Interior designer, modular kitchen company or contractor?

Choosing a studio · H Hue Design Studio, Nanakramguda

All three will happily call themselves interior designers. They do very different jobs, and the right choice depends on what your home needs.

The interior design studio

A design studio plans the whole home: layout, storage, ceilings, lighting, materials, colour and furniture, so the rooms work together. Good studios produce detailed drawings and supervise the build, either with their own teams or with contractors they coordinate. Choose a studio when you want the home designed as one thing, not assembled room by room.

The modular kitchen and wardrobe company

Modular companies make kitchens and wardrobes in a factory from their own range of carcasses, shutters and hardware, then install them. They are fast and consistent within their catalogue. Choose one when your main need is a kitchen and wardrobes, and you are comfortable working within their options.

The carpentry or civil contractor

A contractor builds what is drawn. Many are excellent craftsmen. Without drawings, though, design decisions get made on site, and the result depends on whoever is there that day. Choose a contractor when you already have a full set of drawings.

A quick way to decide

• Only a kitchen and wardrobes? A modular company may be enough.
• Drawings already done? A good contractor can build them.
• A whole flat, villa or office that should feel designed? Start with a design studio.
• A new house? Look for a studio that does architecture too, so the walls and the interiors are planned together.