Your Girl Friday Blog

Attention Realtors! Give the Gift of Home!

admin — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 22:10:28 +0000

If you were to ask someone what home means to them you would get a variety of answers – most describing it as their sanctuary, a haven, a place away from the chaos of the outside world. How would you like to be your client’s hero by giving them a gift that takes a house and turns it into a home? Now Your Girl Friday makes it possible! As designers and realtors we are in and out of houses day in and day out – it’s easy to become desensitized to the importance of “home”. Think about it! This is the largest purchase of a person’s life. We are ultimately responsible for where our client’s will laugh with friends, eat Thanksgiving dinner, play fetch with beloved pets, and make lifelong memories. In those particular terms, being in charge of “home” is a tall order! That is where designers and realtors can forge a symbiotic partnership that can take that house on such-and-such street and turn it into our client’s new dream home! Our motto at Your Girl Friday is that “every home deserves to, and can be, well dressed”. YGF offers packages at a variety of price points, such as “Color Therapy” sessions starting at $175 and “Design Remix” packages starting at $375. Why give ephemera when you can give the gift of everlasting home décor! Your thoughtful housewarming gift of Color Therapy or Design Remix can grace the walls and floors of your client’s home for years to come. Call Your Girl Friday today to find out more about these priceless gift packages!

Why hire a designer

admin — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:11:31 +0000

A couple years ago, I had a great design opportunity come my way. The job was for a fabulous vacation home that just needed some thoughtful updating, space planning and color. Everything seemed to be a go, until the conversation turned to cost. The family decided that their money could stretch farther if they did the design themselves and spent their money on pieces for their home, not the services of an interior designer as well. Similarly, my business partner met a lovely woman in need of some design help for her home. They hit it off really well, but when the woman looked at the images of mostly contemporary homes in our online portfolio, she became worried we were not the designers for her after all. She, like many people, thought that we might not be willing or able to design her home keeping in mind her style preferences. Both instances were certainly disappointments for us, but I think many homeowners feel this way about hiring a designer: they can’t seem to justify the cost associated with an interior designer, nor do they feel confident that the designer will deliver a home design that reflects their personal style. But fear not! As an interior designer, it’s part of our job to understand and alleviate these common concerns among clients, because often times they are unwarranted.

In short, here are some of the key things any good designer must be able to do for their clients:

A designer knows how to choose proper pieces for any given home design, keeping in mind scale, proportion, color, finish, style and price.
A designer is able to keep in mind the big picture so the end result is a cohesive design from the biggest piece of furniture down the smallest accessory. Having great individual pieces is one thing, but they must work in harmony to create a home you will love for years to come. No one wants a hodge-podge, and that’s exactly what a designer helps their clients avoid!
A designer works within the client’s budget and can offer solutions on how to phase a project effectively to stay on budget.
A designer can facilitate the largest redesign project on down to consulting on color or reworking an unpleasant spaceplan and sourcing fabric, furnishings and accessories. No project is too small!
A designer is versed in many different design styles. A common misconception is that the designer’s personal style will dominate the look of the home. On the contrary, it’s the designer’s responsibility to work with the client’s stylistic preferences and ideas and turn them into reality. On the flip side, if a client feels they have no style or ideas, it’s the designer’s responsibility to make it look like they do! The ideal situation is to have collaboration between designer and client in order to create a dream home.
A designer, in addition to choosing things in accordance with a client’s taste, also chooses pieces and finishes that will function well for the client. Not all clients are created equal in terms of lifestyle, and the designer must consider how durable and appropriate all the design elements are in order for the client to live comfortably.

Welcome to The Your Girl Friday Blog!

admin — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 23:44:58 +0000

Thank you for visiting our new blog site. We will have many entries coming soon. Stay tuned!