I have shown up at many a consultation (when I was new--before I had this conversation with cilents in advance) and the space was completely empty. The clients furniture was either in their last house or still in storage. And they were looking at me, expectantly, waiting for me to pull some magic out of my fan deck (no pressure here!).
Here's what I know now; sometimes, this cannot be helped. We all know every new space is custom, the furniture you had before doesn't work or you need more/different pieces to make it your own. Many times the client is saying. . . “We are getting all new furniture so just ignore this”, and so on. This is fine if you decide to hire the designer to help you to source all the furniture and decorate and style your new home. However, if you are simply investing in the 1 – 2 hour Colour and Design consultation, here are the best ways to get the most from your designer:
Option 1 – You have existing furniture
1. If there is anything at all--including bedding for your kids rooms, a sofa cushion from the one going in the media room, area rugs--that you are moving to the new house, either bring those pieces with you or have the designer come to your old house first. She can get a feel for your style—including picking a range of colours that go with the area rug in the living room, for example-- that you might use in the new space.
2. If you have art, bring it or if that’s too hard to manage, pictures from your digital camera are better than nothing.
3. When the consultation is in a brand new house, usually the time to schedule the colour consult is after the drywall has gone up, before all your finishes are about to be installed. That’s when you need that box of tile and granite to be there. (Click here for more on new house colours) And/or everything else discussed above. In this case, since everything will be covered in drywall dust, it’s definitely best to go to the old house prior to arriving here.
4. If your consultation is happening inside of a renovation-- BEFORE you install that granite countertop with the pink undertone [read more about undertones here] and the backsplash with the slight yellow undertone that you may have missed--Have a selection of finishes that the designer can tweak at the last minute if necessary, it might make all the difference between ho-hum and fabulous! A professional can visualize what all those installed finishes will look like and can save you from making expensive mistakes that you have to live with.
5. If it's simply time for new paint colours, all of the above still applies. And please, if you have purchased new furniture and it hasn't arrived yet, make sure you take the time in advance to go and borrow the fabric samples so that we have them to work with during the consultation.
The more you have for inspiration, the more interesting (and accurate) your colour choices will be. The magic I mentioned earlier? The more prepared you are for the consultation (with everything I’ve talked about including magazine clippings of what you like or even don't like), the more magic you will get.
It’s pretty hard to get excited about any colour when it doesn’t relate to anything in the room because it’s empty.
Option 2 – What if your house IS empty?
1. You are moving in AND buying all new furniture OR buying in the near future so you CERTAINLY do not want the colours picked from what you have now!
2. You don’t have a choice. You are NOT moving into the house before it’s painted and you haven’t decided which direction to take with your home decor.
Hiring a designer to select a palette of colours is still the easiest and most cost effective solution. We can help you choose the colour of your furniture and accent pieces because there are too many choices (see more about leather/fabric choices here) this is also the time when you can discuss the renovations you are planning to make sure you are going in the right direction in addition to some space planning so that you know exactly what to buy when you do go shopping.
Related posts:
Why you can't afford NOT to Hire a Colour Expert
The 3 Most important words in a Colour Consultation
Maria Killam is a partner with Benjamin Moore’s Painting & Decorating Services. If you would like to schedule a Colour and Design consultation with Maria in person or via email, please call 604.318.9725 or email me at info@mariakillam.com.
All images except the Etsy piece are from Designers Guild
