Frequently asked questions

How long does a typical decorating project take to complete?

Projects vary but you can expect the design process to take about 4-6 weeks from the initial briefing meeting to the final design presentation. If we are tendering for construction that will take additional time. You build can take 3,6,18 months depending on the scale of your project and council applications etc.

Decorating project implementation can take from 12 – 18 weeks when custom / bespoke furnishings are involved.

How does the furnishing purchasing work?

We’ll create a detailed proposal that outlines your selections and final costs including delivery and installation. This is presented at the final design presentation. Once you approve the purchasing proposal, and pay the purchasing deposits and progress payments, we’ll manage the purchases, delivery and installation of all of your selections.

How can I find out what your clients think about working with you?

Please visit our testimonials page.

What are your decorating fees?

So there are no surprises we work on a flat fee per room for our decorating services. Fees are based on the scope of work involved in your project and represents a reasonable assessment of the time and resources it will take to professionally complete your job. When it comes to decorating you will also need a furnishing budget for us to work with. During your pre-design consultation we can provide guidance for budgeting for decorating on a room by room basis at silver, Gold or platinum levels and help you arrive at an agreed budget. Start the conversation with a pre-design consultation

What are your interior design fees

Fees related to larger Interior design for Construction projects are charged on an hourly basis. To avoid surprises during your pre-design consultation we will estimate fees based on the scope of work involved in your project. This estimate represents a reasonable assessment of the time and resources it will take to professionally complete your job. So before you start you will have a realistic estimate for the fees for the project. Every two weeks we provide a time log. At defined points in the project we will compare how time is tracking against the estimate so that you can have control of spending. Larger projects work on a retainer basis and fees are paid out of your retainer. As a good guide you should set aside 5-10% of your budget towards design. Clients have told we have saved them money.

Start the conversation with a pre-design consultation

What geographic area do you serve?

Journey Home is located in Canberra, ACT Australia. If we think your project is interesting and you are willing to pay for our time and expenses we would consider traveling throughout Australia and beyond.

Can I book in for a short consultation to get some decorating guidance to carry on with?

Advice on the fly will never achieve the same result as full-service interiors so when it comes to decorating we are involved with clients on a full room project basis only. We want our clients to receive the maximum benefit from our talent, skills, considerable trade resources not to mention the significant time savings. To find out more visit our process of Interior Decorating and Design.

Can I book in a decorating plan to implement it in stages?

We understand that not everyone can fully decorate their home in one swish of our magic wand, and we are happy to work on a room at a time. If your strategy is to complete your home in stages our pre-design consultation will help you decide which rooms to tackle first and formulate a budget and time frame so that you can plan your decorating over time. We will be happy to work with you for years. Start the conversation with a pre-design consultation

We don’t recommend anyone to ever partially decorate a room with bits as you go it is a sure path to less than satisfactory results. We do not provide partial decorating services for partial rooms i.e. just help with a new lounge. It is recommended that you wait till you are ready to work on a room design holistically and carry it all the way through to implementation. As your decorators we will design all your room elements with specific furnishings and fabrics in mind, if those products become unavailable because you waited to implement the room in stages your service fees will be wasted. If you are not sure how much budget you need to complete a room, don’t worry we do know what it costs to decorate and we are happy to share that info. Start the conversation by completing our enquiry questionnaire, then a designer will contact you to discuss your project budget.

Can I build or renovate in stages?

One would hardly build half a house so this answer really applies to renovating. The answer is sometimes yes and sometimes no. We see people doing aspects of their renovation in entirely the wrong order all the time. During our pre-design consultation we can take all your renovation project ideas and advise you which order they should be done for maximum efficiency.

Full Service Decorating – Who is it for?

You are busy and prefer to spend your time on work, family, travel and your interests.
You want the full furnishing service from concept to installation
You want and appreciate good quality finishes and products
You want to furnish properly and once.
You value outsourcing leg work and expertise to someone who can bring experience to your project.
You want a home that reflects you but are not sure how to go about it or tie it all together
You need help defining your style and it’s fit with your home’s architecture
You have your own ideas but also value the vision that may not have occurred to you.
You want us to source furnishings and finishes for you.
You don’t want to spend your time shopping online
You don’t want to run home 10 times to let delivery men in or put furniture together.
You don’t want furniture from stores like Ikea, 1825 Interiors, Freedom, King furniture and you are ready to invest in good quality pieces.
You are prepared to wait a reasonable time for the right furnishing item.

Full Service Decorating - Who is it NOT for?

You are hands on and are happy to do the leg-work of creating your space
You like to select all your own colours, finishes and furniture
You are on a very tight budget
You prefer to shop from online
You simply want advice on what to go and purchase yourself from stores yourself such as Ikea, 1825, Freedom, King furniture etc.
You are not interested in investing in good quality, long lasting pieces
You have oversized modular leather lounges or recliner chairs which don’t fit your brief nor room size but you are not open to replacing them.
You are not open to replacing recently purchased furnishings that were perhaps a mistake.
You are not open to replacing or reupholstering at least 80% of the furnishings in the room.
You simply want someone to add some accessories to and or move your existing furnishings around to make a room look better.
You are in a rush to complete it and need it done yesterday

What is styling?

We look at styling in three ways.

Pre-sale property styling or staging is a packaged service, where a stylist will select, hire and install a range of furnishings to improve the appeal of a property to its target demographic thereby increasing the sale price or speed of sale or both. There is little or no input from the homeowner. Property Stylists hold furnishings as stock, usually of modest quality, to fulfill their rental bookings. At this time Journey Home does NOT offer presale styling or furniture hire as defined above. We DO provide services to clients for their renovation and decorating projects where resale value is the primary objective. We can provide recommendations to stylists if you need one. BTW if you’ve been told you need a stylist, you’ve been told you are bad at decorating – why not consider us for your next home.
The term styling is often used by the architectural and design community when referring to design activity that not related to construction elements, at Journey Home we like to call this Interior decorating.
Often styling is referred to by potential clients as having a bit of a refresh by moving around existing furnishings and adding a layer of new accessories. We do not offer styling in this sense as a stand-alone service, however styling in beautiful accessories with our clients own is a vital component of our fully furnished room service on install day.

#STYLINGTOSTAY – Furnish your home beautifully when you move in, and you not the next person will get to enjoy your investment for years, Fully furnished room services

Why our clients have decorated with us?

When your furnishings are tired or just aren’t going to see you through your retirement in your forever home, don’t work with your new downsized home or gorgeous new home. You’ve been buying the wrong furniture or want to ensure you don’t. To fix this problem you need to decorate!

Want rooms that are complete and comfortable.

Journey Home has gathered considerable resources including our soft furnishings work room, furnishing suppliers and a network of skilled and reliable tradesman, not to mention our dedicated admin staff who’ve got their finger on the pulse of each project.

Can I just book in for a short consultation to get some decorating guidance to carry on with?

Our goal is to achieve highly functional, magazine worthy rooms that our clients rave about and look great in our portfolio. Advice on the fly will never achieve the same result as full-service interiors so when it comes to decorating we are involved with clients on a full room project basis. We want our clients to receive the maximum benefit from our talent, skills, considerable trade resources not to mention the significant time savings. To find out more visit our process of Interior Decorating and Design

Can I book in a decorating plan to implement it in stages?

We don’t recommend booking any decorating services until you are ready to carry it all the way through to implementation. As your decorators we will design your room elements with specific products if those products become unavailable because you waited to implement the design in stages your service fees will be wasted. Our pre-design consultation will help you decide which rooms or projects to tackle first and formulate a budget and payment time frame so that you can decide whether to book now or later.

So, tell me about you!