Yes, a room can be thrown together in a few days … and it will look like it. A room that is well-appointed, comfortable, inviting and attractive requires planning, skill, and some additional planning. It won’t happen overnight.

So, how do you get to that level of room that transcends the average and just how long will it take?

The process will probably begin with an initial appointment with a designer. It will take several days to several months to land that appointment depending on how the designer works and the client load at the given time. We try to manage this by working as a team so that the process is started in a timely fashion.

The next step along the path to a pulled together room is a design presentation based on your likes and needs: Once again this depends on how your decorator or designer works but it is realistic to expect anywhere from a few days to several weeks.

Expect custom upholstery pieces to take eight to 12 weeks from the time the order is placed. This is normal and unavoidable. If it goes beyond 12 weeks, something is probably amiss such as a fabric backorder. Don’t hesitate to ask questions!

Using fabric other than the furniture manufacturers is often the key to a gorgeous piece of furniture but it can delay the process. It is a two step process since fabric must be ordered, marked and shipped to the manufacturer. Only then does the actual fabrication begin.

If you place a custom order prior to the major furniture show at High Point, your order should have more of a chance of a faster completion. If you order shortly after High Point (April and October), your order can get bogged down a bit by the sudden influx of orders from the show.

Shipping from manufacturer is a wild card in terms of time. Fuel costs have made this factor an unknown because no trucking firm wants to head out with a half load. Even when an item is in stock at the manufacturing source, there can be a delay. The time involved with shipping is up to the truck drivers, the weather, and pure luck. This is like a school bus ride … someone gets on first might have to get off last. We have seen furnishings arrive in under a week and we have had furniture ride the highway until it complained of motion sickness!

Custom window treatments can vary from a few weeks to several months. It all depends on who is supplying the labor. Projects being fabricated by one of a larger, group workroom must get in line once all materials arrive. If it is the busy season, they fabrics and trims must wait patiently until it is their time. This is totally unpredictable. Design firms and stores who have in-house workrooms have more control over timing although the arrival of the fabrics can still bog the process down.

A well-appointed room is a process … it won’t happen overnight. If a beautiful space is your goal, it is well worth the wait!