If you’ve ever wondered what an interior designer actually does, let me start by gently bursting a myth: we’re not just here to plump cushions and purchase pretty things. Yes, cushions matter — but if that’s all we did, this job would be a whole lot easier (and honestly, far less interesting).
The truth? Interior design is an end-to-end process that blends creativity, technical skill, project management, and a deep understanding of how people live in their homes.
And after more than a decade working in interior design — plus a background in journalism (which means I’ve spent years translating design-speak into plain English) — I’ve learnt that what clients think they need and what they actually need are often two very different things.
So if you’re wondering what an interior designer really does, here’s the full picture.
Interior Design Is More Than Styling — It’s Strategy for Your Home
One of the biggest misconceptions about interior designers is that we just decorate. And sure, decorating is fun. But interior design goes so much further:
- It’s spatial planning.
- It’s proportion and balance.
- It’s understanding light, scale, and flow.
- It’s knowing which sofa fabric your dog won’t destroy.
- It’s knowing that real homes don’t look like magazine covers!
- It’s also juggling trades, budgets, deliveries, and a hundred micro-decisions so you don’t have to.
Interior designers don’t simply make things look nice. We create a cohesive, functional home that reflects you, works with your lifestyle, and avoids the expensive mistakes you only notice after everything arrives.
If you’ve ever wondered what interior designers actually do, this is where the real value lies.
What Types of Projects Interior Designers Work On
In our studio, we work on a wide range of interior design projects, including:
- Fully furnishing and decorating entire homes and apartments
- Material selections such as stone benchtops, tiles, carpet, flooring, and tapware
- Custom joinery design, complete with 3D drawings when needed
- Reworking layouts to improve flow and functionality
- Creating whole-home schemes that tie multiple rooms together
- Helping clients through the renovation process with their chosen builder
There’s no single style we stick to art TLC Interiors; our job is to design for your taste, not ours. For us, the fun lies in the variety; we don’t repeat the same cookie cutter design for every client.
See our portfolio which shows just some of the projects we’ve worked on over the years.
The Interior Design Process Explained (Step by Step)
If you’re searching for what interior designers do, the process below outlines it clearly. A good designer never wings it — there’s a method to the creativity.
1. Discovery Call
A quick chat about your home, what you need, and how we can help.
2. In-Home Consultation
We walk through your home together. We talk about how you live, what’s working, what isn’t, and the kind of space you want to create and so much more.
3. Proposal
You receive a clear scope, fee structure, and timeline so you know exactly what to expect.
4. Concept Phase
This is where your vision starts to take shape through:
- Moodboards
- Floorplans
- Spatial planning
- Custom joinery concepts, sometimes with 3D designs
This phase ensures we get the foundation right before anything is purchased.
5. Full Specification Sheet
Every piece of furniture, lighting, fabric, and material is selected, sized, approved, and costed. No guessing. No hoping. No “fingers crossed this fits.”
6. Ordering & Procurement
We place all orders on your behalf and manage the entire procurement process — including chasing suppliers, handling delays, coordinating deliveries, and solving problems behind the scenes.
7. Trade Coordination
We liaise with painters, electricians, removalists, installers, and other trades to ensure every detail is executed correctly.
8. Installation & Styling Day
This is when everything comes together. It’s the day clients walk in and say: “Wow. This feels like an entirely different home.”
That’s a lot to get through, which is why we put together a guide on how long the interior design process takes (because it’s longer than you think!).
The Most Common Mistakes Homeowners Make (That Designers Quietly Fix)
If you’ve ever purchased matching furniture sets — the bed, bedside tables, and tallboy all in the same finish — you’re not alone. People often buy these sets because they feel safe, but they also make a home feel flat and predictable.
Another common mistake: buying lots of individually beautiful pieces that simply don’t work together. You end up with a house full of lovely things that lack cohesion. This is one of the most common issues that come up on our initial discovery calls with clients (“I loved every piece when I bought it, but none of it works together!”).
A designer solves these issues by creating a whole-home design scheme — one that connects colours, materials, textures, and shapes from room to room. That’s what transforms a space from “nice” to “effortlessly beautiful.”
The Value an Interior Designer Brings (That Pinterest and Instagram Can’t)
Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook; they’re all great for ideas. Sadly, not so great for execution. And to be fair, it’s often another issue clients come to us with: overwhelm from hundreds of screen shots taken from social media.
Here’s what interior designers bring that you can’t replicate by scrolling:
- Spatial planning that makes your home more functional
- Balance and proportion so furniture feels right
- A lighting plan/strategy that elevates everything
- Deep knowledge of furniture, fabrics, and materials you won’t find online
- A cohesive vision that avoids costly mistakes
- Professional coordination with trades and suppliers
Interior design isn’t about “stuff.” It’s about clarity, confidence, and creating a home that looks beautiful and lives beautifully.
Let’s Talk Budget Honestly
Interior design is a considered investment. It’s not about spending as little as possible — it’s about spending well.
Your budget tells us how far we can take your design, and we’ll always be honest if it won’t achieve what you want. We’ll reuse existing pieces when they work with the overall scheme, but if your top priority is saving money, interior design may not be the right fit.
Find out more about How Much Interior Designers Cost here.
Designing for Real People, Not Pinterest
Your home isn’t a showroom — it’s a living space shaped by real people and real habits.
That’s why one of the most important parts of the interior design process is understanding your lifestyle:
- Who lives in the home?
- Do you have kids or pets?
- Do you need durable, stain-resistant fabrics?
- Are there accessibility or comfort needs?
- Do you prefer recliners (yes, there are good ones!)? Extra storage? Low-maintenance materials?
Interior design is personal. The goal is to create a space that works beautifully for the life you actually live.
So, What Does an Interior Designer Do? Everything You Don’t Want to Do Yourself.
- We translate your ideas into a clear plan.
- We make your home cohesive and functional.
- We coordinate trades, manage budgets, and solve problems.
- And yes — eventually — we pick the cushions (but only once everything else has been expertly resolved).
If you’re realising your home might need more than a few new purchases, and you want a space that finally feels cohesive, considered, and complete, we’d love to help transform it.
