309 Mangotsfield, Gloucestershire Interior Designers

“I had moved into my new home, and the interior decor was neutral - but bland. I was, frankly, at a loss as to how to begin to make it work for me. Kay visited, listened to how I need my home to function, talked me through the possibilities and created several mood boards to enable me to visualise how it could look. She even sent me links to the products I needed, taking the angst out of shopping for the right items. My lovely new home now feels like my space - thanks so much, Kay, for working your magic and taking the fear out of introducing pattern, colour and texture.”

“I have asked the Woodhouse and Law team to help me with several design projects for both the interior of my home and my garden over recent years. It has been an absolute pleasure to work with such a friendly, creative and professional team who commit the same level of care and attention to detail for each project, regardless of budget size. Even some of the smallest details and suggestions from W&L have transformed my home in ways I could not have imagined myself and I view the W&L team as trusted partners in making my home somewhere I truly love to live. Their help and advice has been invaluable to me and I recommend their services without hesitation.”

“I have been using Baxter Creative for around 20 years. I've tried many designers over the years but they simply do not compare. Baxter creative are now our exclusive design partner and have done many houses for us. These houses range from small interior updates to whole house builds, nothing was too big or too small. Baxter creative has also exclusively designed all of my company offices across Australia, New Zealand and the Uk. Charles has an exceptional eye and unbelievable taste.”

“Teresa did a very thorough job when helping me to set the style of my newly refurbished penthouse apartment in Barcelona. She prepared a complete questionnaire to hep identify what I wanted, inspired me with some examples, and then sent me mood boards and recommendations on where to buy the different pieces of furniture / decoration. On top of that, she's a very nice and fun person to hang out with, which made me enjoy the whole process very much. I would wholeheartedly recommend her. Maria”

“Inna found brilliant solutions to everything we have considered to be a big problem for years! Inna worked on several projects for us, one of them being an investment apartment in Lithuania which we wanted to convert into a holiday let. Inna done a brilliant job and the apartment is very much on demand now. Inna is pleasant to deal with. She sent us regular progress updates and made very clever suggestions during the project fit out and we always felt as our satisfaction is a priority for her. I would certainly recommend Inna to anyone looking for a dedicated and competent interior designer! Inna is able to lead efficient and cost effective transformation of any living space, even whilst in training!”

“We used Elizabeth’s Design in a Day service. As an architect and the client, I knew that my project would benefit from specific, focused advice on interiors: materials, lighting and colour as these would have a lasting impact on the final result. The project was a loft conversion and house remodel. I had already engaged a contractor and was on a limited budget so timely, affordable input was essential. Beth has excellent and effective ideas, and is an excellent communicator. Based on her advice we were able to achieve the effect and standard that we wanted and have had excellent feedback from friends and our local estate agent on the quality and impact of the final design.”

“Hannah has helped me to decorate 2 rooms in my new house. She has coped with my indecisiveness and lack of ideas and come up with 2 rooms that are just gorgeous. They are beautiful, fit for purpose and homely. Thanks Hannah”

“Catriona helped me rethink our living space at home and supported me in making immediate changes to benefit the whole family. I am thrilled with everything we achieved and we now have further ideas and projects to happily complete. Probably the greatest highlight was finding that extra space for all my pictures, whilst remarkably feeling less cluttered. Catriona has an incredible amount of energy, enthusiasm and creativity; she is a real woman of action and I am deeply grateful for her ideas, style and ingenuity.”

“Many thanks to Annie , whose knowledge and vision helped us enormously with the design for our extension. She understood exactly what we were trying to achieve. We found it very difficult to visualise the final layout, but Annie’s ideas were excellent, and her skill in a visualisation so we could actually ‘see’ the final outcome, provided us with exactly what we needed. It gave us a focus and an idea of where we were going. Planning an extension and modifying an existing layout is not for everyone; it is very easy to get it wrong, and end up having to modify a poor start! I would recommend Annie without hesitation to anyone thinking about any sort of interior design or architectural or structural changes to their house. Thank you so much Annie!”

“For some years, we had planned to extend our 3 bedroom, end-of-terrace property and already had plans drawn up and approved. However, with the passage of time, we wanted to be sure that these plans continued to suit our purposes. We invited Nick to review the proposals and he made a number of very useful observations. Importantly, he helped us to see that we could reconfigure the space and change our way of living to enjoy an improved view of the garden and across the valley in a light-filled, open-plan kitchen-diner with separate seating area. He also identified some simple changes to the layout to maximise functionality of the various new spaces, creating a separate utility room that we had always wanted, and an area for our pets. He also spotted a design simplification that would facilitate installation of a new kitchen. The proposed renovation would affect many of the spaces in the house, so Nick produced several 3D models of the whole property to help us to envisage optional layouts. His advice, supported by the different models and estimated costs, also identified elements that were not worth pursuing, releasing funds for other aspects that were more important to us. With the basic layout agreed, Nick worked with the architect, structural engineer, and Council planning officers to ensure that the agreed re-design would be approved. In parallel, he produced a very detailed specification with electrical and lighting layout and schematic for the TV, music and IT installation; this, together with architect’s drawings, formed the tender package against which 3 contractors bid a fixed price. We came to realise that this detailed document with specific references was critical to containing the price within defined limits; through the specification, the contractor was given very clear instructions on specific building works, plumbing and heating, joinery, lighting, flooring and other aspects of the project. Nick ran a competitive tender working closely with us and the 3 bidders. Together, we then selected the winning contractor and work started. In essence, whilst we lived with the building work, Nick was on site almost every day to keep an eye on developments and make decisions where required. Largely, we sat back and made cups of tea for the builders. If we spotted anything of concern, we generally raised this with Nick in the first instance and he would either explain the issue to us or, if some action was required, would address it with the contractor. Having established the principal price for the works, Nick was also keen to show us the total cost of the project including carpets, window dressings, audio equipment etc. He had also designed a number of bespoke storage units some of which were eventually fabricated and fitted. Early in the planning process we met to review decorative schemes with samples to show how each room would look and feel, along with the associated prices. He maintained a detailed spreadsheet, so that we could budget for furnishings over a timescale that suited us. The spreadsheet included a risk budget for identified risks, to help us understand the level of caution required as the project progressed. The value of the main contractor’s work was £120k + VAT (including kitchen) and the total project budgeted price was £150k + VAT (including furnishings etc). Nick oversaw the contractor’s implementation of the design. He also managed any interfaces between the contractor and other suppliers, and organised purchase of additional items such as the kitchen, carpets, blinds, and audio kit. He took us to view kitchens and appliances so that we could confirm our requirement. He then negotiated a good price for us which saved several £ks. This was another feature of working with Nick; not only did he negotiate good prices on our behalf, he also passed on elements of his trade discounts to us, and identified cost effective solutions which more than paid for his fees. We were particularly fascinated by Nick’s attention to detail and came to realise and appreciate its importance. For example, his insistence on the apparently small detail of aligning the floor level at the threshold to the French doors was simple to implement, but the contractors would have proceeded to fit a step over the threshold (because it was easy and what they always do) without Nick insisting otherwise. We now have no such trip-hazards. As the project proceeded, Nick spent more time with us and our teenagers, confirming styles and tastes, bringing samples and putting together schemes, before sourcing carpets and other fixtures and fittings. He introduced us to a number of new ideas: all of our friends marvel at our purple glass splashback and resin-worktop; the walk-in rain shower is fabulous; the music distribution system is fantastic, the wide floorboards are a real feature, and the look of our spacious, contemporary kitchen-diner is very special. He also future-proofed the property with an ethernet network in all key areas of the home. To manage cash-flow, the project was split into 2 phases. In planning for this, Nick ensured that all foundations, cabling, and pipes for phase 2 were installed during phase 1, negating the need for re-work or additional work later. In fact, during the 6 month break between phases, the contractor failed to record works already completed and paid for, and were preparing to escalate the ongoing price significantly (by approximately £8k, or 30% of the price remaining). However, Nick’s dogged determination and scrupulous record-keeping allowed us to maintain the project largely within the original price (allowing only for a legitimate inflationary increase in materials and labour). Throughout the project, we had every confidence that Nick would address any issue with the work. He produced a detailed snagging list at the end of each phase and ensured that all items were closed before the project was signed off. We are delighted with our “new” home and, having lived with it now for over a year, we find it practical as well as stylish, with plenty of functionality, space and light. Nick is a pleasure to work with. He offers fresh ideas and has opened our eyes to opportunities that we would otherwise have missed. Equally, he accepts respectfully that a client may not always be able to follow a particular recommendation. He is extraordinarily diligent and reliable and his involvement saved us money overall (to the tune of many £ks). We will certainly continue to use his services for future developments of our home and it gives us great pleasure to recommend him to others.”