How to Find a Modern Interior Designer

How do you find the ideal modern interior designer? Collect your magazine clippings, blog bookmarks, and design books and head to 2Modern's Design Directory. The goal of this directory is to help you
identify the best modern interior designers in your area. Use these easy steps to help narrow your search.

1. With any project that requires the sharing of ideas and concepts, communication is key. With that in mind, remind yourself to interview several candidates throughout this process to make sure that you identify someone with whom you are comfortable communicating.

2. To start your list of potential modern interior designers, request design references from well-designed spaces that you aesthetically admire - magazine features, friend's homes, boutiques, restaurants, etc. It's fine if the styles differ greatly - good interior designers can pull concepts from divergent design genres to help you interpret your style and theirs.

3. When you have identified a list of potential interior designers (at least 5 candidates), call or email them to discuss their design philosophy and areas of expertise. Are they more experienced in residential design or restaurant design, etc ? If they meet your initial criteria, then inquire further about their project history - how many projects have they successfully completed? Have they been featured in magazines or received any awards? Do they have an online portfolio or before/after photographs of successfully designed spaces?

4. Request at least 3 references from each interior designer. Call each reference and ask candid questions. Inquire about overall project success; how did the interior designer translate this person's ideas/requests into the finished product? What were the strengths and weaknesses of the interior designer? What they would have changed within the interior design process?

5. As you narrow the list, remember that communication is central to a successful project. Meet with each interior designer to check out their communication style and gauge whether this may be a good fit for you and your project (verify in advance if there are fees associated with an initial meeting).

6. In order to make the most informed decision between a few contending interior designers, meet with each of them at the project space and request a top level design proposal (if applicable, or have them do a "mood board" or "design study" with broad concepts, colors, etc). Witness the designer thinking on his/her feet about how they have interpreted your interior design needs and how their design philosophy could accommodate your goals. (Please note that a design proposal meeting may have associated fees, so negotiate this in advance of the meeting).

7. When you have narrowed your choices to a few qualified modern interior designers, request project estimates and approximate timelines for a project of your scope. At this point, you should be well informed to make a decision on your designer. Remember to review all previous criteria and collected material to make the most informed overall decision.