OP, I'm kind of like you in that I don't quite know what to do with a space and I cetainly don't have the budget for an interior designer. However, I've found Pinterest and other sources like that (ie interior decor magazines) to be pretty inspirational. The problem I run into is I have no time to shop for copycat items that I want to put together and I'm still no where near being able to afford the millwork that I want over my fireplace, but a girl can dream....

Anonymous wrote:Thanks that makes sense. Can you hire an interior designer to justt do one room? Like I think I would just really want it in the living room since that is the area people see. $150 an hour plus a retainer isn't as bad as I thought!

You can definitely hire a designer for only one room and you can even limit the scope within that room. I've had some clients that have just wanted a floor plan along with retail suggestions. As long as the designer has an expectation of what you want I think you could find a situation that would work well for you.

Thanks that makes sense. Can you hire an interior designer to justt do one room? Like I think I would just really want it in the living room since that is the area people see. $150 an hour plus a retainer isn't as bad as I thought!

I'm an interior designer and it can definitely be very expensive. I no longer do residential but when I did I charged $150 an hour with a $2,500 retainer. Clients don't really ever seem to understand how many hours it takes to work on a job. There is no way to tell you how much a designer will cost for your specific job because there are so many variables. A good designer won't even quote you how many hours at the start of the job because they will have no idea how long it will take you to make decisions. You just have to fully understand that it's a luxury service and you are billed for all the phone calls, quotes, leg work, sourcing, meetings, meetings with reps/contractors, installation time etc...

So this is probably way out of my price range, but I have always been curious.

Did anyone hire a interior designer? How much was it? Was it worth it? Are there different levels? For example, one that takes care of everything (buying all furniture, setting everything up, etc) vs. one that just sketches a design for you and provides you with picture examples of what to purchase?

I really feel like I have no style and nothing I do ever really looks put together. I would love for someone to take care of all that for me.