Learn the Interior Design Basics
And Get It Right...

...before you waste your money.

Now you have all your interior design ideas and home decorating schemes about ready to spill out of your head.

Next, we are going to go, what I call: 'Window Shopping'.

It's actually one of the interior design basics - creating a sample board.

Create a sample board so that you know your design looks great and really works, before you spend the money.

I always like to make sure that the colors, wallpapers, furniture and fabric, that I have drooled over in the catalogues, shops and on the internet, will all really work in my scheme...

...before I spend a lot of money, get it home, and then realise it doesn't actually work.

You can use this page together with your free design checklist

Why create a sample board?

If only I could look at them all together, and see how they look against each other, under the lighting at home - in the room where they will actually (hopefully) end up.

This is why professional interior designers come up with sample boards.

Partly to show their clients the design - but partly for themselves - just to 'make sure'.

Sample boards really are an interior design basic - so create one of your own. I'll show you how...

You have come up with a unique and unusual design, that's right for you and your home.

Wouldn't you rather 'make sure,' before spending your hard earned cash on another thing that ends up looking not quite right. (Oh yes, I do speak from experience here!)

Read on to see how to create an easy sample board at home on card, or find out more about a neat tool to create a sample board online

How to create your sample board

Creating a sample board is really easy to do.

• Simply 'shop about,' and collect samples of all possible products you are considering for your interior design scheme.


• Try to get samples of as many aspects of your design as possible - including wallpaper, paint, fabrics for curtains, cushions, sofas, chairs and flooring.


• If you can't get a sample - cut a picture out of a brochure, or take a photo of an important piece of furniture, painting or accessory, that you want to use in your interior decorating scheme.

• Use an large piece of card to place the samples on (A3 is a common size).
• It is a good idea to paint a background on the card with a tester pot of the color paint you intend to use.
• Cut the samples out neatly.
• Position the samples on the card in the approximate position they would be in the room - flooring at the bottom, wallpaper and curtains at the top, sofa and cushions in the middle.
• The size of each sample should be the approximate size they would be in the room...
  • The flooring should cover about the bottom third
  • Wallpaper a top quarter
  • Curtains the other top quarter
  • Sofa and cushions in the middle - with the cushion fabric sample much smaller than the sofa sample.
• Don't forget to view the sample board in the room itself - to check the effects of natural and artificial lighting on your scheme.

Some examples of Sample Boards - created by me

Can't-be-bothered shortcuts!

If you are not redesigning the complete room, (or if you can't be bothered to cut the samples and arrange them neatly,) at the very least gather as many samples as you can, and arrange them together in the room, with existing pieces of furniture, flooring and fabric.

I think it is important to actually gather together the samples so that you can:

• See colors in the room under your own lighting conditions
• See and feel how the textures look together
• Make sure the quality of materials are as you expect
• Don't rely on printed photos or online images - colors can be very deceptive in particular

Look at our online alternatives for more about this... (keep reading - it's in the section after the one below...)

Last minute tweaks

Looking good?

Of course it is!

If you are not sure, don't be afraid to tweak your interior design scheme and try out other options.

I want you to be happy with your interior design basics - and your design choices - and confident that they will work for you and your home.

When you are happy - Shop!!

That's just it - don't forget to keep your budget in mind though....

Online Alternatives

Here is where I recommend some online alternatives...

And give you a brief word of caution about how you use them.

The two I recommend are both great tools - and I think you should use them both to get the most out of your design process...

But do not miss out the important step of actually getting the samples of fabric, tile, wallpaper, paint etc...

These tools are fantastic at putting a style together, and providing inspiration and an overall look.

They both have real products in their database to help you put together your look - which is so useful...

But don't rely on the colors and textures you see on the sreen. This is a 'representation' only of the real product.

Just in the same way as colors can look different in printing, so they can look very different online, depending on your screen resolution, browser and even the original camera used.

And you can't check out the texture, thickness or quality of fabrics or other materials.

So, even if you do it the can't-be-bothered shortcuts way, do plan your overall look on one or both of these great tools...

Then get samples of all the products you plan to use - just to make sure!

This is certainly one of the interior design basics - and makes sure you get it right first time - and don't waste money on expensive mistakes!

Anyway - so, here are my two recommendations for free online interior design tools...

Create Your Own Sample Board Online

The tool is created with professional interior designers in mind, but is available to anyone with an interest in creating their own, really good interior design basics.

It's completely free and simple to understand and get the hang of.

There's an extensive selection of products in their database, but you can also include your own images and products in your own design.

You can print out your interior designs and even get a list of suppliers for all your chosen items.

I think once you try it, it will become one of your interior design basics!

Click here to try out Sample Boards Online for free

NEW: RoomSketcher Online Interactive Tool

You can then take a 'snap-shot' to see what the room would look like in 3D.

And take a 360 degree 'panoramic' tour of your room.

It's free too - I think you will love it.

There are more details about the free RoomSketcher online design tool, here...

Don't forget

Don't forget to make notes on your free how to design checklist to keep track of your design.

We walk you through the Interior Design Process Step-by-Step, here...

What's Next?

More interior design basics...

Once you have shopped for your lovely new things, you need to think about actually doing the work....

Why not check out this section of the home decorating guide, to learn about how you should think about organizing the work, and the order in which the work should be done.

You should now be feeling confident that you have mastered such interior design basics - as decorating with color, layout and arranging furniture, generating your own quality interior design ideas, and styles. Click on the links if you could do with a recap on any topic.

Or if you want any more interior design advice - check out all the other interesting and practical sections of this useful home decorating guide, including our room-by-room guides.

Read up on loads of interior design basics and interior decorating tips by using the navigation buttons on the left to visit pages you are interested in.

Still stuck?

Don't be stuck - ask a question and get help with your design here...

Return to the checklist of interior design tips.

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