I made this decision to enrol in The Professional Interior Design Course after renovating our maisonette in South London and loving the process.
The renovation meant we had to completely gut the property - taking down all walls, floors, ceilings and more - to rebuild the rooms from scratch and add a loft extension to create our dream home. We worked closely with our architect and builders at all stages, and I designed all the interiors alongside them. I loved the creative process and wanted to learn more, and possibly even turn it into a profession. With only had limited experience and knowledge, I went in search of a course I could do from home on days I didn't have work.
The course offered by the British College of Interior Design covers everything you would need to know to start a career as an interior designer - whether that be starting your own business, working for an established interior design firm or working elsewhere in the industry.
From start to finish, I enjoyed and learnt so much in each lesson and from each assignment. The lessons covered vast topics, styles, techniques and included personal advice from those working successfully in the interior design world. Each assignment was written clearly with good direction and examples of previous work. The feedback on my assignments was clear, helpful and positive leaving me excited to start the next lesson.
Some of my favourite assignments were...
Assignment (3): Conducting a property presale report. I had to advise the client how to style their property and provide a budget breakdown so they could enhance the properties first impression to potential buyers in order to maximise the selling figure. I found a 1930s family house that needed decluttering, staging and a refresh of paint work inside and out. It was a really interesting project learning how some simple changes and a small budget can actually raise the sale price by a substantial amount.
Assignment (4): learning how to draw floor plans, measurement, furniture, grid overlays, one point perspective drawing and creating mood boards. Most of these techniques were new to me, I enjoyed learning these new skills.
Assignment (7): This was probably my favourite – it was the most creative and fulfilling to submit. I chose to design a concept for a retail business or cafe. I used many of the elements and techniques I had learnt from previous assignments in the course. It was a project that allowed me to be creative and elaborate on my design ideas.
Since completing the course, I taken on a couple of single room renovations/redesigns and I am in early talks with a local estate agency to work alongside them staging properties for sale. In the future, my husband and I are planning to start a staging business working with property developers, estate agents and private clients trying to sell. I really couldn't recommend the course enough.
