Explaining the Design Process: How I use Sketches to design your project

Hand sketches & / or sketching on my iPad is used at various stages of the design process for your project. When working on computer-aided drafted designs, it’s very easy to loose that element of creativity when you’re restricted by the design program; organic, fluid, complex or curvy designs become more complicated to get onto the virtual ‘drawing board’ in a program where its easier to draw straight lines, all on the same plane, with precise measurements. When an idea hits, I don’t want to be slowed down in getting that idea out there and onto paper.

Related Project: Phillip Island Beach House

At the Concept Design stage, many different ideas, layouts, designs and schemes can be explored quickly and easily by hand on on an iPad in a short space of time, without having to worry about exact measurements or which specific fixtures I’ll eventually specify. It gives me more freedom to look at the overall design conceptually, how the forms and finishes work together, roughly outlining where appliances and fixtures may go, and how the positioning affects the overall design.

The video above shows the process of interior design for a kitchen and meals area in an open-plan home. The zones for the storage and bench spaces are translated from plan & blocked out, so that I can explore different ideas for marble splash backs, how the range hood affects the forms and what the shelving may look like on either side.

For the meals area, I’ve selected a freestanding buffet with feature wallpaper to contrast with the highly built-in kitchen joinery. This also gives me the opportunity to very quickly explore different marbles and wallpapers, ensuring they have the right look & feel, before making a final choice.

At this stage, I can select more or less generic images of elements like stools, the mirror & the buffet to see if those work together, before reaching the specification stage, delving deeper into the design and looking for specific options at various price-points for those individual pieces.

This sketch stage is also the perfect opportunity to explore design options & ideas for your project before proceeding to full detail design & documentation on the computer, ready for tender & construction

Learn more about the Concept Design process for your project here.

Our standard project timeline below illustrates where Concept Design fits into your overall project.

• Information Gathering: Initial Site Investigation, taking the Brief & Sketch Planning & the Moodboard

• Investment estimate (by Your Project Manager & Builder)

• Concept Design, schematic illustrations & sketches, FF&E Preliminaries & Joinery Preliminaries

• Update Investment estimate (by your Project Manager & Builder)

• Detail Design & Documentation, drafting plans & elevations for permits, detail design of Joinery, scheduling of FF&E, coordinate with consultants

• Permit Application (by your Project Manager

• Construction Documentation, Tender stage RFI’s, revisions to documentation in preparation for construction

• Tender (by your Project Manager)

• Construction Stage Design Services, Site meeting & inspections, site instructions & responding to RFI’s, materials approvals, Shop drawing review, Defects Inspection & report, As Built documentation, Handover attendance.

• As Builts

If you are planning a refurbishment, please explore our flexible Design Package Options designed to serve you for more information.

Lisa is a very dedicated professional with a keen eye for fine detail and accurate documentation. I have worked with Lisa on more than 10 airport lounges and I can highly recommend her work. Lisa is also good a reviewing and coordinating services drawings.

D. Johnson

(please pin the below graphic to your pinterest board for reference)

(please pin the below graphic to your pinterest board for reference)

(please pin the below graphic to your pinterest board for reference)

So, why Hire an Interior Designer?

Unfortunately many people get confused or intimidated by the idea of hiring a professional Interior Designer for their project, and might be concerned about the process of working with a designer & the costs of doing so.

A lot of people I meet feel that they can hire a builder and do the design themselves, selecting materials and fixtures in dribs and drabs, often at the last minute (leading to less choice) with poor planning & lack of an overall vision. This will lead increased costs due to changes, additions and variations that the builder will not have allowed for.

You will save money & time. Your designer will plan functional and appealing spaces, provide drawings, visualisations & material / furnishing selections in a strategic manner so you can get competitive quotes, and you know what the design will look like & cost right from the start.

You require a Qualified Interior Designer & Registered Building Practitioner for any commercial project or residential project that requires a building permit; a proper interior designer is a highly trained & experienced registered professional, not just someone with ‘a good eye for colour’ and a knack for picking furniture.

Image: Omar Rodriguez @ormphotography