Interior Design Concept Statement: Steps on How to Write a Perfect One

– Interior Design Concept Statement –

Interior Design Concept Statement: When interior decorating, we all try to develop unique projects and collect the best creative ideas, which is why interior design can rarely have any rules attached to it. Follow these basic pointers and your concept statement will surely impress!

Interior Design Concept Statement

What Is an Interior Design Concept Statement?

An interior design concept statement is the essence of an interior design proposal. If you are bidding on a project or entering a design competition, the design concept statement lays the groundwork for the visual components of the presentation. Never assume that your design can speak for itself!

An interior design concept statement must effectively convey your inspiration and vision for space. It briefly addresses how you went about creating the design and handled specific design challenges. The statement should also articulate the room’s overall ambiance.

It tells your client the origin of the design and shows your ability to create a symbiotic relationship between physical elements. Think of your design concept statement as a mission statement or the “Eureka” moment of the project.

How to Write An Interior Design Concept Statement

Simple to Understand

When you craft your design concept statement, clarity and brevity are two key characteristics that can explain your vision.

Keep your sentences short and sweet, and keep the focus on the design and not on how your talent will enhance the space.

Always begin the statement by writing a thesis statement of sorts that tells your prospective client the overall goal of your design and how you achieve that goal.

Keep your sentences short and use active verbs to create a sense that things are happening in the present. For example, instead of writing, “I will have created a contrast after using shades of black on the walls,” you should write, “I will use shades of black on the walls to create a strong contrast.”

Define the Job’s Goal

For some interior design jobs, your goal is simple. The client has a vision such as a more up-to-date family room or a more functional office. Your interior design statement has to show how you will make the vision real.

A different client, however, may be dissatisfied with her status quo but cannot say what is wrong with it. What you need to do here is present your overarching vision for the room, such that all design decisions will follow from the concept you have presented.

Your interior design statement offers a vision even if you do not have clear directions on what the client wants.

Determine Intention and Strategy

Suppose your client wants her breakfast nook to feel more appealing. That gives you a simple goal, but there are many designs that might accomplish that.

Your design statement has to show how you will reach your goal better than the competition. It should express your design intentions and your strategy for making them real.

For example, you might intend to make the room feel like the heart of the house; your strategy might include replacing the current furniture with warm, comfortable wooden chairs.

Express Your Own Thoughts

Express Your Own Thoughts

A good concept statement expresses your thoughts. It does not just repeat what the client tells you she wants, or talk in generalities or obvious statements.

“People will love to eat in the breakfast nook,” does not tell the client much. Neither do words like “beautiful”, “enchanting” or “delightful”.

A good statement provides enough detail for the client to understand your intentions and strategy. It helps to look at some interior design concept ideas.

“The breakfast nook will delight everyone because of the warm, inviting furniture under the morning sun streaming through the skylight,” for instance, gives the client some solid details to think about.

Think about the five core features of interior design: shapes, lines, colors, space, and textures — and describe how these might play out in your concept.

Perfect the Design Concept Statement

The design concept statement is not just to sharpen your ideas. It is also supposed to sell the client yourideas. There are several approaches you can take.

You can describe the most eye-catching single feature, or discuss the mood or emotional reaction your concept will invoke.

A simple statement about how you will fix the problem may be enough, as long as you are not just parroting the client’s words back to him.

Stay away from jargon that sounds technical, and work on your statement until it conveys as much as possible about your idea in as few words as possible.

Written in the Third Person

In keeping with the principle that design concept statements reflect a client’s wants and needs, avoid writing these statements in the first person.

When you use “I” throughout the statement, clients may feel alienated because they may perceive that the concept is yours and that it doesn’t take their instructions into consideration. The best way to avoid this problem is to write a statement in the third person.

For example, instead of “I want to take advantage of natural light to create spatial illusions, and skylights will help achieve that goal,” you could write, “Let’s take advantage of natural light to create spatial illusions, and knowing that you love skylights, let’s use them to help us achieve that goal.”

By switching from the first person to the third person, and including words such as “let’s” and “us,” you connect your design concept to the client’s wants and needs, making the client feel validated and included in your ideas.

Satisfies the Client’s Needs

The design concept statement must be tailored to address all the needs a client has about the space. For example, if a client insists on using pastels instead of primary colors, your concept statement cannot emphasize the use of primary colors even if your belief is that pastels will not be an effective use of color.

Remember that the concept statement is not about your vision; it’s really about how you will translate your client’s vision through your own skills and talent to create something that will adhere to the client’s wants and needs.

We hope this article has been helpful to you. Please share it with anyone you think will appreciate the information and kindly drop your comment below.

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