

If we could afford it, we would install a new bathroom, for our own convenience, not as something that would increase the value of the property.

Personally I wouldn't do that because I can do it myself. I've sold four houses in my lifetime and on each occasion I've been complimented by the estate agents who I've had to value the properties that the interior design would ensure a quick sale - and that has worked - one house was sold the day it went on the market and at a price higher than any other house sold in the area, and my last house although taking three weeks to sell, also brought the highest price. It's all about being able to envisage what your potential market would like to see - but one tip I will give is that to walk into a house and see fresh flowers in a vase in the hallway or in the kitchen seems to be a real attraction and that's something I have always done.

I never had or would.. DS and DiL did and are very pleased with it, felt too busy and uncertain to do it themselves.

If it’s for selling though, estate agents usually say have your home as neutral as possible, so prospective buyers can see how they can put their own mark on it.

If its done with selling in mind then it doesnt always pay. Our agent said that do-er uppers always sell well and that sometimes the recently doneones dont because people dont want to pay the extra for something they dont like

If I had the money to spare I'd love to be able to consult a designer whose work I'd seen and admired. They would however have to be prepared to work with a pretty ordinary house in a very ordinary street

No, I wouldn't because it's one thing which I think I can do well myself. Selling our last home at full price, is something I feel proud of: maybe we were just lucky, but the buyer liked the (neutral, clean, spacious) decor.

I would be the first to admit that my house is a mis-matched mess. My furniture has been accumulated over the years, piece by piece. Some is second-hand. None of it cost a lot. There are too many chairs in the living-room. My cluttered desk sits in the corner, complete with computer. My bookcases are overflowing because, even though I give most of them away again, I buy books faster than I can read them. The bedrooms aren’t much better. A wall of fitted units would look tidier, I suppose, at a hefty price. The small spare bedroom is a haven for my Scout Leader son’s rucksack, climbing equipment and camping gear, and the suitcases. The drawers under the bed house spare bedding and a pack of toilet rolls sits on the bed.
I see the makeover tv programmes, and hanker after a smart, stylish and matched-up home. Then I notice that they have no book storage, hardly anywhere to store all the stuff I have such as music, craft materials etc. The bedrooms barely have room to put away enough clothes for a toddler, and where do they store all the spare bedding, toilet rolls, camping equipment, suitcases etc?
No. Much as I would love to live in matched-up, smart and uncluttered splendour (I think!) I will stick with my untidy and unmatched home.

It was one of the parts of my job working with Interior Designers when I sold new properties specially the ones that did the houses on Liverpool waterfront the nautical theme was outstanding and won awards for design,I have always been interested in Interior design and like to pick up querky bits and bobs to dress a room.
I have never employed an Interior Designer as I have picked up some great idea's over the years in my job.

Its one of my favourite things to decorate so no thanks I'll do my own. We are constantly decorating somewhere and like to update furniture and kitchen every few years,I'm working on colours and new suite for our living room now the only thing thats holding me back is my awful cold stopping me wandering round furniture shops .

While a nice interior CAN increase value, it's more than that.

How long since buying was the new "quote"?

I've never used a designer, as fortunately, my fiancée is very arty and has a great eye. I have a good eye but not the arty to envisage it to begin with! However, give.me a camera and I'll take a really nice pic!

Certainly bringing the house up to date décor wise is always good, and helps keep or increase its value.

We had a Kitchen designer and planner from Howdens who produced a full C-Cad type design package for us complete with pictures of how the finished look would be. When we first looked at it, we decided to change a few things from the original ideas, disliked the Antique white colour we had originally chosen, and substituted a couple of standard base units for Draw line units and deep pan draws. We also changed the unit handles and got rid of the original Knob design, one of my pet hates on a previous kitchen we once owned due to them forever snagging on clothing pockets as l was busy zipping along the work surfaces preparing and cooking food. l ruined many a pair of decent trousers or a skirt with side pockets at the time!
Without the help of our designer, we could have made a very expensive mistake by choosing from our imagination of the finished look alone. The downside is though that most designers earn a decent commission rate off suppliers, so tend to stretch the price of the finished product by selling added extras that are really just expensive gimmicks that the customer has to pay for but are rarely used. Our designer tried to include plinth heaters on all sides of our kitchen, despite us already having a central heating radiator in there. Luckily we looked at these in a property that my daughter viewed at the time, the noise was horrendous, even on low setting they were constantly whirring like a fan heater, plus the fact that l suffer with dry skin as it is, without these things dehydrating my legs further!