Stuff They Don’t Teach You In Design School

Guest writer: Katie Blumberh, Associate Designer IDH

Studying interior design doesn’t stop when you get your diploma. Some lessons are better taught in the field than in the classroom and for the past three years, I’ve been lucky enough to be learning these lessons under the guidance of the amazing team at Interiors by Donna Hoffman.  Below are some of the biggest revelations and a-ha moments I’ve experienced during my time at IDH thus far…

CLIENT SERVICE IS CRUCIAL:

Interior designers have garnered a bad reputation over the years for being more focused on delivering a beautiful end product and less focused on being considerate of their client’s time and money along the way. Working for IDH has taught me that the best way to gain a client’s trust and confidence is not by just delivering a beautiful end product, but by being honest, dependable, transparent, and respectful to clients throughout the entire design process.

BUSINESS SMARTS ARE JUST AS IMPORTANT AS DESIGN SMARTS:

The creative aspect of interior design is only one part of the puzzle. Without systems in place to take care of the business of your business, things can quickly turn into mayhem. Creative work may be the most fun part of our day, but the actions we take to keep our projects running smoothly are by far the most important. I’ve learned that an organized office keeps our clients feeling happy, stress-free, and fully supported…which makes our team happy as well!

TREAT EACH PROJECT LIKE A NEW UNIQUE CHALLENGE:

There are many interior designers that work in only one style – their own. While this can be a successful business model, IDH has taught me to instead work from a client’s design fingerprint – a term Donna coined to represent how an individual responds to line, color, pattern, texture, etc.  This creates a more collaborative and streamlined experience for our clients and leads to beautiful, one-of-a-kind results that clients will love to live in for a long time.