• Typically following your style meeting with us it will take 4-6 weeks for us to then work up full designs and present them back to you.

    After the presentation we leave them with you for a week and then we will have a feedback session with you.

    Following feedback it is usually around 1-2 weeks for us to then finalise the designs and re-pesent to you.

  • Absolutely! We love to incorporate things our clients love into the schemes we create, it adds personality.

    We do a home walkthrough with our clients when doing Spatial Planning and pick out items clients would like to keep and take measurements so we can plan for them.

    There will be some items that just don’t fit the scheme, and when this is the case we’ll let you know perhaps the sofa needs to head off to sofa heaven.

  • No, it won’t be a menu to choose from. We will present to you a fully worked up Design which we consider to be the absolutely best answer to your brief and home.

    Whilst there are not multiple options, we do include a round of amendments in the fixed fee, so it is not a take it or leave it situation.

    Once we have presented we will then send you all the documents and schedule a feedback session with you so we can tweak anything you would like to change.

  • We work hard to make sure anything we present is really clear and easy to then share with friends and family as you wish.

    Designs are presented to you as moodboards, 2D visuals & 3D visuals alongside us sharing samples of all colours, fabrics and finishes whilst we present.

    Following the presentation documents will be emailed to you and we will send you samples of the finishings.

  • Unless we are working with you on a remote basis Design presentations take place at our Studio - Dissington Hall, Dalton, NE18 0AD.

    Feedback & amendment sessions are presented as a video call using Google Meet.

    Remote clients we will discuss with you the best option but will try to minimise any travel required by sending samples ahead of our meeting and presenting via video call.

  • After the presentation you will receive your invoice. Once paid, the documents are sent to you and we then set up a feedback session 10 days later.

  • Having worked with you extensively getting to know your design style (see here for more details) ahead of the presentation, what we share with you will be closely aligned with your taste. We want you to love what we present, even if sometimes we have pushed you a little on certain elements, it is always in the quest to design your perfect home!

    We will present a fully worked design including all finishes and fittings. We allow for one round of amendments in the fixed fee. Amendments are small refinements to the scheme to further meet your requirements.

    There is an allowance in the fixed fee for up to 2 hours per room completing amendments. Any further amendments required will be charged at standard rate.

    These amendments can include anything within the scheme but if a full redesign is required this is not included in the fee. We will advise when you feedback if we feel the amendment time allocated will not be adequate.

  • At the design presentation you will see the visuals, moodboards & samples of products we have proposed.

    We will also share with you a dashboard showing you each of the products we have recommended in more details. You will be able to log in to the dashboard and see all of the items we have recommended, in there you can approve, decline and comment on any of the products and we will see the comments and can reply to you.

    At the Design presentation we will show you how it works and send instructions to you along with the presentation documents.

  • At the Design stage we will have put in budget allocations to work as a guideline to help you make decisions with a very rough indication of the price. They will be based on similar projects for bespoke items and trade costs and for purchased items will be the current retail prices.

    These allocations are there to give a cost indication and are not a final budget but do help to prioritise.

  • If you have ever watched Grand Designs you will know that no project runs smoothly and this is why you absolutely need a contingency in place.

    We include one even at Design stage to make sure it is considered. We advise all of our clients to consider the contingency spent and treat it as a lovely bonus at the end if it is not and never the other way around!

DESIGN

  • This very much depends on the scope of the project. Many clients approach us because they have been considering an extension but they are not sure how the extra space will work. This is often because there has not been any spatial planning of the existing footprint, and the extension is an add on you perhaps do not need. Our Spatial Planning process will consider all options to help you make an informed decision on whether extending or reconfiguring is the right option for you.

    If the home exists and it is a reconfiguration there is rarely a need for an architect. We would measure, work up the to scale plans and present the proposed reworked layout. We will have considered structural elements within the proposal and work with structural engineers in the execution of any project.

    If, when we look at the reconfiguration we feel there is a need for an extension, we will work up all internal layouts and provide concept ideas for the externals but advise an Architect or Architectural consultant manages the planning drawings & application as we do not offer a planning permission service.

    If you are embarking on a self build we would always advise a full professional team are involved and we work hand in hand with the architecture team to get you the best of all worlds and elevate the design both inside and out.

  • Typically following your measure up it will take 4-6 weeks for us to then finalise and present back your Spatial Plans.

    After the presentation we leave them with you for a week and then we will have a feedback session with you.

    Following feedback it is usually around 1-2 weeks for us to then finalise the plans and re-present to you.

  • No, it won’t be a menu to choose from. We will present to you a fully worked up Spatial Plan which we consider to be the absolutely best answer to your brief and home. We will have considered many options before presenting to you and will talk you through why we have chosen certain options when we present.

    Whilst there are not multiple options, we do include a round of amendments in the fixed fee, so it is not a take it or leave it situation. Once we have presented we will then send you all the documents and schedule a feedback session with you so we can tweak anything you would like to change.

  • We work hard to make sure anything we present is really clear and easy to then share with friends and family as you wish.

    Spatial Plans are presented back with a floorplan drawn out to scale showing all items positioned at the correct size alongside a presentation showing inspiration images showing the proposed layout choice in an already existing space.

    Following the presentations the files will be emailed to you and we will send you samples of the finishings.

  • Unless we are working with you on a remote basis Spatial Planning presentations take place at our Studio - Dissington Hall, Dalton, NE18 0AD.

    Feedback & amendment sessions are all presented as a video call using Google Meet.

    Remote clients we will hold all meetings via video call.

  • After the presentation you will receive your invoice. Once paid, the documents are sent to you and we then set up a feedback session 10 days later.

  • Having worked with you extensively and done a full Home Walkthrough we will know your requirements well before embarking on the Spatial Plans.

    There may be some areas you do not feel are quite working - perhaps we’ve included 2 dishwashers and you’d be happy with one or maybe you’d like a little more space around you when in the shower than we have allowed. These refinements can all be fed back and we will tweak in the drawings.

    There is an allowance in the fixed fee for up to 4 hours per home for completing amendments. Any further amendments required will be charged at standard rate.

    Having taken time to get to know you and gather a full brief there should not be a need for a significant rework, if there is then this would require a new quote and would not be included in the amendments. We will advise when you feedback if we feel the amendment time allocated will not be adequate.

  • We split payments for this phase into three:

    • 20% deposit to book us

    • 60% becomes due once we present the Spatial Plans

    • 20% final payment due once amendments have been completed

    You will receive an invoice from us for each of these proportions when they are due and can pay via card or BACS.

SPATIAL PLANNING

  • If you go ahead with Design Installation which includes procurement then yes you will receive our full discounts.

    We charge a 20% markup fee on the retail price but we pass on our full trade discounts.

  • We will send you an invoice for the total price of the items and our markup charge. On this invoice trade only items will be the price as quoted by our suppliers and retail items will be at retail cost.

    We ask that you pay us the full amount on the invoice and then we will make all purchases. Any discounts we get on the retail products will be passed on. to you and once all purchases have been made we will refund you any remaining balance.

  • We have warehousing at our office and take all deliveries for you, check them on arrival and they are then logged and stored in our Warehouse.

    The trade teams then contact us as items become required and we arrange delivery or collection from our warehouse.

  • No, we can’t accommodate splitting deliveries and do not recommend this.

    In order to make sure we have a streamlined process and nothing is missed we need to track all items and ensure we have checked them all on arrival. We also need to have access to them all in one place for the trade teams to be able to efficiently collect items as needed.

    When items arrive with us they are checked for damage, logged into our cloud based system and labelled so the site manager can see when items s arrive and plan the build around any delays if they occur.

    The only exclusions are items needing specialist delivery where we will liaise and arrange a suitable delivery directly to site when the item is required.

  • All of the items we buy will have been seen by you, signed off and approved long before the procurement phase so this is not likely to happen.

    If there are any items you want to see in person but do not want to wait until staging & styling incase you do not like them, we can advise you when it arrives with us and arrange for you to come to the studio and see it in person whilst we are still in the returns window.

    We do not include this service within the usual procurement fee, but we’d never want a client concerned. For 5 or less in studio checks we will not charge, any more than that we have to charge a small admin fee of £25 per in studio check to cover staff admin time.

    Once the item is purchased and in your home we are far beyond the returns window so they will not be returnable.

PROCUREMENT

  • All of the contractors are external contractors and are you appoint them directly to do the work. We do not have in house tradespeople.

    However, we act as your liaison and point of contact for the project. Having produced the Technical Drawings you will be fully aware of all plans and as long as they are signed off by you we will work to deliver those plans directly with relevant tradespeople.

    Before the project goes live, we meet with the site manager for a full site briefing, we then allow time each week for design arounds and queries, we do regular site visits and will be your main point of contact throughout.

  • You will pay tradespeople directly according to their payment schedule.

    Our fee for Briefing and Consultation is charged as 20% to book us, on a 60% once the project is live & 20% once build work is complete.

  • We understand delays are stressful. please know, no one on the projects wants a delay. They cause us a lot of work too but the nature of such a sequential type job is that the domino effect magnifies issues.

    We have processes in place to limit delays. We will set out a timeline for the project ahead of starting the build. We include an amount of contingency time but build projects often have unexpected elements and delays, whilst we do everything we can to mitigate them, it is likely to happen.

    We purchase all items ahead of time and store in our on site warehouse to mitigate any delivery issues causing delays.

    We do not work to fixed deadlines i.e Christmas/Easter as there are too many variables and with shifts in working scheduled and delivery windows it inevitably leads to disappointment.

    In spite of the planning, delays do happen. When it does we will communicate with you the reason and the plan ahead so you know what is happening. Communication is key in these situations and we will endeavour to keep you up to date at all times.

BRIEFING & CONSULTATION

  • No, you can enjoy your days knowing you will return to a beautifully styled home with everything positioned perfectly. We bring in a full team including cleaners, tradespeople and interior designers to manage all of the staging & styling phase.

    We know the process will have had it’s challenges, but this part really is the luxury at the end. Following our staging & styling you will arrive and immediately reel relaxed and at home.

  • Absolutely not! Once we have finished your home will be perfectly tidy and clear. We will have had a clearance team in to take away any rubbish left over and all tools will be removed from site.

  • The design team manage this all so you will be in safe hands, Cathy will also be there for parts of the process, the final sign off of the spaces will always have been seen by Cathy before handover.

  • This depends on the size of the house ad how many rooms and pieces of furniture we have to build, shelves we have to put up or mirrors we have to hang, usually it is 2-3 days for a whole house to be 100% staged and styled.

  • If it is broken during Staging & Styling it will be replaced by Studio Dean

STAGING & STYLING

  • Yes, there are always snags we will not spot until everything is removed from the site and it is styled.

    Our tradespeople on site will be working on any they can whilst we style and following styling we will send a ‘hit list’ to you of all of the snags we have found and are dealing with. We will ask you to do the same so there is one central snag list for the trade team to work through.

    We like to leave you to enjoy your home for a week or so whilst we gather any materials we need for the snag tasks and then the team will return and finalise all snag tasks for you.

  • At the end of each project we will provide you with a full spend sheet showing you every item we have purchased, you will be provided with the receipt and paperwork for each item digitally too.

    The warranties and guarantees on the items are the responsibility of the manufacturers and not Studio Dean. We will have ensured at the point of supply and fit it was in perfect condition but future defects are to be dealt with directly with the supplier.

    If you have a query at any point, you can always get in touch & we’re here if you do face any issues with this and will be happy to advise.

  • We do everything we can to test and make sure there are no issues, but once you have lived there you may notice a door is catching, or perhaps you spot a small leak.

    Our trades will rectify any issues which are because of how they fitted the items for a 4 week period after the build.

    Following that it is understood all items will have been used and tested and future defects or issues are a separate matter, our trades teams will always be happy to help and return to your home in the future, but there will be a charge directly from them for future issues not linked to the initial job.

  • All structural work will have been fully calculated before it takes place and full compliance to building regulations will have taken place.

    All documentation required will be given to you upon completion so any future issues can be dealt with directly with the building contractor / structural engineer / council as required.

    As always we will be here to help as will our trades teams, so if you have any issues, reach out to us and we can advise.

  • Once the project is finished we do not manage ongoing maintenance of any of our projects.

    If you have broken an item and want to replace it, that is no problem, you will be able to find details of that item in the purchase breakdown and receipts we provide & you will be able to contact the manufacturer / retailer and purchase the item again directly.

  • If you’ve lived in the house a few years and would like a refresh of the existing decor we can arrange that, for this service we charge a small rebooking fee & consultation time to manage it.

    If you would like a new scheme / full redecoration we can arrange this too but it would be a re-design so does incur a design fee rather than booking & consultation fee.

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