Interior designing is a profession that is solely concerned with designing spaces. Interior design draws upon numerous other disciplines including architecture, product design, psychology, and decoration. Interior designers work with all kinds of materials and objects in order to create an ideal indoor space.
While a lot of interior designing happens inside of domestic homes, designers work in many other kinds of spaces as well. Airports, schools, office buildings, restaurants, bars, hospitals, theaters, malls, and many other spaces often require the work of an interior designer. Many designers obtain specialized degrees in interior design, though some designers hold other degrees as well.
Architecture and interior design often go together well. Since architecture is a large part of interior design, designers that have obtained a degree in architecture are highly sought after. Numerous employers often search for a designer that can contribute to the structure of a building as well as the interior of a building.
In fact, interior design is a highly technical field overall. It is not uncommon for a designer to specialize and excel at one unique type of design. Designers wishing to become specialists in their field may choose industrial, private, health care, hospitality, or any other design discipline.
Many large companies hire designers as full-time employees, though most designers tend to work on a contract basis. In addition, some designers are self employed, but this is often rare. Still, designers that open design firms within the right areas can stand to earn a competitive wage. Most self-employed designers work within private homes.
Newly graduated designers seeking employment may benefit from apprenticeships. Often, larger companies and smaller self-employed designers will hire new graduates on an internship basis. Gaining valuable field information and work experience through an internship is a great way for a new graduate to learn about the field of interior design. Employers that hire interior designers often look for those designers with a vast amount of experience.
Interior designing is not to be confused with interior decor. Interior decorators do not have to obtain any amount of schooling in order to practice decorating skills. Also, interior decorating is not a technical field, and decorators do not often have architectural experience. While interior design did, in fact, grow out of interior decorating, design is now an independent profession.
Interior designers must also possess skills outside of the design realm. Designers must be able to work well with people, have great analytical skills, and be prepared to take on new challenges at all times. Interior designing is a profession that requires great skill and a good amount of specialized education.