One fine day, my husband and I, two busy souls, dedicated to our respective careers, decided that its better to pay EMIs than it is to pay rent. Sounds wise, right? So we went and we bought a house, took a loan and got down to business. We decided to go with a leading interior designer in Bangalore. That's when all the hell broke lose!
I realized that Interiors is a time consuming, painful and mind numbing exercise and I, being a newbie in the city and this department, didn't have much help. Like all those folks who have moved into a new city and are setting up their fast paced lives, I too relied on Google for most of the help, but alas, in an industry as unorganized as Interiors with so many moving parts and people and an unlimited number of stakeholders who are need to coordinate to complete your work, I was in for a roller coaster ride.
Thus I decided to write this post as a set of tips which will come in handy for anyone in this phase of setting up a house and doing the interiors- the products available, what to choose, how to choose, what to be careful of and most importantly all those pits that one needs to avoid in order to remain peaceful!
1. Attention to Detail!:
I cannot emphasize enough how necessary it is to be detail oriented especially when it comes to the minutest details. Because believe me, once your project is ready, you would be so exhausted that you wouldn't want to move a thing for years to come. From the kind of materials used, to the per square feet area rate, you should keep a tab on everything. A few numbers here or there, and your budget is in for a toss. Also, whenever you select any materials for your furniture, wardrobes or kitchen, make sure you take a photograph and diligently maintain a notes diary to enter all the colors and codes. Believe me, however much the Interior Designer be fancy, they have several projects at hand, and you are not their special child. They will lose these details and you will have to do things all over again, return items you never ordered and unnecessarily cause delay to your timelines.
2. Oh My Dear Kitchen!:
The most difficult of them all! The kitchen is the trickiest interior component by far in the entire setting up of the house. With several designs and materials to choose from, and budgets from 3 lacs to 40 lacs, it is no child's play. Finally, after a really bad experience, I have come up with a list of be careful notes:
a. There are many materials that can be used in the kitchen namely- Laminate (normal and glossy), Membrane, Acrylic, Spanish and Glass. While all are custom and factory made (except laminate), Spanish and Glass are only 'Shutters'. That means that you will end up spending a bomb (like we did) to get a fancy kitchen, but only your kitchen cabinet doors will be of that material. The rest of the sides will be Laminate (the cheapest kind of material available!). So, going by my experience, I would not suggest anyone to go with these if you hope that by spending extra, the kitchen will look Italian, the truth of the matter is these shutters are good, but definitely not worth the money and effort!
b. The kitchen fittings are another mind boggling component that will suck your mind and energy. From tandom drawers, to cutlery organizers, to bottle pullouts, to spice cabinets, tall units and carousels- it is like a trade fair by itself. I had decided to keep things simple since just a fancy carousel and tall unit would be an added expenditure of Rs. 1Lac. So I kept some tandom boxes, and some plain shelves along with the usual cutlery and bottle pull outs. However, again in hindsight, I feel that a drawer based kitchen, even if its more of plain tandom boxes makes more functional sense than having plain shelves since its easier to access your utensils and cutlery in drawers rather than in shelves.
c. The other important component which you would probably not ever think about, but is quite critical is the Granite, Marble, Korean Stone or Engineered Quartz shelf. Granite, is the cheapest and the sturdiest of all. But Quartz, though considerably more expensive, can provide a very neat and fancy look. So depending on your use and taste, you should ideally choose between a Granite (if rough use, habit of putting hot utensils on the shelf etc.) or Quartz (you are super careful and organized). However, one thing you must bear in mind is that more often than not, these stones would need to be cut and installed according to your kitchen measurements and make sure that they don't put a break in the granite/any other stone in middle of the shelf. The breaks between stones should come only in the corners and not in middle as it can ruin the whole look and feel.
3. Don't let your house turn into a carpentry workshop
The biggest mistake of them all! When I had signed the agreement with our Interior Designer, we were promised that all products would be factory made and would just be come and installed as is. There will be minimum footprint in the house, so that there is minimal damage and everything will be customized and factory fitted. Alas, we were in for a really rude shock.
Everything from cutting of the ply, to the fevicol sticking of the laminates on to those plywood, to hammering the nails on to the wardrobes to fix them on the wall. Every single damn thing took place in our house and ruined our plans completely. The project got delayed by more than a month from the promised date, and however much we protested, this is how things proceeded. We were told that since walls is houses are not completely straight (and its true since builders these days don't putty the walls well), factory made fittings will lead to gaps. Believe me, its better to live with those tiny gaps which can be filled and puttied than let your life go upside down and turn your house into a warehouse before you even move in. Never never ever let your the things get built in your house. Its not cheaper and its definitely not worth all the pain! The only silver lining- I get to stay in literally a hand made house!
4. Never Believe your Interior Designer/Fabricator' s Timelines
One lesson learnt the very very hard way. Never trust them. I don't mean to say that they are cheats or bad people, no didn't have a bad experience at that level, but its just an unsaid rule of the game that projects will only be completed at least 30 days after the promised date. Everyone I have spoken to who has gone through this ordeal tells me their projects never finished on time. So whatever you are planning, shifting wise or career wise, shift your plans by at least 30 days.
5. Don't Give In
Everyone is allowed to make mistakes except you. So be sure, that you do not give your sign in on anything which you are not happy with since there is always a way out. If you are not happy, do not accept. Many a times, I would go in a self doubting mode, thinking maybe only I see a problem when there is none. No, believe in yourself, and don't compromise with anything. This is your house, your money and your time, and you are probably doing it only once. So if you don't like something, don't be afraid to say it. There will always be a solution. Don't feel pressurized by suggestions of workarounds or what people have to say, do what you think is the Best Solution.
There are hundreds of other things as well that can go wrong, but if you keep the above checklist in mind, you would be able to prevent most of the errors. And hopefully, live happily every after!
I realized that Interiors is a time consuming, painful and mind numbing exercise and I, being a newbie in the city and this department, didn't have much help. Like all those folks who have moved into a new city and are setting up their fast paced lives, I too relied on Google for most of the help, but alas, in an industry as unorganized as Interiors with so many moving parts and people and an unlimited number of stakeholders who are need to coordinate to complete your work, I was in for a roller coaster ride.
Thus I decided to write this post as a set of tips which will come in handy for anyone in this phase of setting up a house and doing the interiors- the products available, what to choose, how to choose, what to be careful of and most importantly all those pits that one needs to avoid in order to remain peaceful!
1. Attention to Detail!:
I cannot emphasize enough how necessary it is to be detail oriented especially when it comes to the minutest details. Because believe me, once your project is ready, you would be so exhausted that you wouldn't want to move a thing for years to come. From the kind of materials used, to the per square feet area rate, you should keep a tab on everything. A few numbers here or there, and your budget is in for a toss. Also, whenever you select any materials for your furniture, wardrobes or kitchen, make sure you take a photograph and diligently maintain a notes diary to enter all the colors and codes. Believe me, however much the Interior Designer be fancy, they have several projects at hand, and you are not their special child. They will lose these details and you will have to do things all over again, return items you never ordered and unnecessarily cause delay to your timelines.
2. Oh My Dear Kitchen!:
The most difficult of them all! The kitchen is the trickiest interior component by far in the entire setting up of the house. With several designs and materials to choose from, and budgets from 3 lacs to 40 lacs, it is no child's play. Finally, after a really bad experience, I have come up with a list of be careful notes:
a. There are many materials that can be used in the kitchen namely- Laminate (normal and glossy), Membrane, Acrylic, Spanish and Glass. While all are custom and factory made (except laminate), Spanish and Glass are only 'Shutters'. That means that you will end up spending a bomb (like we did) to get a fancy kitchen, but only your kitchen cabinet doors will be of that material. The rest of the sides will be Laminate (the cheapest kind of material available!). So, going by my experience, I would not suggest anyone to go with these if you hope that by spending extra, the kitchen will look Italian, the truth of the matter is these shutters are good, but definitely not worth the money and effort!
b. The kitchen fittings are another mind boggling component that will suck your mind and energy. From tandom drawers, to cutlery organizers, to bottle pullouts, to spice cabinets, tall units and carousels- it is like a trade fair by itself. I had decided to keep things simple since just a fancy carousel and tall unit would be an added expenditure of Rs. 1Lac. So I kept some tandom boxes, and some plain shelves along with the usual cutlery and bottle pull outs. However, again in hindsight, I feel that a drawer based kitchen, even if its more of plain tandom boxes makes more functional sense than having plain shelves since its easier to access your utensils and cutlery in drawers rather than in shelves.
c. The other important component which you would probably not ever think about, but is quite critical is the Granite, Marble, Korean Stone or Engineered Quartz shelf. Granite, is the cheapest and the sturdiest of all. But Quartz, though considerably more expensive, can provide a very neat and fancy look. So depending on your use and taste, you should ideally choose between a Granite (if rough use, habit of putting hot utensils on the shelf etc.) or Quartz (you are super careful and organized). However, one thing you must bear in mind is that more often than not, these stones would need to be cut and installed according to your kitchen measurements and make sure that they don't put a break in the granite/any other stone in middle of the shelf. The breaks between stones should come only in the corners and not in middle as it can ruin the whole look and feel.
3. Don't let your house turn into a carpentry workshop
The biggest mistake of them all! When I had signed the agreement with our Interior Designer, we were promised that all products would be factory made and would just be come and installed as is. There will be minimum footprint in the house, so that there is minimal damage and everything will be customized and factory fitted. Alas, we were in for a really rude shock.
Everything from cutting of the ply, to the fevicol sticking of the laminates on to those plywood, to hammering the nails on to the wardrobes to fix them on the wall. Every single damn thing took place in our house and ruined our plans completely. The project got delayed by more than a month from the promised date, and however much we protested, this is how things proceeded. We were told that since walls is houses are not completely straight (and its true since builders these days don't putty the walls well), factory made fittings will lead to gaps. Believe me, its better to live with those tiny gaps which can be filled and puttied than let your life go upside down and turn your house into a warehouse before you even move in. Never never ever let your the things get built in your house. Its not cheaper and its definitely not worth all the pain! The only silver lining- I get to stay in literally a hand made house!
4. Never Believe your Interior Designer/Fabricator' s Timelines
One lesson learnt the very very hard way. Never trust them. I don't mean to say that they are cheats or bad people, no didn't have a bad experience at that level, but its just an unsaid rule of the game that projects will only be completed at least 30 days after the promised date. Everyone I have spoken to who has gone through this ordeal tells me their projects never finished on time. So whatever you are planning, shifting wise or career wise, shift your plans by at least 30 days.
5. Don't Give In
Everyone is allowed to make mistakes except you. So be sure, that you do not give your sign in on anything which you are not happy with since there is always a way out. If you are not happy, do not accept. Many a times, I would go in a self doubting mode, thinking maybe only I see a problem when there is none. No, believe in yourself, and don't compromise with anything. This is your house, your money and your time, and you are probably doing it only once. So if you don't like something, don't be afraid to say it. There will always be a solution. Don't feel pressurized by suggestions of workarounds or what people have to say, do what you think is the Best Solution.
There are hundreds of other things as well that can go wrong, but if you keep the above checklist in mind, you would be able to prevent most of the errors. And hopefully, live happily every after!
