I've been working with Kate Fallon of Studio K in Arlington (kate at designbystudiok dot com - if you contact her, tell her Sam referred you). I really like her - our space is turning out great and her suggestions are terrific. She is also really flexible and offers however much or little help as you want - she'll can develop the floor plan and you find the pieces or she'll source and install all the pieces for you. YOu just have to be willing to pay for it. By the time we are finished our total cost will probably be similar to your budget, but we're definitely not doing WDC. It depends on how big your space is too - our family room is huge so paint alone was a few thousand. But any designer should meet with you first and then come up with a formal agreement laying out the budget and how it is expected to be allocated, as well as an estimate for their time.

Anonymous wrote:It's hard to say. I am a designer and I often make boards for clients, usually with about 4 coordinated iterations per room. For a project like yours, budget-wise, I'd use similar sources and pepper them with a few interesting sources you likely wouldn't find on your own. Frankly, the WDC is not in your price-range, but you CAN go without a designer. You just have to sign in and you are limited to a few stores. That all said, I charge at a rate that would be 10% of your budget after about 5 or 6 hours of work, so I am not sure a designer is economical. Layout for your project would likely be best done verbally on-site; drawing plans is time consuming and expensive.

Have you tried in-store services, or something like the Washington Post House Calls? They love challenging rooms.

I've used a designer and done upholstered pieces from the WDC and custom window treatments and other pieces well within OPs $15k budget. My designer has a lower hourly rate than yours though.

I tried the design services at Kellogg Collection and it was terrible. Cheap ($250) but useless. And I love Kellogg stuff.

Hi

I am a Stager and a Decorator! I work for West Elm in Tysons as a Visual Stylist. I would be happy to assist with your project. Visit my web site at KaraAllan.com. Thanks!

Dc-interiors.com

Lauren Liess

I love and have recommended to others Joe Paul Bingham. He's very good about visualizing --he and I went furniture and carpet shopping together and had a lot of fun picking out items for my living and dining room. Then I let him have free reign with the paint colors and window treatments because I'm clueless about that stuff. He'll also be able to arrange the people to come in and do the work.

www.joepauldesigns.com
810-853-8676 is his cell

I had a meeting with Ebony Bachman of Moonlight Interiors (http://moonlightinteriorsdc.com/) recently. It was from a LivingSocial deal, so I'm not sure what her regular rates would be like, but I imagine if she's using LivingSocial her regular rates are not super-expensive. She went briefly over what I was looking for help with, and then addressed the most immediate items on my list (primarily paint color for my condo, and talked a little bit about lighting). I also had a couple of questions about possible changes to my hall closet and a hanging panel. We met for about an hour, and then she was going to follow up in a week or two with a rendering of possible changes, some larger samples of some of the paint colors we discussed, and some info on the closet and the hanging.

It wasn't an intense meeting, but I had a positive impression - she listened to what I wanted and spoke with authority on her opinion without being overbearing.

Wow - thank you - she looks great! (Happy for more suggestions still though.)

It's hard to say. I am a designer and I often make boards for clients, usually with about 4 coordinated iterations per room. For a project like yours, budget-wise, I'd use similar sources and pepper them with a few interesting sources you likely wouldn't find on your own. Frankly, the WDC is not in your price-range, but you CAN go without a designer. You just have to sign in and you are limited to a few stores. That all said, I charge at a rate that would be 10% of your budget after about 5 or 6 hours of work, so I am not sure a designer is economical. Layout for your project would likely be best done verbally on-site; drawing plans is time consuming and expensive.

Have you tried in-store services, or something like the Washington Post House Calls? They love challenging rooms.

Susan Covell Sands is great. She's working with us on our house now and can't recommend her highly enough:

http://susancovelldesigns.com

We are in DC but she works in MD and VA too.

How do I go about finding one? Looking for help with wall color, window treatments, carpet and furniture in a Falls Church living room. Probably looking to spend about $12K-$15KK total. I briefly started working with a woman a friend recommended and I love the work she did in my friend's home. Unfortunately, she didn't really add any value. She pinned a bunch of things from Pottery Barn and West Elm on a Pinterest board for me and then sent a bill. I'm looking for help with room layout (it's a long narrow room) and someone to go to a few stores with me. I've heard you need to be with a designer to get into the Washington Design Center. Any ideas? Thanks!