by Michele Gillis
Staff Writer
Much like the industries it assists, the interior design industry has had to adapt to the times.
Local interior designers haven’t been immune to the change, but they do have strategies. In today’s market, it’s all about getting back to basics, toning down flair and becoming even more resourceful to succeed.
“Because of the economic times, many of the smaller builders that we were providing multiple model homes for each year have gone back to selling speculation homes unfurnished or just moving the furniture from one model to another using in-house staff,” said Judith Sisler Johnston, president of Sisler Johnston Interior Design. “The model homes we are still merchandising tend to be in select communities and targeted toward an entry-level market or first-time move-up, younger buyer.”
Johnston said design trends tend to be more contemporary for this market as opposed to the boomer market that had contemporary furnishings in the 1970s.
“The economic times also lend themselves to a paring down of the luxury aspect of furnishing with less ornamented styles that have straight, fresh and cleaner lines,” said Johnston.
Lisa Barton of Design Concepts said after listening to builder requests, she has changed her style to help greater emphasize building materials used in the home while focusing less on accessories.
“We try to feature the upgraded cabinets that really give the ‘wow’ factor and more tile (or wood, if budget allows) throughout the home,” said Barton “Using less wallpaper in the home and using more variety of paints – people tend to think wallpaper gets dated to quick therefore having to revamp more often.”
Barton also said she uses styles of furniture and accessories with a timeless appeal.
“The concept of ‘less is more’ has come into the interior design world full-throttle,” said Barton. “Less furnished model homes and less accessories in those they do furnish means interior designers today need to be more creative.”
Dana Skaff of Southern Lifestyle Homes said the “less is more” approach and focus on materials is something builders are leaning toward in current markets.
“We have found that staging is more beneficial to us because we have gotten a lot of feedback from customers and Realtors,” said Skaff. “Customers are able to view the home much better and that they can take a closer look at the workmanship and quality.”
Merchandising a home can become expensive, but furnishing economically and finding a balance is the goal.
“The market today is very challenging in trying to accomplish the goal of merchandising a model home to meet a buyer’s expectations and at the same time stay in the builder’s budget,” said Wendy Chandler of Chandler Designs. “The market is so competitive and you really have to be on top of your game to capture your potential buyer’s attention.”
Chandler said as the economy has shifted, everyone in almost every industry has had to adapt to become more resourceful.
“Buyers want a home at a lower price, builders need to reduce costs to meet the demands and all this trickles down,” said Chandler. “It challenges us as decorators and designers to use more ingenuity and find the thing that makes their model home stand out above the competition without breaking the bank.
“Learning how to mix furniture and fabrics to give a more expensive look, using interior paint colors to add warmth and richness to the models is important,” said Chandler. “As costs of home furnishings continue to climb, being creative is the key.”
Builders still want what they want: to show off their model homes, make the buyers feel at home and sell more houses.
“Builders want the model decorated to show the floor plan in the best possible way,” said Chandler. “Model homes are just that – to sell homes. They are not about showcasing the latest interior design trend, especially if it does not appeal to the buyer in which a model home is being decorated. It is important to make sure that the merchandising of a model home not only meets the buyer profile and that a buyer can have an emotional connection to the decorated model, but also that the builder feels that their home was properly showcased to enhance all of the homes features,”
Five years ago the market was still pretty stable and model homes were decorated over-the-top. The current market is different and lends more to a type of decorating that is clean and flatters the house itself.
“You can clearly see it in new models verses old models,” said Chandler. “Back in the day, the models were heavily accessorized and there would be stuff everywhere. There were heavy ornate window treatments, silk plants as if you were in a forest and a plethora of accessories. The visual stimulation was like being in a gift shop with too much to see. People would forget to look at the actual house.”
Today, however, the look is a much cleaner.
“Draperies are much more simple,” said Chandler. “There are soft panels to accentuate the window itself and add a simple texture to the walls. Ivy is no longer used to cover the tops of cabinets.
“Simple, well put together groupings are used to add visual interest to the kitchen cabinets rather than clutter the entire space above,” she said. The scale of furniture is given consideration to make a room not only feel larger and more spacious, but to be believable as if someone could see themselves living there.”
In addition, five years ago there were more custom features going into model homes.
“Model homes had things that the builder did not typically offer, calling them designer upgrades or designer additions that homeowners had to do later or that would be a considerable expense,” said Barton. “I see builders deferring the interior designers from doing this and going back to the basics and economy of home building.”
Also in line with the times, builders who are providing furnished homes now provide a single model within a community instead of offering multiple furnished floor plans like they did during the boom years.
For interior designers, diversification has been key.
“Things are different because the building market still has a long road to recovery and our firm cannot rely just on the model merchandising business to provide for us like it did five years ago,” said Johnston. “Fortunately, our firm has always been much diversified. We design for the hospitality industry, multi-family and senior living markets, community amenity centers, offices and residential homes. Working in multiple markets gives us an advantage.”
Builders also have adjusted to the market by changing what they expect from their interior designers.
“Staging an inventory home is very important today,” said Cora Johnston of Generation Homes. “Because of the abundance of furnished models in our market, both Realtors and customers have come to expect merchandising when they go to see a home.”
Johnston said some homes might have lesser perception not being furnished and merchandising it could give it the illusion of having being higher quality. It’s a lesson, she said, that was hard to accept but one she’s embraced.
Johnston said it is her opinion that model homes today reflect lifestyles outside of Northeast Florida, which can be very appealing to younger generations.
“Many of the ‘Generation X’ and ‘Generation Y’ customers have gone away to school and lived in different areas of the country,” said Johnston. “Although they have returned to Northeast Florida to live they may not be looking for a model home that reflects a traditional Northeast Florida lifestyle. They are looking for homes that will allow them to project their own individual style.”