No. 44 - A Freelance Interior Designer
The who, what, where, when, and why of my design work
It’s been over a year since I decided to start freelancing and, although I’m still navigating this new life as a freelance interior designer, I’ve been able to try a few things out and, essentially, gather a year’s worth of data on what has worked for me (and what hasn’t). Freelance Interior Designer is very much an atypical title in the design world, and so since I didn’t have much of a playbook to reference for any guidance, there was a lot of winging it, to be honest. But winging it also forced me to take stock of my skillsets and my experiences, it’s helped me figure out how I can market my services to different folks.
I’ve been asked lately how it all works, my new career as a freelance interior designer. So I thought I’d write it out here for anyone to reference, and if you are interested in working with me or are curious about how you can do something similar as an interior designer, this issue is for you!
I, generally, work with two groups of folks:
principal designers who run their own design studio, typically working by themselves.
clients (homeowners) who are looking for an interior designer.
(always open to more and different)
I work with principal designers who want some (or all) of the below:
help with drafting, from small one-off items (ie: custom furniture, built-in cabinetry, vanities, etc) to full construction sets.
help with on-site as-built measuring and drawings, because measuring a house by yourself sucks!
help creating client presentations.
a design collaborator, someone experienced enough with space planning, material selection, and designing details to give feedback and suggestions, rather than a design intern that may require heavy instruction.
someone who can live-draft in front of them, to help problem-solve and workshop in real-time.
I work with clients who want:
to work with an interior designer on their home, but don’t want to hire a full interior design firm.
to renovate/refresh a smaller portion of their home, a scope a larger firm may be unwilling to take on.
design direction from an interior designer that they can carry out themselves.
help with a furniture refresh, space planning rooms, or material selections.
a design collaborator who can give honest suggestions and gut checks on their design decisions (usually very independent clients who already have a strong vision and just need some help taking it to the next level).
to work with a budding designer before she gets too big ;)
I’m based out of Portland, but I’ve worked for design principals here at home and in LA, and with clients in NYC, so design with me can happen anywhere! Distance design is so much easier to do now than ever before! And I draft pretty dang fast, so live-drafting on zoom is actually easier than drafting in person sometimes because you can annotate right on my screen.
For my NY clients, in lieu of me flying out to measure their condo, I taught them how and where to measure on a zoom call and they were able to send me comprehensive measurements for me to draft off of! This was my first time doing this, but it worked out better than I expected.
I’m continuously looking to take on projects, with both principal designers and clients. I typically have a pretty fast turnaround time with work and because I work outside of a typical 9-5pm, I have the flexibility and bandwidth to fit most projects in my schedule (even sometimes with short notice). So if you’re looking for design help, reach out! I’m open to chatting to see if I’m a good fit for your needs otherwise I’m always happy to refer you to my network.
Why work with me if you’re a principal designer?
I’m a drafting queen and I draft fast, so if you’d rather pass that work onto someone else, who happens to really enjoy drafting, I’m your gal! I draft in Vectorworks, which is a prettier version of Autocad, in my opinion, and I can also do basic 3-D modeling in Sketchup (no photo-realistic rendering though!)
My hourly rate should allow you plenty of room to do a fair mark-up to your clients.
I’m familiar with different design processes from different firms and can bring my expertise to your projects.
If you’ve been wanting someone to design with, but don’t want to hire on a full-time employee, or if your work level ebbs and flows too much to guarantee full-time hours. I work only when you need extra hands, and hiring an independent contractor means no payroll taxes, no benefits, and no guarantee of hours from you.
Why work with me if you’re a potential client?
You want interior design firm expertise without interior design firm prices. I’m not cheap, because your girl values her time and skills, but it’s lower because I don’t have high overhead from an office or 20 employees to pay for.
Working with an individual, as opposed to a firm, will be a more intimate and collaborative experience. Because my design studio is just me, I have the flexibility to tailor the experience to you and your needs instead of following a rigid process. Perks of being small and nimble!
For principal designers, those who are true solopreneurs, I’ve noticed a desire for a design collaborator without the pressure of having a full-time employee or business partner. For clients, I’ve noticed how smaller scopes of work have been passed up by firms because it isn’t worth their time.
It’s been interesting to fill this little void in the design market because it’s so unconventional and so niche. Throughout my career, I’ve learned that are so many people who need that half-step, and I happen to be in a special time in my career when helping designers and clients take those half-steps make a lot of sense for me. I’m young and I’m hungry to do the most and I want to do things differently, says the Gemini.
All this to say, this is my long elevator pitch to the penthouse suite and if any part of this sounds like you or anyone you know, feel free to reach out or pass this post and my contact along! ❤️
email me: jolyn@superjuniordesigner.com
dm me: @jolynchen
Hell yeah, tell 'em!