I am writing this post as a response to what I see and talk about every day in my job. I think this is very important for anyone setting up or re-setting up a room in their house. So, if you’re thinking of upgrading a bedroom, renovating your living room, or just bought a new house that you’re gutting, read this and commit it to memory first. These five questions should be asked before starting any room in your house.
QUESTION ONE: What are the functions of the room?
What are you going to use this room for? Is it going to be sleepy, or entertaining? Is it meant for down time or is it the happening place right before everyone leaves for school in the morning? A room can have more than one function but you have to make sure the functions compliment each other and work well together.
QUESTION TWO: What do you currently like in the room?
Try to be open minded here. Although we sometimes want to just do a gut renovation it will save time and money, not to mention some beautiful items, if we stop first and think about what we like. It can be the bay window, the throw pillow, or the claw foot tub. Sometimes it is necessary to imagine the item not in the room. Sometimes we need to not see it with the gross around it – but theres usually one or two or more things that can be salvaged.
QUESTION THREE: What do you hate?
This question is equally as important. What you hate will help you when planning your budget. Not to mention will stop you from making the same mistakes next time or in general. If you are super ambitious try to write down why you hate that item. Instead of saying I hate cement floors maybe say I don’t like cement floors because they are cold. This way you now know that you don’t like cold floors and you’ll opt for something warmer during the reno.
QUESTION FOUR: What style is the room going to be?
I know this question is a hard one, but it is a necessary one. You want to know what kind of style you want the room to be in BEFORE starting so that it all matches and flows together nicely. Otherwise, you are likely to end up with a half formed plan in the beginning which leads to some elements that don’t match the final design. Being that this is a hard process I created a cheat sheet to help out with it. You can download it here.
QUESTION FIVE: What is your budget?
Figuring out the answer to this question will actually allow you to spend more money on the room. What I have found is that people who do not have a planned budget are afraid to buy anything, never knowing when they will go over the budget. If you have an amount in your head, break it down to 3 sections. Room, Foundational, and Mobile. Room- is how much you want to spend on floors, walls, structure. Foundational- how much are you going to spend on the furniture, the big items. Mobile- how much would you spend on the accents and added features like throw pillows and art.
So there you have it, your guide before starting any renovation, big or small 🙂
Hope you enjoyed! Subscribe for more awesome info and content every month.
Design ya later
Kayla
