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Interior-design projects almost never have a precise, definable beginning. You might know from the moment you move into your home that it needs an overhaul. Or you might live there comfortably for years before your needs changethe kids go off to school, your job goes remoteand so you need the house to change with you. Or maybe you just feel a little dissatisfied with a certain room, always wondering vaguely how you could use and enjoy it more.Whats certain, though, is that its never too early to bring a designer on board. Take these three scenarios handled by designers with Decorating Den Interiors, a collective of individually owned and operated design firms across the U.S. Theyll show you that no matter where you are in your particular projectdreaming about it, actively planning it, or wondering if you need to do it at allthe time to enlist professional expertise is right now.When the entire space needs reimaginingDesigner: Krista Shugars | Photographer: John ColeWhen Krista Shugars, owner and lead designer of KD Designs Custom Interiors, turned to the dining area in a historic home in Baltimore (one of multiple rooms there that she and her team designed), she didnt start with paint colors and fabric swatches. That would all come much later. First, she and her team had to more or less create the room from scratch, knocking down two brick walls and moving an entire kitchen.KD Designs essentially served as project manager on the renovation, not only envisioning how the space could be reconfigured, but diving deep into the feasibility and cost of the complex undertaking. On major projects like this one, Shugars says, we provide schematic and rendering drawings for how the space should look. Its really a collaborative effort between our firm, the general contractor, and the client.Here, the firm had to contend with the fact that 10 solid marble columnsa defining feature of the historic 1880s homeneeded to be retained. (At top, you can see how the dining room flows into the great room, which is defined by these massive structures.) The challenge was to develop a more contemporary feel that was still in keeping with the houses grand scale. The client loved the historic feel of the home, but inside it was designed very traditionally, and thats not their style, Shugars said. They wanted a place that they actually wanted to live in and enjoy without being stuffy.So not only did the team demolish the two walls and relocate what Shugars calls an odd, unused space that housed a kitchen, bathroom, pantry, and laundry areathey also reframed the windows and added an additional skylight to the two existing ones, flooding the room with natural light. A new built-in beverage bar modernized the room and added versatility.And then they moved on to paint colors and fabric swatches.When you have a room you dont know what to do withDesigner: Kimberly Paulus | Photographer: Andrei RestrepoSometimes, a design project starts with a brainstorming session. Well have people call us and say, We just dont use this room at all, and we dont know what to do with it, says Kimberly Paulus, owner of Sienna, Texas-based Monarch Designs.In this particular case, she started with a freewheeling interview about what the family liked to do, what activities they enjoyed that werent accommodated by existing rooms. For this family with two daughtersone in high school and the other in collegethe answer turned out to be hang out and drink coffee. So Paulus turned their unused formal dining room into a European-inspired coffee bar and internet caf.The traditional dining-table-and-chairs setup was replaced with a coffee station and three bistro tables. A high table with stools facing a window makes it almost like you are sitting in a coffee shop, Paulus says. Additional vintage-look features like stonework, ceiling beams, and hand-painted tiles provide theme-appropriate finishing touchesso it feels like a place you might find on the street in Barcelona. Paulus points out that designers dont just need to know what colors you like and whether your tastes are more traditional or more modern. Some of the questions we ask are personal: How do you spend your free time; what are your likes and dislikes from a hobby standpoint? she says. Clients ask, Why do you need to know this? But really, we do. The only way a designer can help your home reflect you is if you let them know you.When the way you use your space changesDesigner: Claudia Leah | Photographer: Darren MilesThe pandemic was what spurred one couple with a vacation home in Naples, Florida, to turn their part-time status there into permanent residence. That, in turn, meant that their casual home office in a detached cabana was no longer sufficient. A lot of people found that a certain functionbeing able to work from homewas just not there, says Claudia Leah, owner of Claudia Leah Design. For this client, the space was too high, so it echoed. They didnt have a good enough backdrop for video meetingsit showed the pull-out bed. The function wasnt there.So Leah proposed an office purpose-built to fit their needs, enclosing a dining area and truly drilling down into exactly how they planned to work in the room. Walls were installed with acoustic backing for soundproofing. To help the client better control the rooms lighting while working at the computer, existing French doors were given adjustable-louver shutters, which also allowed for more privacy. And the overall layout was designed with the need for an appealing background for video chats in mind. Its now probably the most-used room in the house, Leah says.Part of a designers skill is we see the thread that goes through, Leah says. A certain style of furniture, a certain color, how a room is arranged, how the light is filtered or capturedthings like that. Its a matter of asking and eliminating and finding the right path. It comes down to listening to the clientand also educating them.
