Tips on How to Become an Interior Designer
If you’ve been busying yourself during lockdown by rearranging furniture, painting walls, or even planning a full kitchen redesign, then you might have started to wonder what it takes to make a career for yourself in interior design. It’s an industry with many possible points of entry. But what steps should an aspiring interior designer take to get started?
A study-based degree
The most obvious first step is to take a degree in a relevant subject from a reputable university. Art and Design, interior design, and interior architecture are all considered relevant by the government’s National Careers Service. Many designers will recommend taking an intensive one-year course rather than a lengthy one, as the truth is that the subject tends more on the side of skills than knowledge.
Get an internship
Learning on-the-job, preferably under the mentorship of an established designer, will allow you to get to grips with the reality of what life is really like in the profession. You don’t need to have a degree to get started, but it might make the difference that gets your foot in the door. Persistence will often pay off in this situation, so don’t be deterred by rejection.
Networking
Being able to liaise with people you don’t know is a vital skill for an interior designer. Among the best ways to do this is via social media sites like LinkedIn, which are geared specifically toward professionals. Ask if you can assist on minor projects, and ask for referrals from designers you’ve worked for.
Ask for Help
To improve at any skill, you’ll want to put in the hours honing it – but you’ll also want to incorporate feedback from those who know what they’re doing. This is where mentorship can be so powerful. But you don’t only want to talk to other designers. This is because interior designers have a very specialised skillset.
As such, if you find that you’re only asking other designers for their opinion, you might be missing out on a potentially invaluable source of new insight. Make a point of befriending plumbers, electricians, and other tradespeople, and asking their opinion on any new plans you come up with. They might be able to offer practical advice of the sort that you might never have otherwise gotten.
Build a Portfolio
When potential clients and collaborators are looking to judge your abilities, they’ll want to see a complete and diverse portfolio. Make sure that you include projects that showcase a broad range of skills, as well as your individual strengths. Building an impressive portfolio will take time and patience – but if you make sure that each new addition is an improvement on what’s there already, you’ll eventually have a portfolio that’ll have would-be clients chasing you, rather than the other way round.
