Photo: Alvarez Homes

You’ve just purchased a fresh home, and now you’re ready to tackle the insides and create your interior design dream. You’ve watched countless HGTV reality shows and can’t wait to pick out backsplash tiles for the kitchen, discuss accent pieces for the living room or choose a chandelier for the front entry. Before you get too ahead of yourself, it is essential to understand the phases of an interior design project and what you can expect from a design agency.

Step #1: Consultation And Programming

Initially, you’ll meet with your interior designer and discuss your needs, goals, must-have items, favorite colors and so on. This is the same phase that will address the budget. If you’ve just purchased your home, remember to break out that mortgage calculator again and factor in the payments you’ll be making on your home. You don’t want to stretch yourself too thin in the design process and have trouble making mortgage payments!

Photo: Christina Karras

Step #2: Schematic Design

Once the consultation is done, a budget is talked about, and a plan is set in motion, your designer will come back to you with a schematic design. This will help you picture how furniture will be arranged, what renovations (if any) need to be made, how the flow of the house will function and more. Your designer may have some initial furniture/design options to suggest, but these are very preliminary and usually just designed to show you what the space could look like. Clients and designers will often negotiate on the schematic design for a bit.

Photo: Salcito Custom Homes

Step #3: Design Begins

This is the phase that they highlight in your favorite home design shows. This is where colors, fabrics, finishes, materials and other considerations are chosen. And, it is where you begin looking at furniture, accents, appliances and other physical objects to fill the space(s) with. Estimates are drawn up to determine what the cost of all of the design elements will be. Again, there will be lots of back and forth negotiating between client and designer before a final design is agreed upon.

Step #4: Construction Considerations

Even if you aren’t making any major renovations, you still have to consider looking at who is going to install new light fixtures, apply paint or put down new flooring. In this phase, you and your designer will look at possible contractors for the job. Some designers have contractors in-house to handle this work. Otherwise, you may have to shop around and accept bids/estimates from many different contractors. This phase is more tedious if there is a lot of contracting to be done.

Photo: Houzz

Step #5: Final Finishes

This is the last day or last couple days of the interior design process. The final few appliances are installed, construction wraps up, the new floors are swept, furniture moved in and so on. This is the day you’ve been waiting for because you can finally see all the fruits of your labor and planning paid off.

Conclusions

With the interior design process completed, there is nothing left to do but put your feet up in your brand new layout and enjoy your fresh surroundings, before calling all your friends to show off your new pad, of course.

Photo: Via Instagram

Chandeliers are much more than just lights. They can change the entire atmosphere in a room and will be sure to be one of the main focal points. There are many designer chandelier lighting options available. You just have to decide what type of chandelier is going to work best for your needs.

Keep Size in Mind

The size of a chandelier can range from just a few inches to around fifty inches or bigger. You can find a size that will fit any room of your home from a small hallway to a grand dining room. Most chandeliers come with a chain so that you can hang them the way that you want to depending on the height of your ceiling and styling preferences. You can choose small chandeliers for bedrooms and oversized chandeliers for entrance ways. Enjoy choosing beautiful chandeliers that will fit your unique space and match your home’s interior decorating. You can even buy more than one if you want to highlight something like a large formal dining room table.

Photo: Studio McGee

A Variety of Choices

Chandeliers come in a large variety of choices. You may want to go with a traditional option, or you may prefer a more modern design. Crystal chandeliers are some of the most popular options and some of the most beautiful. Black chandeliers are also lovely choices. You can even special order a chandelier that incorporates everything that you could want in one.

Choose Materials

Chandeliers can be made out of many different materials and finishes. When buying a chandelier, you may want to go with a brass, gold, or chrome look. Some people may be interested in a nickel finish or a bronze choice. You can find a chandelier that will look good in your home and that will match your unique sense of style.

Photo: Robert Elliot

How Many Lights

Chandeliers come in many different light options and are a great way to brighten up your home. You can find a chandelier that offers one to three lights or pick out one that has 21 lights or more. Whether you desire a crystal chandelier or a chandelier with traditional looking pendant lights, you can enjoy having a style that will meet your needs.

Chandelier Options

There are many chandelier options. You may want one with lamp shades. You can pick out a dazzling glass shade that will help your light look unique. Candelabra lights are beautiful options that look like real candles. Beaded chandeliers are unique and eye catching options for any home. No matter what you choose, you can enjoy having a beautiful chandelier improve the look of your interior.

Photo: The Tomcat Studios

Chandeliers Can Help Your Home Look Amazing

Chandeliers have a way of turning an ordinary room into an amazing one. Depending on the style you choose, you can change the entire look of your home. A large chandelier can help make a room look more formal or ritzy. A medium chandelier can also make a room appear more sophisticated. There are some chandeliers that are made to be glamorous, and some chandeliers can be whimsical or fun. You can find small options that will be perfect for a young girl’s bedroom, or search for small chandeliers that will beautify a hallway.

Choose Chandeliers that Will Be Noticed

With all of the available chandelier choices out there, you can take your time and find one that is going to be right for your needs. You should search for a chandelier that will be sure to get attention when anyone walks into your room. Find a chandelier that matches your decor or choose one that will be sure to impress. You can find a 21 light crystal chandelier that will be perfect for anyone walking into your home to see, or you may just want a small classical pendant light that will give your home a welcoming atmosphere.

Choosing the right chandelier for your home can be fun and exciting. Look at all of your options, and find one that you will cherish. Make sure that you pick out a chandelier that will give off enough light for your room, and find a style that will last for many years to come.

Photo: Atmosphere Interior Design Inc

Working as a professional blogger and running a business from home is not as fun and simple as it may look! The idea of being your own boss and running your own business can seem like a blast, but the truth is that it comes with a lot of hard work, and requires a great deal of dedication. The biggest challenge is staying motivated and focused when you have distractions all around you.

The best way to help yourself stay motivated working at home is to decorate your office. By creating an office space that is entirely your own, you can end up with a place that is free from distraction, and focuses on drawing attention to the things that inspire you most. For example, your home office should inspire tranquility and peace, but it should also be a place where creativity runs free. This is one of the many reasons why using historical art or artifacts as part of your interior design can be effective.

Why Use Historical Art Pieces?

Even if you may not appreciate it, art makes up a significant influence in our daily lives. Hang up an incredible piece of artwork above your computer to change up the atmosphere of your entire office and give you a deep source of inspiration. Art can be incredibly freeing, especially if you choose pieces that represent someone who you regard with high respect and esteem.

Photo: Boswell Construction

For example, the Raab Collection is filled with pieces from crucial events and eras across history, as well as figures that are bound to inspire you to greatness. When you’re struggling to continue with a particularly difficult piece of work, looking up into the face of Abe Lincoln, or Albert Einstein could give you that boost of creativity that you so desperately need. It’s also a great way to decorate your office and show your patronage to your country.

Choose the Ideal Time Period

If your job requires a great deal of persuasiveness, vigor, and determination, a piece of art work taken directly from World War 2, the Civil War, or even an image of the world’s most incredible military leaders, can help to inspire you to greatness, and light a fire in your blood. The right image placed on a wall with orange and red energizing shades offers a bold emotional response that is sure to get your blood pumping.

Photo: Jessica Jubelirer Design

On the other hand, if your career demands mental clarity, you might try painting your walls in cool shades of green and blue, and decorating with images of American history, presidents from the past, and leaders from the worlds of art, religion, and science.

What’s more, purchasing a historical document to place on your wall gives your office space a sense of importance – reminding you of the value of your work, even when you’re starting to doubt yourself. Nothing is more valuable than a boost in confidence when levels of self-esteem begin to run low. Looking at blank walls does not inspire confidence!

Create a Space that Supports Mental Comfort

Since your home office is likely to be the place where you spend a particularly large amount of your time, mental and physical comfort are paramount. A lot of people place a great deal of focus into purchasing the perfect chair or desk, but they forget to invest in the artwork that will help to keep them motivated throughout the toughest work days.

Photo: Raji RM & Associates

Remember, you don’t have to pile pieces throughout your office in order to feel the benefit since that could give you a cluttered feeling and even become a distraction. Even a single inspirational piece can be enough to change the entire feel of your office space, helping you to achieve the success you crave, and help keep you moving constantly in the right direction.