2 Simple Steps For Planning A New Room Design

I often get asked how I ‘put things together’ when designing a room & half of that is probably down to having a pretty good imagination but I also put in a lot of work planning.

Planning a new room makeover & the decor is something that everybody should do before investing in new purchases or getting stuck in with a paint brush, but this is something that many people don’t attempt & so it can end up with a mish-mash of colours or styles that simply just don’t ‘go’.

In this blog post I’m going to attempt to show you how I go about planning a new room when designing, I use two ways depending on the amount of time I have & how my ideas have formed already.

Step 1 – Brainstorm/mind map
If you’re lacking time & creativity then a brainstorm (or mind map, whichever is the politically correct way to put it nowadays!) is the ideal way to get things started.

Start by picking up a pen & paper & write down all your thoughts, ideas, inspiration & so on…literally anything that springs to mind such as –

· Colours
· Styles
· What’s staying
· Whats going
· What you need to buy
· Budget
· Function of the room
· Occupants of the space
· Storage
· Layout
· What feel you’d like

Doing this as individual members of a household can also be great for revealing what each person is hoping for & will ensure you’re all aiming for the same thing when designing. Your husband may decide he needs a games room area in the dining room that needs to be incorporated for example which you can rule out immediately.

This will then highlight any issues you may have or come across that can be sorted before you’ve had to lift a finger or spent any money. Keep referring back to this list to add/take away any points as you work through this makeover.

Step 2 – Mood board

A mood board is something that is spoken about constantly in the world of Interior Design. I use these on a personal level as well as when conducting designs for clients as it’s the perfect way to be able to show & visualise your plans.

It doesn’t have to be anything too OTT & can range from a piece of paper with some magazine cut outs (plus some good old PVA glue & scissors – very Blue Peter style!) to using online programs to put together inspiration from all over the internet as well as product sourcing.

This should include similar ideas as the brainstorm however in a more visual aspect so try to include samples of your chosen paint colours, images of furniture you’ve fallen in love with & so on.

Pinterest is one of the best places to do this as it’s interiors are to die for & it’s so easy to pin things on to a board with little work or effort at all.

These two planning stages will then help you with the next stage – DOING! They’ll also help with avoiding any issues during carrying out the makeover as well as potentially wasting money on paint that clashes or so on.

Love, Charlotte x