Here it is at last, my final unit. I just wanted to take this opportunity to say thank you for all your insightful and much appreciated comments, and to let you know how much I have enjoyed my course. It has given me the knowledge and confidence to start my own business. Also, I am pleased to tell you of two of my first projects: space planning an office for 65 people; and preparing floor plans for a house of 2500 sq. ft. I look forward to these projects with much excitement and anticipation.

—Carola Bontkes

Practical Learning

Comprehensive and Professional Training

The IDDP® course gives you all the knowledge and skills you need to work as a professional interior decorator. It offers you the convenience of studying on your own time and at your own pace, while providing you with a professional, comprehensive, and practical learning experience.

Our course gives you the knowledge and skills to create custom designs for every room of the home. Your course lesson books and the Home Design DVD series give you an in-depth look at the world of professional decorating. You'll learn how to develop and implement design concepts that suit your client's lifestyle and budget. We'll show you how to expertly coordinate furniture, flooring, textiles, accessories, lighting, and all the other elements that come together to complete a living space. The course also includes detailed lessons on the process of designing bedrooms, bathrooms, and kitchens. These specialty spaces require extra planning to ensure the design concept suits the function and purpose of the room.

The program includes a comprehensive business series. You'll learn how to set up your business, market your services, and work with clients. We'll show you how to set your rates, prepare contracts and invoices, conduct in-home consultations, and manage a project from start to finish. The course also includes information on designer discounts and how to set up payment terms with your clients. We'll even show you the professional presentation techniques decorators use to showcase their design concepts. You'll learn how to prepare presentation boards, create color-enhanced floorplans, and showcase your work in two-point perspective drawings. All your questions about how to work as a professional decorator will be answered and you'll gain the confidence you need to succeed.

Hands-on Exercises

Our design and decorating program includes a whole series of practical, hands-on exercises. These assignments are designed to help you develop your professional skills and to prepare you for the work you'll be doing when you start your career in design.

With each lesson topic, you'll be asked to complete one or two exercises. The goal of these assignments is to immediately reinforce the concepts you learned and to help you develop your professional skills. Some of the assignments you'll be asked to complete include:

• Indentifying and creating focal points
• Creating basic and advanced color schemes
• Selecting appropriate design materials
• Measuring a room in your home and creating a scale floorplan
• Analyzing and manipulating floorplans to show your space planning skills
• Selecting textiles and mixing patterns
• Working with different types of lighting, window treatments, and accessories
• Identifying classic and 20th century design styles

The business component of the course also includes practical exercises. You'll develop a plan for setting up your company and marketing your professional services. You'll also practice setting up customer contracts and developing your pricing structure.

In your final project, you'll choose a room to work with—either in your own home or in a friend's home—and you'll take before photos of the room to show its current state. Then you'll create three distinct custom designs for the space. This gives you a chance to flex your designer's "muscle" and tap into your creativity. You'll select one of the three plans as your final design concept and create professional presentation boards and an estimated budget, the same way you would if you were presenting your design concept to a client.

Your Personal Tutor

Your personal tutor—a professional interior decorator—will review your work and provide you with valuable feedback and advice. Available to you by telephone and by email, your tutor will act as your personal mentor and guide to the design industry. All of our tutors have years of professional decorating and teaching experience. They know what it takes to thrive in this exciting field and their goal is to guide you towards success.