Redecorating Checks and Valances

Redecorating, no matter how minimal, can create a lot of consumer Angst .

If you hire a designer, will you buy too much?

If you use an in-store decorator, will you know the difference between a sales pitch and sincere advice?

If you do it yourself, will it look right?

Some suggestions to help keep the lid on decorating costs:

“Wander through some stores to see what things cost, what you like and what you can be satisfied with,” says Thomas Grabowski, designer at Hudson’s in Southfield, Mich.

If your desires exceed your means, stretch the job over a longer period of time.

“A red flag should go up if a designer isn’t willing to talk about how he arrived at the budget,” says Charles Gandy of Atlanta, former national president of the American Society of Interior Designers. “Be firm as decisions on what to buy come up.”

Periodic checks to keep track of what is actually being spent are a good idea, too.

“One of the first questions our decorators ask is: ‘What is your budget?’ ” says Farooq Kathwari, chairman of Ethan Allen, a national retailer headquartered in Danbury, Conn., that offers in-store design help.

“That’s so the designer doesn’t start suggesting things that later on customers won’t buy.”