I am not an interior designer but I work with many highly talented and notable ones in the NY/CT area. And word of mouth is definately the norm here. If you have a friend or neighbor (whose interior you like) that may be a start. And go to their websites, if they have one, to get a sense of their style, learn thir credentials. For most, they offer a free initial consultation, sometimes for the first hour, sometimes they treat it like an interview and don't time the meeting. Here is where you will find out ther pay structures, like do they charge by the hour, or whatever. How will they work out a budget for you, Ask about their sub-contractors; painters, upholsterers, etc... Google "decorators" in your area and check out those websites or call them and see how they work. A Showhouse or House Tour are also good ways to see their work and actually meet them. There is no right or wrong way to find an interior designer (diff. from an interior decorator). I think sometimes it's just a gut feeling. In my business it's almost all word-of-mouth, so if there is a good designer in your area and you ask around, you'll probably find them. And finally, do not mention the inheritance...

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:)

There are some but to be honest I would never work on line with a client. Seeing a space in real life is IMO the only way to do the job. If online is what you want why not just pick everybody’s brain here fpr free.

If you are OK at letting them do their process, and getting to know your needs and style, and letting them create the design whole first? That’s when this can work. You expecting them to jump in and do A or B choices without the process? Nope. There are 40 hours minimum in any standard room project before product selections even start to happen. A whole home project has more. Space plans are first. Then the conceptual. Then the specific. If you are expecting specific product selections to happen before all the rest, then your expectations are backwards. You can’t make selections without the framework that controls the selections being established. Designers will want to do way more discovery than viewing a few mood boards in order to give appropriate advice. You’re going to get frustrated because there’s not going to be that instantaneous snap ability to say A or B on choices that work for you, and the specific home, without that discovery. Designers are also about the big picture, and trying to whittle that process down to a simplistic A or B without first developing that wholistic whole house design is going to yield much poorer results than you think. Trying to make that happen is like cutting a section out of a paint deck and saying that 98% can’t even be considered. You want wings and beauty, but you’re hobbling them like a plough horse to not let them work how they work. The type of consulting arrangement that you want racks up the hours, yields worse results, and is very frustrating for the designer and the homeowner. Only an inexperienced designer would consider it. The juice just isn’t worth the squeeze to the experienced designer.