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No matter what design practice you specialize in, Format can help bring your portfolio to life. It’s a website builder that lets you easily customize your portfolio on-the-go, and gives you the power to share your work with clients around the world. Sign up to Format now and get a free 14-day trial. Afterwards, you can keep using Format for just $10 a month.
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It’s a given that all designers need a solid portfolio. But trends come and go, and it’s important for interior designers to always keep an ear to the ground and be ready to adapt.
This is why it’s essential for interior designers to invest in a portfolio website. A bound book needs to be physically replaced, but an interior design online portfolio website can be altered anytime – even on your phone! This means that even with the changing tides, you’re always capable of going with the flow.
In this guide, we’ll help you learn what it takes to build an online portfolio website for interior decorating. Here, you’ll find tips for building the perfect interior design portfolio, plus examples of websites you can turn to for inspiration.
Tips for Building the Perfect Interior Design Portfolio
Don’t have enough work experience to include 20 to 30 projects? Here are three ways you can build a solid design portfolio.
Don’t Be Shy about School Projects
If you’re fresh out of college, clients will understand if your portfolio is filled with designs made for school. With that in mind, if you are still a student, be sure to keep your portfolio in mind when you’re tackling a project. Do your best in all your school projects and you’ll build up a portfolio of impressive designs in no time.
Start at Home
How do you build a portfolio without having had any clients yet? Consider doing a home makeover in your own house or apartment and documenting the entire process for your portfolio. It’s a great way to practice without the risk of wasting a client’s time and money! Plus, if you’re unhappy with the result, no one would ever know, right? You can just start over again!
Get Help from Friends and Family
Once you gain some confidence, you can contact friends and family to offer your design services. Start out small, offering to do something like a bathroom or a kitchen renovation first. If they’re happy with your work, you can offer to do more around their house!
Work Samples Vs Online Portfolios
Work samples, also known as design sheets, provide clients with a short preview of your best work. These are usually two to four printed out pages showcasing just a few examples from your larger portfolio. Each page can be dedicated to a specific design practice. For example, you can dedicate one page to furniture, another one to fixtures, and a third to styling.
An online portfolio website, on the other hand, is a more comprehensive display of your body of work. While a portfolio is longer (it should include about 10 to 15 projects), it shouldn’t include every single project—just the ones that exemplify your brand and vision. In a portfolio, you can go into the ins and outs of each project, from the brief to the challenges you faced to the solutions you came up with.
While a work sample is more of a visual aid to help clients understand what your work is like, a portfolio tells that story in full detail.
Interior Design Portfolio Website Examples
Don’t know where to start? Here are three interior design portfolios made with Format that you can look at to understand how to layout and edit your own website.
Carlos Mota. A creative consultant with experience in design, styling, and ad campaigns, Mota has an eye for bold design choices. Mota’s site uses the vertical scrolling Amazon template and organizes pages by design practice: styling, interiors, flowers, and set and props.
Cameron MacNeil. Using one of the best templates for design-related folios, MacNeil’s site is set to the horizontal-scrolling Horizon Left. This template gives design practitioners a handy left-hand menu sidebar for easy navigation, and a large scrolling gallery to present key designs in the folio. MacNeil does a neat trick of using video rather than text captions to invite viewers into his projects.
Mathilda Clar. With the Mica template, Clar presents her designs in a vertical scrolling template like Mota. However, she does something clever here—by interspersing photos of textures, texts about her design philosophy, fine details, and even press appearances, we instantly get a very clear idea of Clar from the homepage alone.
Interior Design Portfolio FAQs
These are the five most frequently asked questions about building an interior design folio.
An interior design portfolio is a compilation of a designer’s best interior design work. Often, designers will include design sheets, mockups, and accompanying descriptions in their portfolios. An interior decorator should also include pertinent background information such as their academic and work history, along with their design philosophy.
To create an interior designer’s portfolio, you need to first build several portfolio-worthy designs. Designers can do so by offering their interiors services at a discounted rate to friends and family, working under an esteemed decorator as an apprentice, and documenting all designs. Once you’ve built up a sizable collection of photos and design sheets, it’s time to put them into professional portfolios.
Designers often struggle with how much work to include in a portfolio. Some make their interiors portfolios too sparse, leaving much to be desired. Others go too far and include essentially all of their decorating work—even the bad ones. When designing a portfolio, a designer must take the time to narrow their work down to a select few that really represent their talents and their brand.
As a rule of thumb, interior design portfolios should include 10 to 15 examples of a designer’s work. Don’t worry if you’re new and don’t have that much work yet. Soon enough, with patience and hard work, you’ll be able to amass a sizable portfolio filled with great work.
As previously covered, designers must include the following elements in their portfolios: design sheets and mockups of the designer’s finished work, background information, as well as contact details. A designer might also want to include case studies in their folio.
When writing background information, a decorator needs to include their academic and professional history, their creative vision or brand, and their interests outside of designing (though this isn’t necessary). A designer will need to include a contact information page as well, where their email address and social media pages will all be listed—provided they’re the designer’s professional platforms.
Aside from designs and relevant information, a designer could also consider adding a blog or an online store where furniture and decor are placed for sale.
Starting an interior design portfolio is easy, especially when you begin using a website builder like Format. All designers have to do is to open an account on Format and sign up for a 14-day free trial, choose a theme that complements your interiors work, upload at least 10 of your best samples, and start designing your website. A designer can customize their portfolios and add special features too, like blogs, online shops, and SEO editors.
Whether you’re an interior decorator,graphic designer, or afashion designer, opening a Format site can help boost yourdesigncareer.
Build Your Design Portfolio Today
In the fast-paced digital age world, an interior designer needs a portfolio that can keep up with the pace. With an interior design online portfolio website, you can adjust and customize your folio to adapt to new trends.
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Insights, advice, suggestions, feedback and comments from experts
As an expert and enthusiast, I have personal experiences or the ability to browse the internet. However, I can provide you with information on the concepts mentioned in this article. Let's dive into it!
Interior Design Portfolio Websites
An interior design portfolio website is a digital platform where interior designers can showcase their work, skills, and design philosophy to potential clients. It serves as a visual representation of their best projects and allows them to highlight their unique style and approach. Unlike traditional physical portfolios, online portfolios offer the advantage of easy accessibility and the ability to update and customize the content at any time.
Tips for Building the Perfect Interior Design Portfolio
The article suggests several tips for building a strong interior design portfolio:
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Don't Be Shy about School Projects: If you're a recent graduate or still a student, including school projects in your portfolio is acceptable. Focus on creating impressive designs during your academic years to build up your portfolio.
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Start at Home: If you haven't had any clients yet, consider doing a home makeover in your own house or apartment and document the process. This allows you to practice your skills without the risk of wasting a client's time and money.
-
Get Help from Friends and Family: Once you gain some confidence, offer your design services to friends and family. Start with small projects like a bathroom or kitchen renovation. If they're satisfied with your work, you can expand your portfolio by offering to do more projects for them.
Work Samples Vs. Online Portfolios
The article explains the difference between work samples and online portfolios:
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Work Samples: Work samples, also known as design sheets, are a short preview of your best work. They typically consist of two to four printed pages showcasing examples from your larger portfolio. Each page can be dedicated to a specific design practice, such as furniture, fixtures, or styling. Work samples provide a visual aid to help clients understand your work.
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Online Portfolios: An online portfolio website offers a more comprehensive display of your body of work. It includes around 10 to 15 projects that exemplify your brand and vision. Online portfolios allow you to go into detail about each project, including the brief, challenges faced, and solutions implemented. They provide a storytelling platform to showcase your work in full detail.
Interior Design Portfolio Website Examples
The article mentions three interior design portfolios made with Format, a website builder. Here are the examples provided:
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Carlos Mota: Carlos Mota is a creative consultant with experience in design, styling, and ad campaigns. His portfolio website uses the vertical scrolling Amazon template and organizes pages by design practice, including styling, interiors, flowers, and set and props.
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Cameron MacNeil: Cameron MacNeil's portfolio website uses the horizontal-scrolling Horizon Left template. This template provides a left-hand menu sidebar for easy navigation and a large scrolling gallery to present key designs in the portfolio.
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Mathilda Clar: Mathilda Clar's portfolio website uses the Mica template, which features vertical scrolling. She cleverly intersperses photos of textures, design philosophy texts, fine details, and press appearances on her homepage, giving visitors a clear idea of her work.
Interior Design Portfolio FAQs
The article also addresses some frequently asked questions about building an interior design portfolio:
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What is an interior design portfolio?: An interior design portfolio is a compilation of a designer's best interior design work. It typically includes design sheets, mockups, and accompanying descriptions, as well as background information about the designer's academic and work history and their design philosophy.
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How do you create an interior designer's portfolio?: To create an interior designer's portfolio, you need to build a collection of portfolio-worthy designs. This can be done by offering services to friends and family, working as an apprentice under an esteemed decorator, and documenting all designs. Once you have enough photos and design sheets, you can organize them into professional portfolios.
-
How much work should be included in an interior design portfolio?: A portfolio should include around 10 to 15 examples of a designer's work. It's important to select projects that truly represent your talents and brand. As a new designer, don't worry if you don't have a large body of work yet. With time and effort, you can build a portfolio filled with great work.
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What elements should be included in an interior design portfolio?: An interior design portfolio should include design sheets and mockups of the designer's finished work, background information, and contact details. Case studies can also be included to provide more in-depth information about specific projects.
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How do you start an interior design portfolio?: Starting an interior design portfolio is easy with the help of website builders like Format. Simply open an account, sign up for a free trial, choose a theme that complements your work, upload your best samples, and start designing your website. You can customize your portfolio and add special features like blogs, online shops, and SEO editors.
I hope this information helps you understand the concepts discussed in the article. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!
