Services

Almost all projects, whatever their size, divide into the same three stages.

Plan

Time spent in planning a project is never wasted.

The brief is vital to the project, and whether it is for soft furnishing a single room, refurbishing an existing property or building a brand new home it is vital to include as much as possible in the original scope of work. The first step is to meet you, the client, and agree the brief. There we listen, learn about your lifestyle and your aspirations. We discuss your budget, the time frame and will be involved in achieving your goal.

The business offers a full interior design and decoration service which is essentially limitless. Our clients can decide whether our team will lead the project or be part of an existing team.

A soft furnishing project may involve carpets, curtains, upholstery, decorative lighting, furniture and accessories. A new build will include liaising with architects, builders and specialists, a turn-key or rental will include a full inventory specific to the property. A refurbishment may include new kitchen, bathrooms and electrical layouts. We may need to advise on planning, listed building and other consents. We specialise in high quality joinery work such as bespoke kitchens, studies, bathrooms and dressing rooms, all of which have to be planned with great care.

We have to consider the implementation of the project. We have our own team of experienced tradesmen and craftsmen from joiners to curtainmakers and electricians to upholsters.  Some of them we have worked with for nearly 30 years. However, our clients may already have builders and other trades in mind and these should be involved at the earliest possible moment.

Once we have agreed the brief we provide a fee proposal summarising the brief, the stages involved, our own services and our fees together with our Terms and Conditions of Business. As Design Practise Members of the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) we are bound by their Code of Conduct and obliged to carry the necessary insurances.

As soon as this is approved we move on to the design stage.

Design

The design stage is the creative one.  It also involves gathering information ready for pricing and timetabling. 

Some clients want to be very much involved whilst others prefer an arms length approach. Client meetings can take place throughout this stage on site, at our offices or visiting showrooms and suppliers.

The information required may involve other specialists and consultants such as lighting, audio/visual, landscaping designers, surveyors and structural engineers along with preparation of any of the following:

• A measured survey so that we have accurate plans and elevations to work from
• Feasibility studies
• Application for the necessary statutory consents
• Budget estimates, schedules and timeline
• Electrical and audio/visual layouts
• Design drawings for joinery
• Furniture layouts
• Sanitary ware and kitchen equipment plus door and window furniture and other fixtures and fittings as required
• The building specification ready for negotiation or tendering
• The colour and fabric schemes for the interior decoration including all soft furnishing, window treatments, furniture, upholstery, decorative lighting, floor and wall coverings and accessories. This can include sample boards, sketches, brochures, visits with the clients to showrooms, factories, yards and workshops
• The interior decoration specification ready for itemised pricing
• CGI or hand drawn visuals of the interiors
• Full turn-key inventory if required

Once the schemes and costs have been submitted and approved we proceed to the third stage

Deliver

Implimentation and installation are the tasks which we seek to perform with the minimum stress to our clients and maximum impact on completion. 

Once the scope of work and costs have been approved the implementation stage can begin. The building work and interior decoration will happen in tandem, and we will always be candid about the amount of time they should take. Our aim is to deliver every project on time and on budget.

In order to carry out the work we may include any of the following:

• Depending on the size of the project we may co-ordinate builders, tradesmen and other contractors ourselves, including kitchens, bathrooms, specialist joinery, lighting and flooring
• On large scale projects we recommend the use of a dedicated project manager and site foreman.
• We can also work alongside the clients’ own design team
• We will arrange regular site meetings, which the client may wish to attend
• Whilst the building work is in progress we shall also be ordering and monitoring progress of the interior decoration including the soft furnishing, upholstery, window treatments, furniture, floor coverings, specialist wall finishes, decorative lighting and accessories
• We can oversee snagging of the building works on practical completion
• We can check and approve all invoices from contractors and issue certificates as required prior to submission to the client for payment
• On practical completion of the building work we shall oversee installation of the interior decoration as agreed
• We happily assist with the house move if required and supervise the unpacking and installation of the clients' own possessions
• On turn-key projects we purchase, deliver and install all the necessary household goods prior to the client or tenant’s arrival
• We frequently arrange for the hanging of pictures and purchase of artwork, antiques and accessories
• Fresh flowers, a fully stocked fridge and champagne on ice can also be included in the package

Visit our Fees page for information on how we cost projects.

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