Boring Things A Designer Does PART 1

There are some interior designers who truly do focus on finish selections, accessory purchasing, and “styling” services, but there are many like myself who are “full service” designers, who pride themselves on delivering a seamless and luxury level experience to their clients. In order to do this, we navigate many unpleasant and downright boring tasks as a regular part of handling projects.

In Part 1 of this series I am sharing 3 super boring parts of my seemingly glamorous job, for your entertainment and consideration.

1.        Returns

Just because a designer has a better chance of selecting a suitable product for a given project doesn’t mean that mistakes/issues don’t happen. And sometimes we buy more than what we need, select from the candidates, and then return the unwanted items. Returns are certainly part of the job, no matter what a designer’s niche is. We personally need to pack up the unused item, transport it to the designated shipping office, and see that the money is refunded. This is probably my least favorite part of my job, but it’s part of delivering professional results to my clients. Perfectionists do engage in trial and error, and sometimes the wrong item gets shipped. Sometimes an item will get damaged in transit and needs to be disposed of.

 

2.        Transportation

It’s a bit hilarious how often I have served as a one woman logistical team. On time sensitive projects sometimes the options are so limited that I need to personally transport fixtures from the suppliers to the fabricators/contractors/installers. Or maybe a mirror that was backordered arrives damaged on install day, and I need to scout all over the Bay Area to find a suitable replacement and personally transport it from a showroom to the jobsite so install is not delayed (and #1 again, dealing with disposing of the damaged product). Even when I outsource, it takes time to coordinate pickup and drop off of items, whether it be from a showroom to a jobsite, or from the jobsite to the local dump (glamorous huh?). The finished product does not happen without the headache. Ever. But that’s what my clients pay me for, to take away not only the decision fatigue, but the headache of logistical details.

3.        Demo & Haul Away

While I do not personally perform demolition or haul away, I am the project manager who schedules and oversees it. When the demolition crew arrives to do their work, they need to understand everything about what is staying and what is going. Even on smaller projects where no demo is involved, there are furnishings, fixtures, bedding, etc. that need to be unwrapped, and the packaging discarded. In addition, clients often have junk or unwanted items to clear out that need to be donated, recycled, or just plain hauled away, and I have regular teams that I call to handle those tasks. Very boring, but very essential to achieve the sorts of transformations that I deliver to my clients.

So many folks skip hiring a designer because they don’t want to pay to hand off the most enjoyable part of their home improvement project. But when it comes to “full service” design, or concierge level design services like my company offers, the fun part is truly a small fraction of what I am handling on a daily basis. In order to understand the value of investing in a full service interior designer, it helps to understand some of the nitty gritty tasks that we perform, so you don’t have to.

If you’re considering a home renovation or refurnishing project, work full time, and reside in the Bay Area, check out our list of services. 

Follow me on Instagram, or click here to inquire for your project.