From first call to final reveal: what working with us looks like
Hiring an interior designer for the first time can feel like a leap into the unknown. What happens after you pick up the phone? How involved will you need to be? And
how does a mood board become a finished home?
We think a renovation should be exciting, not stressful. A big part of that is knowing what’s coming. Here’s how a project with Anna Wakeham Interiors unfolds, from first conversation to finished home.
1. The first call
The first contact we tend to have with our new clients is on the phone for an informal chat. We want to hear about who you are and we want you to tell us about your home, what you’re hoping to change, and roughly when you’d like the work done. We’ll ask whether an architect or builder is involved, and what’s prompting the change. It might be a growing family, a move, downsizing, or simply a home that no longer works for you.
There’s no obligation and no hard sell. The aim is to see whether we’re a good fit for each other, and to explain how we could help.
2. The consultation and your brief
Next, we visit your home. For our new clients we offer a £500 flat fee two hour visit including travel and VAT. We get to know how you live, how you entertain, and which rooms you love or avoid. Many clients have furniture, art or heirlooms they treasure, and we love finding them the right place in a new scheme.
We’ll talk about style, but also about practicalities: children, pets, working from home, and how long you plan to stay. And we’ll have an honest conversation about budget, so the design is shaped around what’s realistic from the start.
This is also the opportunity for you to get to know us. It’s really important that you like us as you’ll get to know us well. After our visit, we put everything together in a written brief and a proposal setting out the scope of work and our fees. Once you’re happy, we’re ready to begin.
3. Concept and detailed design
3. Concept and detailed design
This is where your home starts to take shape on paper. We begin with the big picture: space plans showing how each room will be laid out, and a concept for the look and feel. That usually means mood boards, colour palettes and samples of fabrics, finishes and materials you can hold in your hands.
We present the concept to you in person and talk it through. Some ideas will delight you immediately; others we’ll refine together. Once the concept is agreed, we move into the detail. That includes lighting plans, electrical layouts, joinery designs, and specifications for flooring, tiles, paint colours and furniture. These drawings are what your builder and trades will work from, so everything is thought through before work begins.
4. Sourcing and ordering
Sourcing is one of the most enjoyable parts of the process, and one of the bits Anna Wakeham Interiors is really good at. We work with trusted suppliers, makers and
workrooms, and source British products wherever we can. That might mean bespoke upholstery, handmade curtains, lighting, antiques or a statement piece of art.
We handle the ordering and track deliveries, so you don’t have to chase suppliers or wait in for couriers. Bespoke pieces can take months to make, so we plan early to
keep your project on schedule.
5. Working with your builder on site
During the build, we work alongside your builder, architect and trades to make sure the design is carried out as intended. We visit site at key stages, answer questions as they come up, and check details such as socket positions, tiling layouts and joinery before they’re fixed in place.oject on schedule.
Renovations always throw up a surprise or two. When they do, we help you make quick, sensible decisions that keep the design on track. You’ll always know what’s happening, and you won’t be left to interpret drawings on your own.
6. Installation, styling and the final reveal
Once the builders have gone, the finishing touches begin. We coordinate the delivery and installation of furniture, curtains, lighting and art, and oversee everything being placed exactly where it was designed to go.
Then comes the styling: the cushions, throws, books, lamps and accessories that make a house feel like a home. It’s often the moment when your own treasured
pieces come back into the room, in their new setting.
And finally, the reveal. We walk you through your finished home, room by room. It’s our favourite part of the job.
Ready to start your project?
Every project is different, and our services are bespoke. Every client comes to us with a different set of requests and needs. Some clients want us beside them for a full renovation while others need design and sourcing help.
Whatever the scale, the aim is the same: a home that feels personal, works beautifully, and is a joy to live in.
We work with clients across Berkshire, London and the South. If you’re planning a renovation, book your £500 2 hour in person consultation and let’s start with that first conversation.