Employing an interior designer to furnish your home – is it a new fashion or a necessity? What do you think about it?
In my opinion it’s very difficult to give an unequivocal answer to this question because there’s a large group of people for whom employing an interior designer is a necessity. They are mainly overworked businessmen who wouldn’t have enough time to furnish their homes by themselves. On the other hand, there’s a tendency to employ a specialist who takes care of furnishing your home. It is common especially among wealthy city dwellers that fall into a snobbish habit of consulting every detail with a designer.
In the first case the employer relies absolutely on an expert. He knows that an interior designer is a specialist and is ready to accept new ideas. He probably first makes a list of his preferences: the type of furniture, equipment and favourite colours. Then a designer is to attend to everything, complying with all of his client’s remarks. Flats of workaholics are usually kept in a minimalist style. Rooms have to be spacious so there shouldn’t be much furniture: a comfortable sofa, armchairs, modern hi-fi equipment and nice lighting. Everything should be kept in soft colours; books and small objects should be hidden.
A good inteior designer always remembers that for this kind of person one of the most important rooms is the study. There should be a big desk with a computer, a printer and a scanner, a comfortable swivel chair and filing cabinets. Designers usually know how to satisfy and fulfil the expectations of such clients.
There are more problems with people who treat employing interior designers as fashion. At present there are a lot of magazines which deal with furnishing and decorating homes. They dictate certain tendencies and styles. Readers of these magazines want their flats to look similar to those from colourful photographs so they employ designers. They sometimes have their own ideas which not necessarily match their flats. It is probably more difficult to satisfy such employers. They like to interfere in a designer’s work, which can sometimes lead to the destruction of the whole project. People who blindly follow fashion often forget basic principle: not every flat is suitable for its owner’s fashionable vision.
There are also people who want to have a nice flat but their taste is not good enough to decorate a flat by themselves. If they can afford it, they ask an interior designer for help and entirely rely on his judgement. It’s a good way out because a lot of people believe that a flat reveals its owner’s character. For such people employing a designer is a very good solution.
To sum up, in many cases the aid of an interior designer is a necessity. Shortage of time and the pace of life make people seek out the advice of experts. It is also a good solution for those who have no idea how to furnish their flats and don’t like being criticised by their guests. As far as fashion is concerned, we have to remember that it is changeable so designers will always have a lot of work. But I think that the greatest enjoyment comes from furnishing your flat by yourself.
Pytanie, które może zadać egzaminator
If you had a new flat, would you employ an interior designer to furnish it? Why?/ Why not?
I would never employ an interior designer. In my opinion, it’s great fun to furnish your own flat. I don’t think I’d feel well in a flat decorated by somebody else. I believe you can say a lot about a person after having a look at the place he lives, as it almost always reflects his character. I’d love to decide on colours of my new flat, the type of furniture and equipment. I’d choose everything by myself, beginning with armchairs, a sofa or a table and finishing with taps, a sink and door knobs. I’d probably ask my friends for some advice but I’d make final decisions.
unequivocal – niedwuznaczny, jednoznaczny
dweller – mieszkaniec