INTERIOR DESIGNER OR INTERIOR DECORATING? UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCE

When you first decide to make some changes to the inside of your home or building, you may not know where to first look for help. The process may seem daunting when there are so many professionals ready to offer their services. In order to make the best choice for you and your project, it’s essential to understand your options. For example, should you search for a nearby interior decorator or an interior designer?

Interior design and interior decorating are two different fields and professions that are often mistaken as being interchangeable. In actuality, the two fields are quite different, and while an interior designer can also decorate, not all interior decorators can also design. The two occupations even have different professional requirements in order for a person to be able to practice and hold one title or the other. For example, interior designers are required to go through formal training and educational courses, earning at least a bachelor’s degree. Many interior designers have extensive knowledge of spatial planning, design elements, interior design computer programs, and even architecture. Some states further require interior designers to pass an exam before they can start their own business. Interior decorators do not face the same rigid requirements to practice. Not all decorators have degrees in the field, and some are even self-taught.

The best interior designers, like the ones at International Designers in south Florida, have extensive knowledge of both the art and science of design. Rita Chraibi, the highly respected Miami interior designer who founded International Designers, seeks to understand how people will use a room, how they will move throughout a space, and how they want a specified space to feel. In other words, Rita and her team are mostly concerned with the humans who will be using the areas and not just the areas themselves. The design process requires knowledge of people’s behavior to design a room with functionality in mind while adhering to safety standards. Interior designers must understand the shape and structure of a place, which includes everything from the ceiling and walls down to the floors, and everything in between. Interior design jobs often require the designers to be familiar with an architect’s design plans, as well. Regardless of whether an interior designer is working on a residential interior design project or a commercial project, he or she may need to read blueprints to ensure all design plans adhere to safety regulations and building codes.

Additionally, the best interior design focuses on a specifics goals and involves collaboration between designers, clients, architects, developers, and contractors. Once the goals have been established, the interior designer will make certain that even the smallest details are aligned with the client’s goals and their vision for their unique space. An interior designer will decorate a space to make sure it reaches its highest aesthetic potential, but they also redesign areas and explore possibilities that may not always be apparent. Rita’s interior design team are adept at problem-solving and have the capacity to break through any limitations. International Designers seek to give their clients the greatest experiences in the spaces in which they will inhabit by bringing together various pieces of art composition, as well as novel ideas for ways to increase functionality.

Interior decorators, on the other hand, focus mostly on the surface aesthetics of a space. Interior decorators furnish, adorn, paint, and accessorize one or multiple rooms. They can lead the efforts in refreshing interiors and giving them much-needed make-overs but they usually do not collaborate with architects and developers before the space has been entirely constructed. The Interior decorators, therefore, typically do not see a project through from the ground up the way a designer might. They work within the limits of an area to give it visual appeal. Decorators may still consult the floor plans to learn about a room’s dimensions and the sizes they have to work with. However, an interior decorator is not able to move walls or make structural changes the way an interior designer can. They are, however, able to help come up with color schemes, offer suggestions for decorative pieces, coordinate furniture placement, and install coverings.

The similarities between designer and decorator reside in the fact that both professions draw upon skills of creativity, knowledge of how to make a space beautiful, and access to higher quality materials that might not be available to the general public. Both designers and decorators use their attention to detail to avoid mistakes and help clients identify their goals for each room or level. Both a designer and a decorator will need to know what a client’s budget is so that they can plan accordingly.

The most significant difference between decorating and designing lies in the fact that decorators have limitations that a designer may not face. An interior designer is also more concerned with what space does than merely how it looks. A decorator, on the other hand, is working only to make a room look better and, as a result, will not usually know about how human behavior may change or be affected by different spaces.

While the roles of designer and decorator can overlap, you can see the two professions provide different approaches to meeting a client’s needs. Rita’s International Designers team are some of the best interior designers in Miami who are not just limited to decorating; they also enhance and conceptualize a space to a client’s specifications while taking into account quality of life, culture, and social context. International Designers is goal-oriented and design rooms and outdoor spaces with luxury charm and appeal while keeping their focus on how to promote their client’s overall well-being. International Designers complements their client’s luxury lifestyles by creating sophisticated and elegant luxury interior designs. The fantastic creations of International Designers continues to grace the Miami real estate market, as home and business owners are looking for expert advice on how to get the most out of their interiors.