In order to achieve your dream home when it’s a large-scale remodel or new construction, the best results will come from a team collaboration consisting of an architect, a builder, and an interior designer. In this blog, I am covering the architect and interior designer relationship. I will cover the builder and interior designer in future writing.
Each expertise brings their skill sets and experience to the project. You have two sets of eyes and two considerations working for the best results. I like to explain it as architects are “walls out,” and designers are “wall in”. That is a very simplistic definition, and both do overlap but is an easy place to start. Or there is this: architects can turn the property into an asset, and the designer upgrades your lifestyle. This type of partnership benefits both companies, but it always benefits the client. There is greater continuity and communication—creating more efficient processes—translating into budget savings and a more cohesive design.
If you do not have a team, any one of the professions will have people they have worked with and can refer.
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Design, function, flow, natural light, and how the house will “feel” are discussed together to form a comprehensive analysis. As a team, the architect and interior designer can discuss how each room will be used, furniture placement for circulation, doorways, and electrical. Especially when working with art collections, where the art is showcased and how it is to be lit are extremely important.
The roles of an interior designer and an architect are different.
An interior designer specializes in layout, scale, finishes, and furnishings. They create the home's interior to achieve a personal, functional, and beautiful space. Designers do this through layout, scale, and volume. Design materials include appliances, plumbing, surface materials, textiles, window treatments, lighting, color, wallpaper, art, cabinetry, and furniture. Much of the interior designer’s work can be happening in tandem with the architect’s work as well as with the builder, instead of a “hand-off” situation which can lose important details for the build.
An architect specializes in the overall design plan of the structure including cost analysis, all building codes, structural, the foundation, water, electrical, roof design, door and window size and placement, HVAC, and the overall safety of the building.
The idea is to decrease the degree of separation between these 3 professions. There is far less miscommunication throughout the entire project. This prevents increased costs to the homeowner.
Both professions are complicated and detailed. There are multiple layers to the design. Together, they can ensure the home is designed as a whole with no gaps between form and function. The project will run smoothly and in sync.
Teams that work together and creatively problem-solve create an environment of inclusiveness and healthy collaboration that ultimately makes the project a success and ensures the best client experience.
If you have already started your project, there is still time to hire an interior designer. Contact us, we can help at any stage to add value to the process and the end result. “Teamwork makes the dream work”.
