Design project in progress by A Design Lifestyle

Work with Jacqueline

A designer in the room, or on the screen.

You don't need more ideas. You need clear, confident decisions, and a designer beside you while you make them.

The samples on the counter. The contractor waiting on an answer. The sofa still sitting in a cart. Each open decision holds up the next one.

A design session is where the decisions get made. They're yours and made for your home, with your taste leading and the Family-Proof Method checking every choice. You leave knowing what happens next, with all of it in writing.

BEFORE · DURING · AFTER

What every session includes

  • Before we meet

    A short questionnaire about your home, your family and your project, plus photos of your space. Then one hour of tailored preparation: I pull materials and narrow suggested selections, so we start with real options instead of a blank page.

  • During the session

    Ask anything: advice, questions, feedback on what you already own or have been quoted. There's no limit on questions, and the full session is yours. Decisions get made in the room.

  • After

    Detailed notes on every selection, specification and decision, the resources to act on them, and clear next steps for you. Professional materials and samples stay with you for the duration of the project.

Why this designer?

Let me guess. You've hired everyone except the one person whose job is the decisions. The contractor quotes. The showroom sells. The internet has opinions. Nobody is looking at your house through your kids' eyes.

Your taste, not mine. I don't hand you my look. You keep your style, and I make it hold up to real family life.

Tested in 100+ family homes. Every recommendation answers the Family-Proof Method's four questions: Is it safe for kids? Is it washable? How many years will it last? What does it cost per year?

Credentials you can check. Featured in Architectural Digest and Forbes. BFA from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. 15+ years of projects.

I've lived it. I'm a parent, and I renovated my own home while working full time with a one-year-old at home. I plan for the crumbs, not the photo shoot.

You leave with decisions. They're made with you in the room, then written up, so they still hold on a busy school night.

A small number each year. I keep sessions few so each one gets my full attention.

How many sessions will my project need?

It depends on your project. These are typical ranges, not a promise.

Renovation: 1–6 sessions, depending on the depth of your scope and the length of your construction.

Furnishing: 1–4 sessions, depending on how many rooms and how much you already own.

One room, or one stalled decision: often a single session.

You book one at a time. At the end of each session, we look at what's left and whether another one is worth it.

Design sessions or full-service design?

If you want to hand off the whole project, full-service design is the right call, and a good designer earns every part of it. Design sessions are for running the project yourself, with a designer's decisions behind you.

  • Design sessions

    Who runs the project. You do, with a designer's decisions behind you.

    How it's priced. One flat fee per session. No retainer, no ongoing fees.

    Commitment. You choose how many, one at a time.

    Whose taste. Yours. I make it work for family life.

    How decisions happen. With you, in the room.

    What you're left with. A written plan to carry out with your contractor or on your own.

  • Full-service design

    Who runs the project. The designer does: sourcing, ordering, trades, installation.

    How it's priced. Typically billed hourly or as a percentage of the project, often with a retainer and ongoing fees.

    Commitment. Usually one agreement for the whole project.

    Whose taste. A shared vision, usually led by the designer.

    How decisions happen. Presented to you, then revised.

    What you're left with. The designer's team carries it out for you.

Carry the decisions forward. After a session, The Renovation Standard Toolkit and The Furnishing Standard Toolkit keep every selection in order, and the interactive project manager tracks each one.

In person or remote?

  • In-Person

    In your home. Ninety minutes on site, room by room, in Albany, Berkeley, Kensington, or El Cerrito, with the materials and samples in hand.

    The In-Home Design Session 

  • Remote

    From anywhere. Sixty minutes on Zoom with your home on screen, anywhere in the United States, with samples mailed to you.

    The Remote Design Session 

As Seen In

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST & FORBES

From design clients

Andrea T.

"Jacqueline has an incredible eye and is an amazing listener. I trust her completely to get it just right, every time."

Family home designed by A Design Lifestyle

C. N.

"She kept us from making expensive mistakes by guiding us to the best choices. Jacqueline is such a gift. My husband and I call her our ‘Design Therapist.’"

Lee M.

"Thanks to Jacqueline, our house is truly a home!"

In-Home Design Session — product image 1
  • Ninety minutes on site, room by room. Clear decisions in the room, detailed notes and next steps after.

In-Home Design Session

$1,625.00
$1,625.00

What's included

1BeforeA questionnaire, then one hour of tailored preparation before we meet.
2On siteNinety minutes together, room by room. Ask anything, for the whole session.
3MaterialsProfessional materials and samples, yours to keep for the duration of the project.
4AfterDetailed notes, resources and clear next steps, written and delivered after.
View full details

“She took the time to really understand our tastes, lifestyle and interests and presented each of her ideas so clearly, making it easy for us to make decisions.”

— Romain Juban, design client

Remote Design Session — product image 1
  • Sixty minutes on Zoom, from anywhere. Clear decisions on screen, detailed notes and next steps after.

Remote Design Session

$825.00
$825.00

What's included

1BeforeA questionnaire, then one hour of tailored preparation before we meet.
2On ZoomSixty minutes together, room by room. Ask anything, for the whole session.
3MaterialsProfessional materials and samples, mailed to you and yours to keep for the duration of the project.
4AfterDetailed notes, resources and clear next steps, written and delivered after.
View full details
Remote Design Session — product image 1