The easy answer is to always hire a professional . The next answer is to make sure that person is someone you trust,
the answer after that is - no matter how talented you are - how much of an innate ability you have to create your own designs - execution is everything and a trusted professional will make sure it is done just as it should be.
TRIAL AND ERROR IS EXPENSIVE
If you have attempted this on your own in the past you may have already found this to be true ....you buy it, you toss it, you know the drill- and then you do it again ..........and again. Or better yet, you make a large purchase - it is not returnable, it's not the piece you really wanted - and you hate it ..........so true to ourselves and our innate need to get just what will truly make us happy, you buy something else .........you may have even made the choice based on price - after all, it was less money, right?
Here's a tip to remember .........there is never enough money to do it right - but there is always enough money to do it over ......do the math - two times x is more than usually more than Y........if you are lucky you will only do it twice - if not, that could go on forever - in the meantime, you are frustrated, you dislike intensely what you purchased and you are still struggling on how to finally get it right - in the end, it makes Y look like a bargain. Doesn't sound like much fun, does it? And if you are not having fun - you are doing it all wrong.
doesn't getting it right the first time make great sense? Not only for the economy of it but for the sheer joy of the look and its accomplishment? It's so easy to fall into the trap of canned design- following the trends of the day - design is so much more than that - it has nuance, it has discovery (so important!), it has the personal touch - it is soft, it breathes air into who you are and it has a lasting classic quality that never goes out of style - while always leaving room for those subtle changes that change everything:
It is clean - even if it has an organized chaos about it (for those divine collectors).....
It has beef -and merit - each individual piece -it is not based on price - either high or low - it is not meant to be just a photo worthy look but an entity of great depth - that gets better and better and brings more and more joy -
It feels good - it tells a story - it has an essence of reflective life - with the imperfections that as humans we relate to - It is not a perfect match - it is not a perfect anything - and yet in it's genius, the imperfection is somehow perfect
It is light, it gives the soul a lift - it is appropriate and in the end, for me, my ever present goal is that it should all look like It gently floated down from heaven and landed in the right spot
Having said that - as Katie Couric says, "it takes a lot of effort to make it look effortless" but the time, planning, pondering and visual intent put into it is well worth it.......
' so here are some tips...........
Anything goes (except for CUTE - there is NO place for CUTE in design)......Repeat after me........There IS NO PLACE (ABSOLUTELY NO PLACE) FOR CUTE IN DESIGN. That is a direct quote from me and you can take it to the bank. Trust the hand that guides you - and if you don't walk away. Find that person and it is all downhill from there.
For more good advice for getting it right the first time my e-book is available
online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble & Kobo.
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