How to avoid these 5 common interior design challenges when building a new home
Undertaking interior design for a new home build can be a daunting exercise. Even if you have your style nailed down, your colour palette confirmed and your furniture selected, there are always more decisions to be made. Much of the time, those decisions are fun, involving aesthetic choices between beautiful things. However, it’s part of human nature to tackle those aspects of a project that are the most enjoyable and deliver frequent hits of gratification, but that approach can lead to headaches and possibly more cost if other essential aspects are ignored. I’ve put together below what I see as the most common challenges faced in interior design projects and how you can best meet them.
1. Keep momentum
Once a building project begins (and sometimes even before it starts!) the clock is ticking. Good builds are meticulously managed to ensure materials, contractors and contingencies are planned to keep your costs and timelines in check. This carefully sequenced plan can be thrown out of whack if you allow decisions to be delayed or if you change your mind once the relevant construction stage starts. As in all things related to building projects, time is money–your money! Maintain momentum as much as you can, and work with your builder to understand any flex available in the schedule. A good approach is to start with one space at a time. I recommend focusing first on the kitchen as the hero of the interior, which will then set the tone for the rest of the house.
2. Step it out
Translating flat planning documents to a home you move through and live in is a difficult task, but one that is essential to understanding how your new home will work. Free yourself up to use your imagination and step through each space, developing your understanding of the dimensions, navigational elements, and furniture placements in each room. I would also recommend considering how each space will work at different times of the day. Will there be bottlenecks in the morning rush? Can one person be cooking at the stove and another moving around the kitchen at the same time? To avoid delays and costs if you decide to change your mind, it is important that this exercise is undertaken prior to construction commencing–it’s a good idea to get the family involved as well!
3. Considered finishes
Whilst it goes without saying that colour is an essential element to a home’s interior, it is important that the texture and feel of finishes is also considered. The appropriate and brave use of texture can elevate a home, creating dynamism at one end of the spectrum and enhancing balance at the other. Creating interest through colour and texture will take your home to the next level and both can be employed in subtle or impactful ways–from beautiful handmade splashback tiles in the kitchen to the fabric on the window seat in the master bedroom, it’s up to you!
4. Smart budgeting
No matter your budget, tracking your spending on interiors is a non-negotiable task. Even if you decide to splurge halfway through the project, understanding your current position and upcoming expenses is crucial to making an informed decision. From the outset, I often recommend to clients that they create contingencies for items that elevate the interior and save money where it is not as important to the overall design. It is not an easy process to go through, but there is nothing worse than experiencing cash restraint problems during construction or racking up more debt than anticipated.
5. Ask for help
Even if you have built a home before, the process can be an overwhelming one. There are myriad and multiple decisions to make at every step of the way and managing overlapping timelines, deliveries and contractors can be very stressful. Even if you have a brilliant eye for design, getting help from a professional can smooth over the more taxing elements of the process. Further, the ideas, insights, connections and skills of a professional designer can actually save you time and money, as well as create a harmonious space that exceeds your expectations time and time again.
