Thinking Differently - What An Interior Designer Does
Thinking differently is one of the main reasons why interior designers are engaged. Passionate designers do think differently and can cast a whole new perspective over your renovation or redecorating.
There is nothing more personal than designing a home for someone else. However that doesn't mean an interior designer imposes their personal likes and dislikes. At least it shouldn't, otherwise choose another designer.
Thinking Differently in Interior Design: How Designers Create Authentic, Timeless, No‑Vanilla Homes
Thinking differently is an important skill good interior designers develop early. I mean, who wants 'same-same'. Individuality is far more exciting to live with than what everyone else has.
When you engage an interior designer, I'm sure you are looking for results you feel you can't achieve on your own. Maybe you're not used to thinking differently because you don't have the time or inclination for interior design. Perhaps you think an interior designer will create a show home where you'll be too afraid to sit on the beautiful custom furniture.
Thinking differently in interior design is the secret to creating a home that actually feels like you, not a cookie‑cutter display home. Instead of stripping everything back to bland “resale neutral”, a professional interior designer asks deeply personal questions about how you live, what you love and how you want each room to feel, then translates that into a functional, beautiful and authentic home.
From seeing through walls and existing clutter to re‑imagining layouts, textures and lighting, this article explains what a good interior designer really does, how to work with one, and how to design a timeless, layered space that blends old and new, hero pieces and quiet details, for a result that feels like a six‑star version of your real life.
Your Home, Your Way
The job of an interior designer is to interpret what you want in the best possible way. Your home, your way - with functionality, style, creativity and fun.
Yes FUN! In thinking differently a good interior designer will also find ways to surprise and delight. It could be a quirky wallpaper, an unexpected art work, a hero light fitting, or smaller decor items that take the viewer by surprise.
In this article, we will also discuss how you can create a truly authentic home. Because living in a home that's authentic is important. You don't want your friends (or yourself) wondering who lives in your home because it DOESN'T reflect you and your loves.
So work with an interior designer who embraces you and your lifestyle. Not someone who wants to strip your home bare. Even when working with a 'blank canvas' an interior designer will create a home that reflects YOU not them.
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Thinking differently in interior design means questioning default choices, breaking out of “same‑same” trends and designing spaces around your real life, values and personality instead of generic Pinterest looks
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A good interior designer digs into who lives in your home, how you use each space and what you already own, then layers furniture, texture, colour and light so the finished rooms look cohesive, lived‑in and uniquely yours.
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Yes – truly timeless interiors mix old and new pieces, play with contrast and texture, and leave room for your art, collections and future changes, so the home evolves with you rather than dating quickly.
Thinking Differently with Fresh Eyes
An interior designer has the ability to cast fresh eyes on your home. They have different perspectives largely due to being exposed to myriad design challenges and solutions. However, what’s most important to an interior designer is the lives, loves and lifestyles of those who occupy the home they will be re-designing.
Therefore, the questioning from an interior designer should be quite personal. And if they don’t ask you enough questions, then maybe they are not the right interior designer (or building designer or architect) for you.
Questions should revolve around your likes and preferences, who lives in the home, how spaces are used, at what times of the day, what you like and dislike about the home, what attracted you to the home, etc.
Working with an interior designer is a two-way street. How you want to live in your home and how you want to FEEL in your home are vital to the process. Thinking differently will help a designer to understand what you want. However it's also how designers create exciting and liveable spaces.
Designers See Through Walls
Most often, a space to be renovated is not completely bare. There will be obstacles including built-in furniture, kitchen counter tops, cupboards and walk-in pantries, wardrobes, walls to removed, floor and window coverings, furniture and architectural details. Designers must see through these obstacles and design for what WILL be there.
Interior design can be complex in its simplicity. Interior Designer, Vincente Wolf, described it as “… a bit like a choir, with all the voices singing different parts. Yet when you hear them, they sound like one voice. The separate elements blend in perfect harmony”.
Vincente Wolf
Thus, many modern rooms may look quite simple on the surface. Yet when you investigate further the individual elements you realise that something on its own may appear quite ordinary. Yet when it’s used in conjunction with all the OTHER elements in a space, the result is warm, cohesive and beautiful.
For example, I designed a master suite which was elegant and neutral which looked almost entirely creamy beige. Yet there were 14 different textures and surfaces in that room including silk, linen, velvet, cotton, wallpaper, fabrics, metal, marble, painted wood, and glass. The owners love that room and described it as having the feeling of a six-star hotel. It was deceptively complex and an example of thinking differently.
What Is 'Timeless Decor' Really?
I have often heard people say they want something ‘timeless’. However, real timeless décor is authentic. It is a mix of contemporary and period furniture, new and existing pieces. Don’t be afraid to take items away if they don’t work or feel right. Stand back, view the space.
Does it still ‘work’ without that piece you just took out? Thinking differently achieves exciting results. Boil it down to its very essence. Allow the room to ‘breathe’ and don’t have furniture clinging to walls. This actually creates a sense of more space, not less.
Choose decor things you love. See how different patterns, fabrics and textures work in the various rooms of your home. The natural light will be different so the effect will be differ from room to room. Be true to your authentic self and your home will be authentic, timeless, beautiful and warm.
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Love, Penelope xx Interior Designer and Anti-Blah Campaigner
Plush Design Interiors uses AI‑generated imagery to help illustrate design concepts and possibilities in a fast, flexible and cost‑effective way. These images are inspirational visualisations only and may not represent final selections, exact colours, finishes or products available in Australia. All real‑world designs, specifications and purchases are curated by a human interior designer and are confirmed with clients using accurate samples, supplier information and detailed documentation before any work proceeds.
