An interior designer plans how rooms work: layout, kitchens and baths, cabinetry, lighting and the drawings a contractor builds from. An interior decorator styles rooms that already work: color, furniture, fabrics and accessories. If your Bainbridge Island project moves a wall, a fixture or a cabinet run, you want a designer. If the rooms stay as they are and you want them to look and feel better, a decorator may be all you need.
We should say where we stand. Bluefoot Architecture & Design is an award-winning architecture and interior design firm with a studio in Poulsbo, and we provide interior design on Bainbridge Island. Our work covers both sides of this comparison, so this guide sets out the difference plainly and lets you decide what your project needs.
The table below compares the two roles on the points that matter for an island home. Many professionals do some of both, so treat it as a guide to the work, not to job titles.
| Question | Interior designer | Interior decorator |
|---|---|---|
| Main focus | How the space works: layout, flow, storage, lighting and finishes | How the space looks and feels: color, furniture, fabrics and accessories |
| When to bring them in | Before walls, plumbing or cabinets are planned | Once the rooms are set, or near the end of a project |
| Typical work | Space plans, kitchen and bath design, cabinetry, fixture and lighting plans, material specifications | Paint colors, furniture selection, window treatments, art and styling |
| Drawings for a contractor | Yes, plans and specifications the builder works from | Rarely; mostly selections and shopping lists |
| Works with your architect and contractor | Throughout the project | Sometimes, usually at the finishing stage |
| Bainbridge Island permits | Often designs work that needs a City permit | Mostly finish work the City exempts |
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics describes the job this way: interior designers “make indoor spaces functional, safe, and beautiful by determining space requirements and selecting essential and decorative items.” It adds that they must be able to read blueprints and know building codes and accessibility standards, according to the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.
In practice, a designer starts with how you live in the house. Where does the family gather, where does the light fall, and where does everything get stored? The answers become a space plan. From there the designer works out the kitchen and bath layouts, the cabinetry and built-ins, the lighting and fixtures, and the finishes.
The output is a set of drawings and specifications your contractor can build from. That is the clearest line between the two roles. A designer’s decisions are built into the house; a decorator’s choices can be carried in through the front door.
A decorator works with the rooms as they are. The job is the layer you see and touch every day: wall colors, furniture and its arrangement, rugs, window treatments, lamps, art and accessories. Good decorating can transform a room without moving a single wall.
Decorating suits a home whose layout already works. It also suits the end of a larger project, when the construction is finished and the rooms need furnishing. If you are refreshing a living room, our guide to living room design mistakes covers the common traps.
No. Washington has no licensing law for interior designers or decorators. The state’s professions laws in Title 18 RCW include chapters for architects and landscape architects, but none for interior design. Anyone in Washington may use either title.
The architects’ law draws the line instead. RCW 18.08.410(1) exempts “the provision of space planning or interior design services not affecting public health or safety” from the rules for architects. Work that changes structure or life-safety systems is a different matter.
That is not the case everywhere. The BLS notes that licensing “requirements vary by state.” Some states limit the work or the title “interior designer” to people who have passed a state-approved exam. In Washington, ask about training, experience and finished projects instead of a licence number.
The difference between the two roles shows up at the City’s permit counter. Bainbridge Island is its own city, so the City of Bainbridge Island, not Kitsap County, reviews building permits on the island. Its rules split the work along much the same line:
Decorating stays mostly in the first group. A kitchen redesign that moves a wall, a sink or a range lands in the others. Exempt work must still meet the City’s zoning, critical-area and shoreline rules. Our Bainbridge Island building permit guide walks through each step, and the City’s permitting page has the current forms.
Here is our view. If the work moves anything behind the walls, bring the designer in before a contractor bids on it. Settling the layout first means the permit set, the cabinet order and the electrical plan all describe the same kitchen.
An interior designer usually suits you when:
A decorator can be enough when:
Plenty of projects need both. That is why many design studios handle the planning and the styling under one roof.
Whichever you choose, these questions help on any Bainbridge Island project:
An interior designer plans how a space works, including layout, kitchens and baths, cabinetry, lighting and the drawings a contractor builds from. A decorator styles rooms that already work, with color, furniture, fabrics and accessories. Many professionals do some of both, so ask what a person will actually deliver.
No. Washington has no licensing law for interior designers or decorators, and anyone may use either title. RCW 18.08.410(1) exempts space planning and interior design services that do not affect public health or safety from the architects’ law. Check training, experience and finished projects instead.
Usually not. The City of Bainbridge Island exempts finish work such as painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets and countertops from a building permit. Work involving framing, sheetrock or insulation needs a building permit, plumbing and mechanical changes need their own permits, and electrical work goes to Washington State Labor & Industries.
Yes. At Bluefoot, our interior design covers kitchen and bath design, living and dining spaces, and color and material selection. It also covers custom cabinetry and built-ins, furniture layout and styling, and lighting and fixture planning. Our five-phase process runs from discovery to styling and install.
If the project changes structure, adds space or builds a new home, start with the architect and bring the interior designer in early. At Bluefoot both work in one studio, so the interiors are planned alongside the structure. Our guide to architect vs. design-build on Bainbridge Island covers the next choice: who builds it.
Bluefoot Architecture & Design is an award-winning firm with more than 40 years of combined experience. Lead Interior Designer Michele Doyle was named Best Interior Designer for North and South Kitsap in the 2026 Best of Kitsap awards. She works alongside Principal Architect Jay Volz from our Poulsbo studio.
See our interior design on Bainbridge Island page, our full interior design services and our custom cabinets and closets. To book a design consultation, call 360-602-2965 or contact us with your project details.