Designer or DIYer?
So you’ve watched the design shows, seen what can be done in a 22 minute episode , and decided it can’t be that hard right!? Well friends, let me tell you the ins and outs of design are a lot more complex than that.
Admittedly, deep down inside I’ve got a good amount of DIY in me. I’m a maker, a creative, hands-on or whatever the term of the month is for it. Sledgehammer anyone? 🙋🏻♀️without hesitation. As a matter of fact, this is my happy place. It’s what catapulted me into this career of design. It’s what grounds me when things get too crazy to handle and it’s what puts a smile back on my face when stress has taken it away. I throughly enjoy getting in and getting dirty.
Growing up, I’d watch or read or see something and dissect it painfully bit-by-bit until I understood the factors involved. To me, it was fundamental to understanding the Why of the design even more so that the How. Why is this placement better over that? How does that impact the purpose? On and on…. Today, on a professional level, I appreciate that a successful business isn’t run on DIY. While there will always be a special place in my heart for the DIYer I now sit back and let those with the expertise reign in their domain.
So by now some of you may be thinking, I’m handy, why hire a designer? And the honest truth here is you hire a designer for the expertise. The understanding of how multiple factors influence a single selection. Day-in and day-out we work in this world we call design. We have different perspectives. To you, you may think I’m redoing my kitchen, some drawers would be nice. To me, I access your working triangle, assess the proximity of your cooktop to the drawers where your utensils will live; calculate that proximity to your prep area...how many steps is that? Overthinking? Nope, it’s called design and failing to plan is planning to fail. Ok, so maybe fail was a bit harsh here but you get my point. It isn’t a matter of putting a drawer here just to have a drawer there, it’s about the function, the purpose and the need that is solved as a result. Solving those issues, the ones you hadn’t even thought to consider, is why you hire a designer. Because to me, lying awake at night virtually moving thru your kitchen (in my head) is normal....no really.
