Interior Designer in the Park Cities

Four things to establish before designing anything

Older Park Cities homes reward renovation and punish assumptions. These four facts decide most of the cost and nearly all of the surprises, so they come before any layout:

1. The foundation type. Pier-and-beam leaves a crawl space for rerouting plumbing; a slab means cutting concrete to move a drain, which changes the cost of moving a sink or a toilet dramatically.
2. The electrical service and wiring. An older panel may not carry a modern kitchen.
3. The plumbing material.
4. Whether earlier work was permitted.

Two towns, two processes

Highland Park and University Park are separate towns. Each issues its own permits, sets its own requirements and runs its own inspections, and a Preston Hollow or North Dallas address is the City of Dallas again. Working hours, street parking, dumpsters and tree protection are enforced here, and fines are real. The detail is in the Park Cities renovation guide, with town-specific guides for Highland Park and University Park.

How a project with Jan runs

1. Consultation at the house. A working meeting where Jan looks at what is there, asks how you live in the rooms and tells you what is possible — including what is not. See what to expect at a first consultation.
2. Plan and selections. Floor plans, elevations and every finish chosen before anything is scheduled, because unmade decisions are what delay projects.
3. The build. Jan can run the construction herself as general contractor, or hand a complete plan to your own builder.
4. Furnish and finish. Furniture, window treatments, lighting, rugs and art ordered, installed and styled, so the room is finished rather than nearly finished.