The first step when planning for an interior design project is both the most challenging and the most important: preparing a budget. Whether it’s building from the ground up, tackling a home renovation, or furnishing an entire room or rooms, having a budget will guide the project’s style, quality, and design and give clarity into what is possible. Having a budget of $200,000 for a kitchen versus $25,000 for a kitchen will yield a very different process, team, and result.

Homeowners often have a beautiful vision in their heads, but aren’t quite sure how to translate it into a budget. As an interior designer, a large part of my role is helping clients to understand what things cost (especially when it comes to renovating and building as those numbers aren’t readily available like a coffee table price or rug price might be) and then working within their budget to design a functional space they love.