Many designers will offer to bring their portfolio to the client's home or office for a free initial consultation. It is at this first meeting that designers can see the space and discuss the wants and needs of the client. Using their portfolios, they can explain how they have executed successful solutions to similar challenges on past projects, and the client can see firsthand how they have interpreted various styles. Rather than look for a specific room design that appears just the way you want yours to, look for an overall style or feeling that you like. For example, if a designer creates spaces that are open and airy, as opposed to heavy and overwrought, that tells you something.
Most clients fall somewhere in between, with an eclectic mix of items.
Designers usually charge by the hour in combination with a mark-up on what is sold. In some cases, the combination of the hourly fee and the designer fee equals no more than the price of what the client would pay if purchasing the item retail, so it's a wash. Kurtzman points out that it's important to remember that if a client changes his mind or the scope of the work in the middle of the project, the time schedule and fees will also change. Some designers who employ staff may only charge their rate for the primary design and ordering work that they themselves do directly. Follow-up work, renderings, drawings and additional shopping performed by the staff is billed at a reduced hourly rate.