The design process

The Design Process

Always start by asking a crucial question: how do you want to live?

The first stage of any project is to establish what stage of life you're at, and how you want to live in the future. All other decisions should flow from there. Be very honest with yourself. Really get into your floor plans. You can start with the estate agent's plans.

Leave thoughts of decoration to the end, you'll find ideas will come as you're pouring over plans. The colour of the walls probably represents only 10% of the result.

The process in the sequence should run as follows:

Room layout - Furniture Layout - Electrical Layout - Begin Designing - Tender - Building - Finish Designing - Ordering - Installation

Room Layout

A birds-eye view of a room or suite of rooms is used especially for planning.

Furniture Layout

A furniture layout is a floor plan showing the schematic top view of furniture, location, size, and shape.

Electrical Layout

These floor design drawings include the layout of wires, devices, units, and the location of all light sources, switches, and outlets necessary to create a smart and an effective electrical and lighting system in a property.

Tender

Tendering is the process of inviting bids from prospective contractors to complete specified packages of construction work.

Further Reading

If you are interested in learning more about the basics of lay-outing Furniture Arrangement: In Residential Spaces by Vasiliki Asaroglou and Anna Bonarou is an excellent starting point. This book covers everything from the optimum distance between a sofa and a coffee table to the different ways to arrange a sofa. You can purchase the book here. Alternatively, Space Planning Basics by Mark Karlen is a great book that takes a methodical approach.

Your Assignment

Ask yourself the important questions. Write a sentence or two about each point and begin to understand why and how you will undertake this project.

Who are you?

What do you need from a room?