When it comes to building, renovating or just giving your space that long overdue facelift, your choices are endless these days. Just a short 20-some years ago, the home decorating scene was much less confusing! Those were the days when having a handful of laminate countertop swatches on a chain to agonize over was abundant, and choosing one of the five available stain options for your oak cabinets seemed like a daunting task! Well let me tell you, those easy days are long gone! Man, I am sounding like my parents… my dad would say, “yep, well back in the good old days we…………………………………………………………” (you get the picture)

Now I’m not saying that having more options is a bad thing at all… what I am getting at is that it sure does make things a lot more complicated… don’t you think? Where do you start? That is the big question, and the reason I have my job! When so many things appeal to you and your senses, how do you know which one to choose? What style, look, and feel do you want your home to have? Therefore, having some assistance and direction from a professional in some form is so darn critical!

As I mentioned above, our choices these days are massive but on top of that, you have people posting all kinds of pictures on Pinterest, Houzz, and tons of other medias. These are real homes in some cases, but some are most definitely professionally staged and photographed. Many are staged with product that we simply can’t source, does not comply in our country, or hold up to our climate. This can be quite misleading but doesn’t have to mean you can’t achieve your end vision.

When you start with a plan, and come up with the steps and choices that need to be made for the project to go smoothly, two things will happen:

1. You are ready when your builder is ready, which is SUPER IMPORTANT! He will not be pressuring you into a decision that you will regret in the end, and you won’t slow him down! If you are not ready, they will, and must move on to the next project, which will put your project behind schedule. Urgh!!!
2. You need to be certain that functionally, every component of the project has been considered and will work together like a beautiful, well oiled machine. From proper room sizes, right down to that new dining room set you’ve been eyeballing for the last couple years. You don’t want to get to the “filling your home” stage and realize your earlier choices do not go with those pieces you really want. With a plan, you will be able to take a big sigh of relief and be excited that your new home or reno is shaping up just like you dreamed it would!

Your home is one of the largest investments of your life. It should be exciting and fun to see it to completion. If you use the right tools it will turn out just as you imagined. Make sure you take advantage of the people in the industry that are here to help you. Embrace the process… from choosing the right contractor and architect, to either hiring a décor/designer to personally piece your vision together or taking advantage of direction put together by one. Whatever you do, stick to a plan and in the end you won’t be disappointed. Trust me!

That Girl Shannon saying
So, till next time, it’s That Girl Shannon saying, I love spontaneity… provided it’s well planned out. *wink