Design Tips - Lynn Malone

1. Have no more than three finishes.

"Any more than three and it gets too confusing and you lose continuity."

2. Use colour selectively, particularly on finishes that have a long life span such as benchtops, window treatments and bathroom fixtures. "Generally speaking, if permanent fixtures are in a 'colour of the moment', when you come to sell the house, the next owner may not appreciate their value."

3. Like the finishes, make your interior proportions consistent such as keeping the thickness of benchtops and shelving in the kitchen and the living room the same.

"I always go for the number eight because it's the money number. So I have 80mm shelves in the kitchen, and the benchtop is 80mm thick, and the floating shelves above the living room cabinetry are 80mm thick."

4. Always buy in a boutique building which is mostly owner-occupied.

"As you're buying higher quality, there's more chance the people living there will take more pride in the building and their apartments." Look for quality windows and exterior doors and high ceilings as these can't be changed in any renovation.

5. Design to not only suit your lifestyle but to also consider the suitability for resale. In other words, think carefully before creating a lime green feature wall or laying blue carpet.

6. Keep a project diary.

"I used to write down everything the tradesmen said to me and everything I said to him. You think you're going to remember everything, but you certainly don't."

7. Have all appliances/fixtures to be installed on hand to avoid sizing problems.

(Source)