The General Responsibilities and Duties of an Interior Decorator

Many individuals will take it upon themselves to decorate their homes and offices. However, some may find they have trouble getting the right look that they want for their interior design. This is where interior decorators enter the picture.

Interior decorators make a profession out of having an eye for decorating and being able to take a plain room and make it into a fantastic one. There are many different duties and responsibilities which an interior decorator undertakes on a daily basis in their quest for designing and furnishing the perfect room.

What Is An Interior Decorator?

An interior decorator is an individual who plans and designs the perfect interior of a room as well as furnishes the room to make it a complete look overall. The interior decorator will consult with the homeowner or business owner to see what type of style they are looking to go with in their room. The interior decorator will then work their magic to make the dream of the homeowner or business owner a reality.

General Responsibilities of an Interior Decorator

The interior decorator has many general responsibilities concomitant with their role in the profession of interior design. The interior decorator is responsible for taking the wishes of a client and turning those wishes into a complete and finished room to their liking. The interior decorator must consult with clients, take measurements, purchase furnishings and materials, coordinate items and decorate the room to result in a complete and finished product.

Specific Duties of an Interior Decorator

The interior decorator must complete many different yet specific duties in their daily work regimen. The first thing they must engage in is the meeting with clients. Once a client is procured, the interior decorator must set up appointments with them to learn about the space they will be decorating. In addition, the interior decorator will determine if the homeowner or business owner has any particular aspects in mind which they would like to relay to the interior decorator. Also at this meeting the estimated price of completing such a job may be discussed or this may be put off until the next meeting where the interior decorator will have set figures prepared.

Once the interior decorator has met with the client, they must then survey the room or area that is to be decorated and start working on the creative process. The interior decorator will take measurements and gain some insight as to where to begin and what the ultimate outcome should be. Ideas will start to be taken down as the interior decorator begins to get a feel for what they are aiming for with regard to the overall interior design.

The interior decorator is also responsible for purchasing furnishings and materials to make the desired design come together. They will shop around for the desired items, check prices on the items and try to get the best deal possible for the client.

Many interior decorators must also be good sketch artists. Since they will need to adequately plan room layouts and make items fit nicely within the room, it helps if they have some artistic talent with regard to preparing sketches to help them figure out where everything will go and how it will look once it is in place.

The interior decorator usually does not do everything on their own. Frequently the interior decorator will subcontract various jobs for the project. Items such as painting, attaching fixtures and carpentry will all be subcontracted out. With that said, the interior decorator is responsible for shopping around for the best and least expensive subcontractors, meeting with those subcontractors about the job and supervising their work along the way.

An interior decorator must also meet with the client various times throughout the process. They will meet in the beginning to discuss the job and provide price estimates and then different times throughout the interior design job to give them status updates, ask questions about decorations and anything else which may arise in conjunction with the interior design job.

Many interior decorators are hands on individuals the whole way and will be working alongside of the subcontractors from start to finish. They will help with the carpentry and painting as well as take charge of the decorating process. The role of involvement will vary from interior decorator to interior decorator.

Positive Traits Which All Interior Decorators Should Possess

There are various positive traits and attributes interior decorators should possess. The first positive trait, which may be the most important one as well, is creativity. Creativity is the underlying factor which makes interior decorators good at what they do. They can take an image or a concept and relay that image or concept in the interior design of a room. Not only should an interior decorator be able to follow the wishes of a homeowner or business owner but they should also be creative enough to come up with unique ideas and concepts on their own as well.

Interior decorators should also possess the positive attribute of timeliness. Since many homeowners and business owners need their interior design jobs completed in a certain amount of time, it is important for the interior decorator to be time conscious and get everything completed in a timely manner. Those who are timely in nature will not only gain customers but keep them as well.

An interior decorator should also be an individual who when they get an interior design job they follow through from start to finish. It is crucial that when an interior decorator decides to decorate one’s home or office they completely finish what they started out to do. The ability to carry through on a job is a positive attribute interior decorators should all possess.

Interior decorators should also have the positive trait of preciseness. This relates not only to being precise in the actual designing process but precise with regard to costs and financial figures as well. A customer who receives a cost estimate will be quite disappointed in an interior decorator who then comes back after the job is finished and charges thousands of dollars more than what was estimated. Being as precise as possible will help the interior decorator get a good name in the interior design business.

Conclusion

Interior decorators have a fascinating and important job role. They help individuals to decorate their rooms and homes and turn them into complete masterpieces. By carrying through on their jobs and having positive traits like the ones listed above, an interior decorator will be able to do their job to the best of their ability.