Designing Your Dream Home!

September 1, 2020

Building a brand-new home has a lot of moving parts and one of the biggest is deciding on all of the design elements, including cabinets, counters, paint, flooring, carpet and more. The experienced interior design consultants who work with home buyers in Southshore help ease the design-stress of building a new home for the first time, or the next time! Because they want satisfied customers who love the choices they’ve made, every time they walk through the front door!

We spoke with Amy Rathbun, Director of the Home Gallery™ for Richmond American Homes about how designers work with homebuyers to allay fears, offer suggestions and reduce the stress of making seemingly permanent decisions about the look of their homes.

“We really try to kind of roll out the red carpet for homebuyers and practice a lot of intentional listening at the beginning of the appointment,” says Amy. Designers listen for buyer priorities, budgets, and what’s most important in terms of style and function.

For the first timer—someone building a new home for the first time—the number of choices and combinations can be overwhelming. “Our designers—and it’s amazing to me how they’re able to—build trust with people by empathetic listening and customer service,” Amy says. “We know these are big decisions, and a home purchase is likely the largest investment our homebuyers will make.”

From Pinterest to Appointments

If a homebuyer walks into the design center with photos from Pinterest and says, “This is what I want,” Amy says one of the benefits of the Richmond American program is that they can create a design and a look for the buyer, regardless of the floor plan, community or budget. 

“Designers today have access to some cool, different products at good price points. We can reassure homebuyers early on that whatever they’re looking for, we can recreate it, at a variety of price points,” Amy says. “They sense very quickly that we’re here to help.” 

And for clients who say they have no clue or how to begin the process of making design decisions, designers ask questions as they try to drill down to the critical details. “We ask, ‘How you feel when you look at something? Does it make you feel whole, does it make you feel warm?” Amy explains. “And, most people can help the designers narrow down options with their answers.”

Amy says people know more than they might think—with the popularity of HGTV and design/makeover shows. They may not be able to describe it in the same terms, but people tend to know what they like and what they don’t, she says.

Design Trends Available Now

So, what’s trending right now in home design and interior décor? 

“For the past few years we’ve seen the popularity of white cabinets and gray tones although I’ll say grays are starting to get warmer,” Amy says. “Modern design is still trending, but I think people are gravitating toward things that are comforting and warm.”

Another trend Amy pointed out are mixed metals. “Those are a fun theme, with matte black finishes really coming into play in faucets and lighting, and sometimes champagne bronze.”

Amy went on to say that home offices are important this year, a space where people can feel like they’re organized and focused—and mudrooms. “Plus,” she says, “we’ve seen a lot of patterned tile this year, along with the classics like subway tile maybe in a larger format or different texture.”

One of the benefits of buying new in Southshore is the cadre of experienced designers who not only have their fingers on the pulse of what’s likely to still be in style five years from now, but also access to the products to pull off designing your dream home!

Design Details in Southshore

The options in the master-planned community of Southshore are plentiful. Tour one or all 16 beautiful models built by Colorado’s finest home builders – and get a sense of the variety of brand new homes available from Taylor Morrison, Richmond American Homes and Toll Brothers. Life at the Lake offers floor plans for ranch and two-story designs, priced between the $400s and the $700s and close to all the essentials you’ll ever need.