Choosing finishes, learning design software and managing a project present different challenges for interior design learners. Musa Adekunle examines the preparation needed to turn a convincing idea into a completed space.

Choosing paint colours became a problem for photographer and interior design trainee Adedayo Adedigba when he began putting together his own photography studio and content house.

He had completed an Interior Design Fundamentals course, but applying the lessons to a physical space exposed areas where he needed further guidance.

“One of my major challenges was styling the space, particularly selecting the right paint colour and making decisions that would bring the overall design together,” he said.

Adedigba had not taken the separate interior styling course. Members of the training team visited the site and helped him work through the choices. The studio was his own project rather than a paid commission, giving him an opportunity to test his knowledge before taking on a client’s work.

For Moshood Adeola Sanni, an interior accessories seller studying interior design, the challenge is preparing to coordinate everything that goes into a complete project.

Selling accessories had provided familiarity with decoration. Training offered a chance to understand how a space is planned, beyond selecting individual items.

Sanni paid ₦620,000 in tuition for fundamentals, visualisation and styling courses, with transport and equipment adding to the expense. A personal styling project has provided practice, but Sanni has yet to handle a client’s commission.

“However, I would like to develop my skills further in designing spaces from scratch using SketchUp, as well as in project management,” Sanni said.

The areas requiring more experience include sourcing materials, negotiating with suppliers, working with artisans and managing costs.
Sarah Edema, an Advanced 3D Visualisation instructor at Studio Faláyè, encounters difficulties at an earlier stage of learning.

“We also encounter students who have little or no experience with computer operations, which can affect how quickly they adapt to design software such as SketchUp and V-Ray,” she said.

Her assignments require students to interpret a brief, develop a concept and produce visualisations within an allocated budget and deadline. Assessment considers their decisions and understanding of the requirements, alongside the appearance of the final images.
“We want students to understand that a good design must be achievable within the realities of a client’s budget and timeline,” she said.
These experiences reveal different demands behind a finished room. Learning to select finishes, use software and coordinate execution requires more than an interest in attractive spaces.

When the client is waiting

For Femi Falaye, founder and Chief Designer of La Maison Douillet, a Lagos-based interior design and architecture practice, the consequences of inadequate preparation become clear when a project is already under way.

Falaye, who has spent 13 years in practice and founded the interior design academy Studio Faláyè, recalled a living room project in Ikoyi where the client had approved imported upholstery fabric.

An exchange-rate movement pushed up the supplier’s price. A power problem at the carpenter’s workshop delayed the joinery. According to him, the young designer handling the project went quiet, hoping the difficulties would resolve themselves.

The team informed the client and presented the revised price alongside a locally made fabric with a similar colour and texture. They also rearranged the work so painting and lighting could continue while the carpenter caught up.

The client chose the alternative fabric. Falaye said the team handed over one week late instead of the three-week delay it had faced.
“The lesson is that a client forgives a change but not a surprise,” he said.

Finding another fabric addressed the material problem. Rearranging the schedule kept other work moving. Explaining both decisions gave the client a basis for choosing how to proceed.

Falaye said students now practise pricing, sourcing and explaining changes before they face those situations with clients.
The costs an image cannot show

On another occasion, the weakness appeared in an estimate.

Falaye recalled hiring a graduate whose digital visualisations were among the best he had seen from a young designer. Asked to price a living room scheme, she returned with figures gathered online.

The estimate excluded delivery, installation, VAT and the carpenter’s labour. According to him, the actual cost was close to twice her figure.

“The design was right, but the price was fiction,” he said.

“I realised we were hiring people trained to draw a room, not to deliver one.”

His concern is that some learners reach professional work without enough preparation for the responsibilities attached to an approved proposal. A client needs an account of what the work will cost, how materials will be obtained and when the space will be ready.

Falaye argues that training should give students opportunities to make and defend those decisions before a client’s money depends on them.

Bringing training closer to practice

That approach informed the establishment of Studio Faláyè within La Maison Douillet.

According to Falaye, students learn alongside ongoing work and visit projects, markets and workshops to meet suppliers and artisans.
The Interior Design Fundamentals course comprises eight four-hour sessions. One covers contracts, proposals and pricing. Another takes students off-site. Each course ends with learners presenting and defending their work before the team.

Classes are capped at five students, he said, allowing instructors to review individual work.

The setting gives learners access to the people and processes behind a proposal. A material must be available as well as suitable. Its price must account for the work required to use it. A delivery schedule must consider the tasks that depend on one another.
Falaye acknowledges that the business responsibilities require more time than a short course can provide.

“We are honest that business skills need more time than one course allows,” he said.

The academy is developing a dedicated project management course and plans to introduce weekend fundamentals classes for working professionals in January 2027.

What practical exposure must deliver

Simon Adeyi, an Architectural Designer at Adept Project Consults, sees value in distinguishing between designing a space and delivering it. He cautions, however, against assuming that every graduate or training institution has the same shortcomings.

“The important question is whether students have demonstrated these skills before they take responsibility for a client’s money and project,” he said.

Adeyi identified incomplete estimates and material specifications made without checking availability or delivery times as examples of decisions that can affect execution. He said costing exercises, site assessments and feedback from internship supervisors would help establish where learners struggle.

“Graduate project records would provide stronger evidence than portfolios alone,” he said.

For him, training should cover accurate measurement, interpreting briefs and preparing drawings that others can use. Students also need knowledge of materials, procurement, contracts, payment stages and changes to the agreed scope.

“Assessment should require students to defend a complete proposal,” he said.

That means explaining quantities, prices, material choices and the timetable, then demonstrating how they would respond to a delayed supplier or an altered brief.

Adeyi said a working practice can expose learners to site coordination, supplier discussions and professional problem-solving. But access alone does not guarantee useful training.

“The value depends on the quality of supervision. Being present in a studio does not automatically mean a student is learning. Students need clear tasks, regular feedback and opportunities to explain their decisions,” he said.

Client deadlines can reduce teaching time, he added, while a single practice may offer a limited range of projects or methods. Structured lessons should help learners understand the principles behind what they observe.

Measuring preparation

Falaye said more than 40 students had trained at the academy since January 2026, taking over 60 course places. About four in ten had returned for another course, he estimated.

Those figures describe participation and repeat enrolment. Adeyi’s emphasis on graduate project records points to the need to examine what learners deliver after completing a course.

Falaye said the academy retains final presentations and is beginning an alumni survey to follow their progress.

His recommendations extend beyond his own practice. He wants schools and training programmes to teach and assess budgets, sourcing and client communication alongside design concepts.

Established practices, he argues, should provide supervised internships with meaningful responsibility. Professional bodies could also help define what designers should know before taking charge of clients’ projects.

For homeowners and developers, his recommendation is to examine how a proposal will be delivered, including its cost, sourcing arrangements and timetable.

For prospective students, Adeyi recommends checking the curriculum, instructors’ qualifications, total costs and the amount of supervised practical work before paying. He also advises examining completed student assignments and speaking with former students.

“Where a programme promises internships or project access, applicants should confirm what they will actually do.”