What actually happens during a home consultation?

A home consultation is probably the simplest way to work with an interior designer, and you don't need to have a full renovation planned, a moodboard ready, or even a clear idea of your "style" before they arrive. Quite often, the whole point is that you haven't worked all of that out yet.

You might have just moved in and not know where to start, you might have a room that has never quite worked, or you might be stuck between three different layouts, wondering whether you need built-in storage, or staring at the same blank wall for six months because every option seems slightly wrong. That is exactly the sort of thing a consultation is for.

So, what is a home consultation?

Each Interior designer will work in their own way so best to check with them what their consultation will provide. My home consultations are a 1.5-2 hour visit to your home where we walk through the space together and talk about what is and isn't working.

It is essentially focused design advice, in your actual home, based on the actual space rather than a few photos and measurements sent over email. You can ask me about layout, furniture, colour, storage, lighting, materials, what to keep, what to get rid of, or whether the idea you have been considering is actually going to work.

Sometimes there is one obvious problem to solve and sometimes there are ten, which is completely fine.

What happens during the visit?

I normally start by asking you to show me around and talk me through what is bothering you, which is often more useful than starting with questions about style.

I want to understand how you actually use the space. Where do you sit in the evening? Where does everything get dumped when you walk through the door? Does everyone try to use the kitchen at the same time? Is there technically plenty of storage, but none of it is where you actually need it?

A room can look perfectly fine and still be incredibly irritating to live in, so once I understand what is happening, we can start working through possible solutions.

That might mean moving furniture around, reconsidering how a room is zoned, identifying where additional storage would be useful, talking through colour or finishes, or working out which problems actually need spending money on and which ones do not.

Do I need to prepare anything?

Not really. If you have floor plans, measurements, Pinterest boards, screenshots or photos you have saved, they can be useful, but they are absolutely not essential.

You also don't need to tidy the house into oblivion before I arrive, because seeing how a space is genuinely being used is useful. If there is a permanent pile of shoes next to the front door, I would rather know about it than arrive to find twenty pairs mysteriously hidden in the wardrobe.

Is it the same as a full interior design service?

No. A consultation is advice rather than a full design package, so I am not going away afterwards and producing detailed layouts, specifications, sourcing lists and drawings unless we agree a separate design service.

The value of the consultation is in being able to work through decisions together in the room, and for lots of people, that is enough. You may already be happy sourcing your own furniture and managing everything yourself, but want some help working out the best direction before you start spending money.

Equally, a consultation can be a useful first step before a larger interior design project.

What sort of things can we look at?

Pretty much anything relating to how your home works or feels. That could include furniture layouts, storage, lighting, colour schemes, furniture sizes, window treatments, kitchen ideas, awkward corners, artwork, joinery, or how different rooms relate to one another.

Sometimes the most useful outcome is simply identifying the actual problem. You might think you need a bigger sofa when what you really need is to move the dining table, or think you need more storage when actually you have plenty, just in completely the wrong places.

You might think the room needs decorating when what is making it feel wrong is the lighting.

This is why looking at the whole space tends to be more useful than solving things one purchase at a time.

Can we talk about more than one room?

Yes. The consultation does not have to be limited to one room, so if you want to walk around the whole flat or house and talk through a series of smaller questions, we can do that.

Equally, if there is one room that needs a lot of thought, we can spend most of the time there. It really depends on what you need help with.

What do I come away with?

Hopefully, clarity, which might sound slightly less exciting than a folder full of samples, but it is often what people actually need.

You should leave the consultation knowing what your next steps are, which ideas are worth pursuing and which ones probably are not. It can save you from buying the wrong furniture, committing to an awkward layout or spending money fixing something that was never really the problem in the first place.

And sometimes you just need somebody to walk into the room, look at it with fresh eyes and say, "No, I wouldn't put that there either." That can be surprisingly useful.

A Home consultation with Home Planet Design is £150 and usually lasts around 1.5-2 hours. If you're not sure whether a consultation or a fuller interior design service would suit your project, you can always get in touch and tell me what you're working with.