About UsAesthetically Speaking From Me To You For November 2024
LOOKING FOR A TOP-RATED SCOTTSDALE AZ INTERIOR DESIGNER? LAUREN JACOBSEN KNOWS HER CLIENTS AND THEIR NEEDS
We Change Lives. That is our superpower. That is our expertise. As a Scottsdale AZ interior designer, we have been transforming home interiors for over 20 years. Our belief is your home is more than walls and furniture; it is your personal space derived from your personal journey and the way you want to live your life. Our passion lies in creating beautiful, functional spaces that will elevate your life each day. Every room will invite you to pause, breathe, and unwind. This isn’t just a house; it is your “Oasis.”
If you’ve come to our website, you’re probably interested in beautifying your home! We love working with our clients in Scottdale, Arizona and across the country.
In this blog post, we’ll discuss the process that Lauren Jacobsen Design utilizes to help you achieve your goals. This step-by-step guide will allow you to see our proven interior design methodology so you can discuss your needs with us and prepare ahead of time for future project meetings.
As we go through this process, feel free to reach out to Lauren with any questions or for more information. We’ve also included a handy flowchart so you can visualize the process.
About YouWe want to get to know you and how you want to live in your home. What are your interests, do you travel, have pets? What does this project mean to you, and how do you want to feel when it is completed? What is not working in the house right now, and for whom? We have an in-depth questionnaire we will ask you to fill out, or better yet, let’s do this in person so we can have a wonderful discovery conversation. This helps us to provide you with the best results possible. This house will where you find comfort every day, so we want to carefully craft it all about you.
PHASE 1: CONSULTATION WITH OUR FIRM
PROJECT LAUNCH – STEP 1
One of the first steps we take with our clients is to listen to you. After all, it’s your home, right?! We’ll carefully take notes regarding your wishes and ask any relevant questions to help us brainstorm for your project. This includes taking “before” photos of the space(s), making any notations about furnishings to keep or remove, measuring the space(s) and furnishings that remain etc.
This information-gathering phase will also involve collecting any architectural drawings or other site / project details that help us coordinate workers and deliveries. We will request the contact number for your “point person” so we can reach out with any questions as necessary during future project phases.
Next, we’ll discuss budget details with you, so you’ll be aware of associated costs. This includes a conversation about procurement of materials for your project. Why? Well, cost and time constraints will affect how and where we can source flooring, fixtures, furniture or any other materials.
BUDGET EXAMPLE
Here is an example of a low to high budget. This reflects the furniture for an average-sized living room and does not include design fees, tax, or shipping. This is merely an example of what you can expect in the marketplace. We will work with you to create your budget so we all have a clear direction and goal. These numbers will be based on the scope of design, furnishings, materials, appliances, plumbing, lighting, and accessories. We will find appropriate partners if the scope requires architectural or construction support.
We strive to clearly communicate up front with our clients so that confusion or frustration is minimized later. Based on these conversations, we’ll create a custom schedule to use at future presentations and site meetings in Scottsdale or wherever necessary with you, the client, and / or General Contractors.
Once we have listened to your needs and wishes, gathered all the necessary lifestyle details, and established a budget and agreement, we can proceed with Phase Two.
Our Process
PHASE 2: INTERIOR DESIGN CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT & APPROVAL
INTERIOR DESIGN CONCEPT & IDEATION – STEP 2
In this phase, your dreams will start coming to life! While you continue with your daily life, our firm will be hard at work in the office preparing a preliminary design concept. This is an especially fun part of the project for our team, since we love to visualize what your space(s) can look like with our plan designed just for you.
During the design “ideation” step, our firm will start to flesh out potential floor plan layout options and any plan views or elevations. We will select furnishings, colors, lighting, fabrics and surface / material options to review with you later.
DRAWINGS AND RENDERINGS – STEP 3
Now, we’ll get more serious about floor and space planning. In this step, we will develop digital drawings that include details needed for construction or furniture layout. These drawings will be provided at a cost plus. They include particulars such as lighting and electrical plans, furniture plans, elevations and more.
As famous designer Charles Eames, Jr said, “The details are not the details. They make the design.”
DESIGN CONCEPT PRESENTATION APPROVAL – STEP 4
This is when you get to see the visuals for your new space(s)! We’ll set up a meeting to formally present our preliminary design ideas to you, usually about a month to six weeks after our initial project meeting. Everyone who will make final design decisions should be there, since we can’t wait to share our vision with all of you.
At this meeting, we will present our interior design concept for your feedback and approval. We’ll do our best to fully explain the new plans to you so you can understand what will happen. This will include a combination of fabric samples, paint color schemes, photos, materials, digital drawings etc. We’ll also provide approximate pricing for goods and services.
Of course, if you see any design elements that you’d like to change or get further options for, we’d be more than happy to do this. After our meeting, we will refine the concept, research and re-source materials as needed to quickly get back to you for your verification on the changes. It’s important that you make a final decision on these items within 4-5 days as product availability and pricing from our vendors often changes if more than 30 days pass after our quote.
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT – STEP 5
Once the design concept is approved, we will work to develop it and finalize all structural elements, construction documents and floor plans. Please expect several meetings with us as we work with you to further synchronize with you on costs, schedules and approval of the finalized drawings and layouts for your space(s).
In addition, as a professional interior design consultant in Scottsdale, AZ, we are adept at and welcome collaboration with other third-parties such as a smarthome company, builders, contractors and sub-contractors. If you’d like us to coordinate with your architect, we will gladly do so to ensure that your dream home looks cohesive and amazing from the outside in!
HARD AND SOFT GOODS APPROVAL – STEP 6
“Hard goods” include all the materials and surfaces that become a permanent part of your home. Examples of this would be the flooring, built-ins and countertops.
Meanwhile, “soft goods” are items brought into your home that aren’t permanent. They make your home comfortable and enjoyable to live in. Examples of soft goods would include furniture, area rugs, décor, window treatments etc.
In this step, we will create proposals for you to make final decisions on project materials and make the necessary deposit(s). We’ll streamline this process as much as possible for you, so you have everything needed to give your final approval and initiate the order.
FINAL DESIGN CONCEPT APPROVAL – STEP 7
Ready, set, go! It’s time to sign off on the final plans and begin the process of transforming your home. We’ll give you a run-through of what’s about to take place in the next phase of the project and will get your final approval of the design concept.
Project BuildEXAMPLE DRAWINGS
PHASE 3: SCOTTSDALE PROJECT BUILD
STRUCTURAL BUILDING OR RENOVATION – STEP 8
As the physical aspects of your renovation or new build get underway, we will be working on your behalf to coordinate with all parties involved. We’ll work hard to ensure that the final result follows the design concept we created and have approved with you.
During the construction phase, please be aware that there will be additional activity around your home. You can rest assured that your home and property will be protected while construction is taking place. Of course, if you’re living at home during construction, we will respect your needs and work to keep you as comfortable as we can. This includes minimizing noise, dust and mess whenever possible.
During the structural build or renovation, our team will keep you updated regularly on the project’s progress, so you know what’s going on.
PURCHASING AND PROCUREMENT OF GOODS AND MATERIALS – STEP 9
It's time to start ordering all goods and materials for your project. Once you’ve paid invoices and deposits, we’ll immediately initiate the orders. You don’t have to worry about any of the details related to this process…we’ll take care of all the specifics surrounding ordering, shipping, quality control etc. We’ll keep you up to date as to the status of orders and will handle all order details, ETAs and deliveries.
Once all hard and soft goods are ordered and received, it’s time to move on to the final phase…installation and reveal to you!
Final RevealPHASE 4: FINAL INSTALLATIONS AND REVEAL!
HARD GOODS INSTALLATION – STEP 10
At this point in the project, major construction work has been completed. During this step, we will coordinate installation or final placement of hard goods such as lighting fixtures, woodwork, wall coverings or paint and luxury surfaces like marble, tile or your hardwood flooring selection.
As contractors busily work, we’ll periodically visit to observe, take photos and ensure that the work standards meet our overall design concept. We will make sure to keep you informed of project status and timing as installations are completed.
Although we primarily are an interior design firm in Scottsdale, we still do quite a bit of work on out-of-state projects in Southern California and the surrounding area. If your project is outside of Arizona, we will recommend a specific point person that can be the “receiver” for shipped goods. This will ensure that quality remains high and any damage on goods will be reported to our team for making necessary changes. When all arrives intact, we will request that the contractor or receiver safely stores and protects the items until installed.
SOFT GOODS INSTALLATION – STEP 11
Let’s make your space(s) comfortable and livable! Once hard goods have been taken care of satisfactorily, we will schedule installation of soft goods such as furniture, accessories and eye-catching décor that will wow you and your guests. These details really set us apart from the competition. After all, almost anyone can change out furniture, but only a top-rated interior designer will select the ideal furnishings for you and know the best placement to create a beautiful, functional flow within your home.
In this next to last step, we’ll make final preparations for your arrival and work hard to ensure that your vision has been realized. Get ready to see your dream home…now a reality!
FINAL REVEAL AND FINISHING TOUCHES – STEP 12
Welcome home! We love walking with your through your space(s) to see all that’s been reimagined. All the time, effort and planning that’s done now has come to a beautiful conclusion, so you can relax and enjoy your “Oasis”. The sanctuary you deserve.
After a few days, we’ll do a final walkthrough with you. If you have any questions or items that need taken care of, this is the time to address these things. We will attend to any loose ends right away and leave you to enjoy your beautiful home with your family and friends for years to come!
IN CONCLUSION
As you can see, our interior design process is a structured set of steps that enables you, the client, to feel confident your design firm has a methodology to take a large project from start to finish, and provide frequent feedback throughout the timeline. We love working with our clients to create your vision into a concept that is ultimately reflected in your home.
One of our recent testimonials: “Lauren is extremely passionate about her design work! She loves her clients, makes sure she communicates well, and understands them fully. She will make certain you receive the most beautiful and functional design. Lauren will also strive to make the entire design process efficient, and as pleasant as possible. She constantly keeps up on the latest trends, and also attends educational seminars/classes to keep her skills sharp. I would highly recommend Lauren Jacobsen Design for your project!”
Our team has over 20 years of experience in guiding each client through this design process to a successful result. Please visit our Press page to see some of the awards we’ve won and magazines / TV episodes and other publications we’ve contributed to. You can also view our testimonials on our site or on Google.
CONTACT US TODAY FOR A FREE CONSULTATION CALL
If you’re looking for a luxury home designer in Scottsdale, AZ, you’ve come to the right place. Of course, we also gladly serve clients in Phoenix, Troon, Paradise Valley, other local cities, and nationwide.
We specialize in full-service interior design solutions, but also offer consultation services if you need a designer for a day.
Reach out to us today by filling out the form on our contact page. Or, if you need to discuss your interior design questions with us right away, feel free to call us at 818.259.0175.
