There has been a huge amount of work gone into this site and its very different to the others in as much as you can input your plants - there will be the virtual garden coming soon as well. The subscription will be very small and worth every penny - Nicola has to make money out of this and I completely agree with her however she took the view that adverts would ruin the whole feel of it. If you have any questions about it - email Nicola and ask because she is very helpful and never afraid of criticsm - talk to her about the subscription issues you have and ask her how the site will be developed in the future. I have a feeling about this site I think its very different and here to stay - If you're interested ask if you can be involved with the beta testing of the new developments. I intend to get on the train and get settled before it gets properly under way!

Well we're not done yet, so I'm sure I'll have more to tell you in a while..:) But, for now: -I went with a lot of vintage lighting. First of all I tried to save money which I did; second, they were charming and well-made fixtures. most of them from Europe. The wiring is fine, etc. However when the time has come to install them it appears some of them missing little things like crossbars and stuff..naively we go to Home Depot where we are told none of the standard American stuff will fit these lamps. So then it begins: running to specialty stores, ordering things on British website(why British? no idea. apparently they do have some of these parts. while other sites simply don't), and I-don't know-what-else. Yes, I saved a lot of money. Maybe hundreds maybe thousands I don't know (of course I'd like to think it's thousands)). But I really have no patience for another month spent trying to refit two thirds of the lamps. The GC has much less patience than me of course. You get the picture.. -Or: the countertop in the kitchen doesn't overhang enough. Doesn't bother me I must say, but my husband is really mad. We had no idea we should specify it, and the granite guy didn't ask. It also happened so that the inspector from the gas company came at the same time to look at something the city saw as problem(not related to the build; just a coincidence) when the granite guy was working on the template..we had to run between the two of them. The inspector is outside, the granite guy is measuring inside..no wonder we didn't ask. I don't know why he didn't; he then said that we seemed really knowledgeable and confident. No! That's how I look when I'm really tired lol. -Or: we went with a very complicated design for master bath. Or should I say, we wanted a lot done in a modest space. It looks good by the way. But they redid it so many times to fit it all, that now we'll have a) narrower vanity b) narrower bathtub. If I knew I'd let go some of our grand ideas. It would be still nice, and I'd have more functional space. -Or: I'd order some things more in advance than I did. I had no idea that oil rubbed bronze and chrome are usually in stock, but polished nickel is suddenly considered a special order and takes weeks. And you don't really know until you start actually purchasing. In short I did not know many things. So a designer wouldn't solve all of these issues of course. But he/she would anticipate most of them. Simply because of experience, better spatial thinking, better knowledge of the resources..because of studying it before and dealing with it a lot every day. Even me-not a designer-would be wiser a second time. Only I'm not going to do it for a second time, never ever..:) And if I'd choose to work with someone and had money for it-wishful thinking here-it would be someone significantly more talented than me. Sense of admiration from working with someone better than you not just helps. It creates excitement and pushes you forward too. When you're alone it feels different. Not right away maybe. But within several months, I felt less excited, less creative, less confident, less everything. It's not fun; when it's small reno it might be fun, when it's long and involves a whole house, it's already a job. Almost a full time job. And you don't necessarily enjoy it as much as you imagined. Every job has nice parts-and parts that are tiresome and very lackluster. You do the lackluster, a lot. And you pay for it too:)

So you need an Interior Designer to make this your space.IMO the best thing to start with are the most expensive pieces so usually sofas, beds, and lighting. Mid priced photo frames I usually go to a framers work shop and order in bulk usually get a good deal. I would suggest you go to good furniture stores in your area and they often have designers on site that can start the ball rolling. You do not want to buy a sofa or chair without a test drive.

You'll be better off using Houzz to search for a professional near you. However I can tell you right now 1that your budget is not nearly high enough. 15-20k won't likely even cover the kitchen portion let along designing and purchasing furniture for the entire place. Good luck.