What is Virtual Interior Designers?

We are a team of qualified and experienced interior designers who have made our services available online.  We will save you money and time and help you avoid costly mistakes. And we will work with you one-on-one via phone and email, educating you throughout the design process and offering suggestions on how to use your home improvement money wisely.  We can give you professional guidance on one area of your home or help you throughout the entire design and construction process.

Sometimes when I hear “virtual” I think do-it-yourself design software how are you different?

We are qualified designers based in The United States.  A designer will be working one-on-one with you via phone and email.   We do not sell design software but can put together photographic renderings to show how our design ideas will look in your space before you purchase or move forward.   Click here to see a couple samples. 

Why should I use your service versus finding a local designer? 

Virtual Interior Designers is a service catering to homeowners who are happy doing most of the leg work themselves.  We will give you guidance, suggestions and homework to do throughout your project, but you will be responsible for making it happen. This technique appeals to our clients because they can benefit from our experience and expertise yet keep control of their design costs. If you are a D.I.Y. (do-it-yourselfer), you will be a perfect fit with our service. 

 

An example task would be if we selected lighting for you, we would send you ideas and you would be responsible for purchasing the lighting and getting it installed by an electrician of your choice. 

 

However, if you would rather be escorted from store to store with a designer or want a turn key design package that is completed for you, than we recommend finding a local designer in your city. 

How long has Virtual Interior Designers been in business?

Hannah Interiors, the creator of Virtual Interior Designers, has been in business since 1993.  Virtual Interior Designers came about when local homeowners were becoming too busy to meet with our designers in person and wanted a more efficient way to get design advice.  In 2001, we introduced this concept of online design for local projects and the concept caught on quickly and we went national in 2002.  We are continuing to grow and have had projects from all over the United States and even Canada!  

Can I hear from your past clients?

We are proud of our projects and would love for you to hear our client’s success stories of what they were able to achieve while working with Virtual Interior Designers. Click here to hear their stories. 

Who are your designers and where are they based? 

All of our designers are located in the United States and have been carefully selected to be part of our team.  We require that our designers have at least a two year degree in design and at least three years of experience in residential design.  Check out each of our designer’s bios.

 

Our founder, Kristin Lee Hannah has been featured on HGTV numerous times.  A graduate of the American Institute of Interior Design, Kristin has been the owner of Hannah Interiors for over 10 years.  She has been featured in The New York Times and many other national publications a number of times.  View our press page.  

Will I be working one-on-one with a designer? 

Yes, you will be working one-on-one with one of our designers.  You can request a specific designer or we will assign you one.  This designer will be your main contact throughout your entire project.  Sometimes your designer will ask another one of our designers to help them with your project and this will be included in your design proposal. 

How much does the service cost?
Our rates start at $75 per hour, which is well below the industry standard and allows us to provide “affordable design.”  Most local designer fees start at $100 and can be as high as $150 per hour. 

 

Virtual Interior Designers offer a free initial phone consultation to learn about your project, look at your photographs online while talking with you and will exchange information.  We will then email you a Design Proposal.  This proposal will explain in detail what we plan to provide you and what you can expect with our unique design approach.  It will also give you an estimate on the amount of hours we plan to use to complete your requests.  At this time, you can accept, adjust or reject the proposal.  If you accept the services, than you can sign online and submit a 50% deposit.  This deposit will be credited on your first invoice.

How do we pay Virtual Interior Designers?

Once you upload your photographs, and fill out the questionnaire, we will contact you for a free consultation to review your project.  You will then receive a personalized Design Proposal which will allow you to sign off on the agreement.  At that time you can make a 50% deposit.  This deposit can be made by PayPal or check.  If you prefer sending a check, please note that we can not start your project until we receive your check.  Billing will depend on the size of your project and can be done either weekly or monthly.

Can I sign up for only one hour of design time?

Yes, some of our homeowners want to “try” a one-hour consultation since they have never experienced working with a designer before.  This is fine and we do one hour consultations all the time.  Please note if you need help with one whole room or have several items you need us to select, we will not be able to complete it in one hour.  When filling out our questionnaire, be as specific as possible so we can tell you what we can complete during your free phone consultation.   

What is included in a typical design project?

The most common tasks are listed below:  (Click on each link to see samples)

• Several choices of each item you need
• A Custom Design Board showing all the selections together
• A Floor Plan showing placement of all items
• Paint Color Samples
• A Photographic Rendering of your space
• A detailed Shopping List
• A To-Do List giving you instructions on how to carry out our suggestions

Can I see a sample project? 
We would love to share with you some of our past projects, click here.  You can also view our Designer Bios to see their qualifications and example Design Boards.

How do you know the style I like? 
You will be working one-on-one with one of our designers.  Once you fill out our questionnaire, a designer will contact you for a free phone consultation to review your project, hear about the styles that appeal to you and look over your photographs together.  Our designers can do any style and will provide you with a personalized design that is suitable for your home and your location.  We can also select items that fit within your budget.

What photos and measurements do you need from me?

We require pictures of the rooms you need assistance with.  Please take a picture from every wall so we can better visualize the space.  It is also helpful if you have a floor plan of your house.  If you do not have one, we suggest that you take measurements of the room noting where the windows and doors start and stop. Also please note how far the windows are off the floor.  If you plan to leave furniture items in the rooms, please note their width and depth as well.  The measurements do not need to be exact and can be drawn on a piece a paper and emailed or faxed to us.  See sample of a drawn out floor plan.

How do you go about recommending products (sofa, lamps, tile) if we can't walk around in stores together?

Since Virtual Interior Designers works all online through phone and email, we will not be meeting you in-person and going from store to store to find and select items.  However, working with you online, we can make your shopping for design products easier and less stressful.  We will do all the selecting for you using our excellent resources and the thousands of national online catalogs we have at our disposal.  We can choose items that only fit into your budget. We love finding great deals! We will show you the selections which will have their cost per item and the purchasing information.  You can then purchase the products when it is most convenient for you either online or at a local or national store.  This saves you an enormous amount of time and money over having a designer accompany you around town. 

How can you guarantee that the paint colors, fabric colors & tile will look good in person when they look so different on the computer?

This is a good question.  When selecting paint, we do not select online but instead use our designer paint boxes that have large samples from national companies such as Sherwin Williams, Benjamin Moore, and others.  We then send you the samples via snail mail so you can have the actual colors in your hands to play with.  You will also be able to pick up the paint cans at a nearby store.  This is the same for fabric, tile, carpet, area rugs, etc.  We can either get you a sample or help you find a local showroom near your home to visit and see the sample before you make your final decision. 

What stores does Virtual Interior Designers represent?

Virtual Interior Designers does not represent any stores or manufactures, but we can select items for you anywhere.  You can let us know if there any particular stores you want us to check out or use.  You are hiring us for our design expertise and to give you guidance.  We do not make money on your purchases.   We can however select items from any design center which means you will be purchasing the items through Virtual Interior Designers. Click here to read more info. 

Can I bargain hunt online with your recommendations or am I required to purchase through Virtual Interior Designers? 

In regards to purchasing and bargain hunting, we prefer that we first find you the items we suggest and then you can bargain hunt as much as you like. We will then move on to finding you more items to complete your project. 

 

If you would like to purchase items that are only sold to designers at the Design Centers, we can work with you and will do our best to extend fair pricing. 

What is the lead-time I should expect for my project to be completed? 

It really depends on the size of your project.  Some projects take a week and some projects take a couple of months to complete.  When doing the initial consultation, make sure to tell your designer when you would like the project to be completed.  If it is a larger project, your designer will send you weekly updates letting you know the tasks they are working on and when they plan to have them finished for you.

How do you deliver the final outcome of my requests and what exactly will I see?

You will be able to see the process of your project by logging in to My Design Board.  This password protected area which is available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, will show you: your proposal, the selections made thus far, purchase info and a to-do list to move forward.  Your final design board will most likely be ready when your design is ready to be pulled together. Any hard surfaces, fabrics, paint samples, etc., will be mailed to you via snail mail so you can see and touch the items in person.

What happens to my personal information and pictures once the project is over?

Virtual Interior Designers does not share or sell your personal information.  We keep your information and pictures in our main file system so that if you use our design services in the future, we can look up your information and start working on your new design almost immediately.