Interior Redesigners Change Lives, Not Just Furniture

2008 is the Year of Renewal. Perfect For Interior Redesign

Contact: Michelle Rider, Committee Chair IRIS and CEO Inspired Redesign
708-434-5816

“We don’t change houses, we change lives,” says Nanette Catarinella, a Pittsburgh, PA Interior Redesigner. “Redesigning a home pulls people together, helps them interact better in their home and feel better in their home.”

Redesign encompasses a variety of services related to home staging, decorating and consulting. The concept is simple – use what you have. And this time of year, when thoughts turn more to saving money than spending money on home items, it can be especially valuable. Homeowners can get an entirely new look just by using their own belongings and furniture in a different way. The result: a fresh, new look on a budget.

Certified Redesigners, those trained by the Interior Redesign Industry Specialists (IRIS), work with clients with a variety of styles and tastes. The biggest, most dramatic change is often simply rearranging the furniture around an architectural feature or focal point like a fireplace or picture window. In any room, form should follow function.

Diann Eiserloh, a San Antonio, TX, Interior Redesigner suggests reevaluating artwork. “The artwork on the wall should be associated with the furniture that’s in front of it. Hang the pictures or artwork six to eight inches above the back of the sofa, and if you have high ceilings, don’t think you have to decorate the entire wall all the way to the top. Leave some blank space.”

That concept – less is more - is a hard one for many homeowners, says Anna Jacoby, a Fremont, CA, Interior Redesigner, and IRIS board member. “Most people don’t have the wrong things. They have plenty of things. People should do a careful editing of their belongings to showcase them in a more aesthetically pleasing way.”

Jacoby says that the beginning of the year is a great time of year to rid your home of clutter. Clearing out the clutter leaves room for a redesign. Homeowners can keep the pieces they love and showcase them better.

Ready to redesign? Here are some tips from professional redesigners:

•         Shop your own house. Try to envision objects in different rooms. Take pictures off the wall and carry lamps from room to room. Think outside the box – an end table could become a small cocktail table.

•         Look at your lighting. Most people don’t have enough. Trade light bulbs for those that provide more natural light.

•         Think “triangle” with your lamps. Place lamps in a triangle pattern in a room, either with three, five or seven lamps.

•         Change the color scheme of a room with new pillows or a new tablecloth. Store your artwork and buy something new - a large, inexpensive poster. Pick up pillows that have some of the same colors.

•         Grow spring bulbs indoors to add color to side tables.

•         Pack away the clutter. If you don’t miss the items in a year, give them to a friend or to charity.

•         Paint a room, or for a dramatic effect, paint one wall in a room.

•         Add crown molding for a more customized effect.

•         For a little more money, invest in an area rug or new flooring.

For more information on interior redesign, interior redesign specialists, or the Interior Redesign Specialists Industry (IRIS), go to www.weredesign.com or Contact Michelle Rider, PR Committee Chair for IRIS and CEO of Inspired Redesign, 708-434-5816.