Top 10 Reasons to Hire an Interior Designer

When it's time to freshen up your living space with a little home decorating, you may think to yourself, Should I do this myself... or hire an interior designer? Some of you have an excellent sense of style, and yes, there are plenty of projects you can tackle on your own, but today, Bernard Interiors will give you the:

Top 10 Reasons to Hire an Interior Designer!

1. Training:
   Interior Designers are schooled in the best use of color, texture, function, and style. Today's designers usually hold at least a Bachelor's degree in Interior Design.
2. Connections:
   Designers have connections to the most trustworthy, high quality tradesmen in your area.There's no need to shop around!
3. Merchandise:
   Through a design professional, you have the option to purchase goods, like fabric, furniture, rugs, and decor, that are not available for retail purchase in stores.
4. Experience:
   Because their expertise comes from daily activity in the decorating field, interior designers know the value, strength and weaknesses of a wide variety of goods, whether it be window treatments, lighting or flooring. They can advise you which particular products will provide optimal benefits for your personal needs.
5. In-Home Consultation:
   Most interior designers prefer to visit you in your home, so they can incorporate their ideas into your sense of style. They tailor your initial meeting, along with follow up appointments, such as measuring, installing and photographing, to fit your schedule. How easy is that?
6. Samples:
   When meeting with you in your home, designers will bring samples of fabrics, paint, wallpaper, flooring, etc., to make the selection process easy and fun.
7. One-Stop Shopping:
   Often, interiors designers will bundle everything you need into one package deal.
8. Time-Saver:
   Designers save you time and energy by handling almost all of the details on their own. Once you've chosen from the samples that they've brought to you, you can relax, knowing that your designer is doing all the legwork.
9. No Mistakes:
   Mistakes are costly! When you hire a decorating professional, the responsibility of accuracy becomes theirs. We've not yet met an interior designer who would not go to great lengths to ensure their clients' happiness. So fear not! Not only are mistakes less likely when using a professional, the quality of the work is guaranteed... and any mistakes are taken care of, without putting a dent in your budget.
10. Your Home is an Investment:
    Using an interiors designer has always been regarded as a more expensive alternative to do-it-yourself projects. What you receive, however, outweighs the additional expense when you view it as a long-term investment in your home. Designers use the finest quality goods, which will last years beyond most store-bought products. You benefit from not having to worry about costly mistakes, as stated above, and you reap the rewards of having a space that is coordinated, functional and eye-catching.

Can you think of other reasons to recommend interior design professionals? Do you have an experience that you can share? We welcome your comments below!

If you're in the market for an interior designer, we recommend checking with the ASID, (American Society of Interior Designers). You may also contact us for a personal recommendation. We work with many highly qualified designers in the Chicago area and retain relationships with designers in several US locales. Reach us at: (847) 446-5730. Happy Decorating!

What Is A Portiere?

A portiere is simply a curtain, or drapery panel, hung across a doorway. The hardware would work on a swing-arm system, allowing it to move freely alongside the movement of the door.

In other instances, portieres can be used to embellish a doorless entryway into a room, as seen in our photo here. This photo showcases a portiere which was made merely for ornamentation, however, portieres are often installed as a single operational panel, meaning that it may be drawn across the entire breadth of the doorway.

A portiere was a common decorating tool in wealthy British households of the 1800's and this look is often used today by designers and homeowners who still love to decorate in a Victorian style.

Traditionally, a portiere would be constructed using a brass rod, accompanied by a heavy fabric such as velvet or brocade. It's purpose was to regulate heat, so the dense weave helped block any drafting, and retained heat from a fireplace, while the elegant appearance appealed to the Victorian Era's love of luxury.

Photo courtesy of Bernard Interiors.

Draperies: To Line or Not To Line?

A question often asked by our clients is, "Do I really need to line my draperies?"
The answer is is a resounding: maybe. It really depends upon what you expect of them!

Draperies: To Line or Not To Line?

Let's take a look at the differences between sheer draperies and lined draperies, and then the advantages of each style, including adding interlining. At Bernard Interiors, we use high quality linings, ensuring that your draperies look, feel and perform at their finest. Our standard lining is Roc-Lon Sonata Sateen, which is a blend of polyester and cotton. Our interlining is 100% cotton.

Sheer draperies are exactly that... sheer and unlined. Many times fabric with a loose weave is chosen, or fabric that is thin and translucent. This gives the windows the opportunity to look "dressed", while still allowing sunlight to filter through the room. With certain sheer fabric choices, a more billowy look is achieved, complimenting a light, airy design style. Additionally, sheers are often paired with lined draperies, to increase options for operation and light control.

Some drawbacks to using sheers are:

• Sun damage: Sunlight will discolor and degrade the fibers in the fabric. 
• Replacement Value: These draperies may need to be replaced more often than others.
• Light control: minimal.
• Privacy coverage: minimal.

Lined draperies are the most common style of draperies. A single layer of lining is sewn onto the reverse side of the drapery panel and serves to provide light blockage, sun protection, privacy, and fullness, (body). Standard drapery linings are white or ivory in color, but at times a designer will choose a contrasting fabric to handle same job. Usually, though, the white and ivory are preferred for their aesthetic value, based upon an outdoor, street-side view of the residence. Lined draperies are going to last longer than sheer draperies, simply due to the strength of the lining against the savages of the sun.

Adding interlining to lined draperies can be compared to selecting an upgrade. Interlining is sewn in-between the main fabric and the lining. Interlining fabric is thick, rather like soft felt. It has a dense weave, giving it superb light blockage. The extra layer not only allows more privacy to the room, it also adds to the rich appearance of the draperies, providing fullness and stability, and aiding the pleats to retain their crispness and form. In terms of investment value, lined and interlined draperies have our highest recommendation, due to their fine quality and longevity.

Did you know, lined, (and interlined), draperies protect your furniture and carpet, too? They also help to block drafts and maintain room temperature!

Sheers absolutely have their place in decorating and design, but today's blog seeks to enlighten you on the merits of adding lining(s) to increase the value and performance of your window treatments.

To give you a visual, I asked our seamstress to prepare samples for the following drapery photo, which was taken in our workroom, using remnants. While this particular fabric is not specified as a "sheer", it is lightweight and you can clearly see the differences in the three panels. Notice the changes in light coverage and body, and the definition of the pleats, as you look from the sheer panel on the left, to the lined and interlined panel on the right.

What style of draperies are you in need of today?

We'd love to hear your comments on Draperies: To Line or Not To Line? Please leave your comment below, or contact us for more information.
Telephone: (847) 446-5730
Email: BernardInt@att.net