How I use SketchUp + Layout in my interior design workflow
Most people don’t realise what is possible with SketchUp and how much you can achieve with just one piece of design software.
I have personally only ever used SketchUp in my own interior design workflow with clients and people often ask me why I chose SketchUp over other software options on the market.
Here are some of the reasons:
It’s industry recognised - most large design firms around the world have designers using SketchUp. It’s well recognised in the industry and is a good technical drawing skill for any designer to learn.
It saves me money - SketchUp is great for small design studios or solo business owners like me as it’s very affordable. In fact SketchUp is quite a bit cheaper than most other design software on the market. And because I can do everything in my interior design workflow in one piece of software it means I only have to pay for one software subscription.
It is easy to learn - which is great as it meant I could get up to speed quickly with using it and starting to create projects for my clients.
It looks really professional - creating your designs in SketchUp and then presenting them for clients using Layout immediately upgraded the professionalism of my work.
It’s fun! - It’ so important to love and enjoy what you do and when I’m creating in SketchUp it honestly feels like play rather than work :)
The final reason I love SketchUp is that it’s so versatile. There are so many ways that I use SketchUp in my design workflow with clients and below I share just some of the possibilities using some examples from my own projects over the years.
1: Space Planning
Space planning is the first part of most of my design projects with clients.
In SketchUp you can create both 2D and 3D space planning options for clients to help them visualise the ideas you have for them.
2: Concept Development
Once a space plan has been agreed to I prepare some concepts in 2D and 3D using SketchUp.
This might have options for joinery/cabinetry as well as some furnishing options and things like that.
Once my ideas are created in SketchUp I then bring these in to Layout and create a professional concept to present to the client alongside samples and materials I may have collected from suppliers for discussion. You can see an example of this sort of concept document in the right hand image below.
Joinery/Cabinetry/Millwork
Once the concept has been signed off it is time to start designing everything in more detail. So this is where I will draw the cabinetry up and show all the intricate design details.
Again, once the designs have been created in SketchUp I move these over to Layout so I can create documentation drawings that are to scale. On these drawings I can then add dimensions and other details for the builder/contractor/cabinet maker to work from.
Design Documentation + Detailing
The final part of the initial design process on a project is to put together the detailed documentation drawings. This is by far the most time consuming part of the design process for me as a lot of work goes in to these drawings.
Although the documentation would vary from project to project (depending on what I had been engaged to work on) this documentation set would normally include:
concept images
space planning and notes for contractors/trades
3D perspective drawings
2D plans - to scale
Detailed documentation for all cabinetry in the project - e.g. kitchen, bathrooms, laundry, mudroom, wardrobes/closets
Lighting and Electrical Plans (see below)
Fixtures and Fittings Schedules (see below)
Furniture and Styling Packages (see below)
Lighting + Electrical Plans
In some projects I would also put together lighting and electrical plans for clients that they could use with their electrician for the installation of lights and electrical work.
I would create these plans inside Layout and we learn how to do this in my Intermediate SketchUp course (where I have free templates that you can use for this purpose as well).
Fixtures and Finishes Schedule (FF&E)
Most interior design projects would also include a fixtures and fittings schedule as part of the design documentation. Again, this was something I could easily create inside Layout using templates I prepared for myself to make my workflow quick and easy. These templates are included as part of my intermediate SketchUp course.
Furnishing and Styling
Finally - SketchUp and Layout can also be used for the furnishing and styling of a project as well. Or if you do more interior decoration work than full interior design then it can be handy for this type of work as well.
In SketchUp it’s possible to add:
custom furniture
custom artwork
accessories and styling
window dressings
wall coverings (e.g. custom wall paper)
And all sorts of other finishing touches as well.
You can then use Layout to present your ideas and the products you’ve selected so it makes it easy for your clients to visualise the spaces. This creates faster buy-in with your clients as they can really visualise what you are proposing. A little bit like the examples you can see below.
Learn SketchUp for Interior Design with our fun online course for beginners…
If you want improve your work with design clients or you are about to start renovating or remodeling then you will love SketchUp.
With this software you can mock up an entire home in 2D (floor plans, joinery/millwork elevations, lighting and electrical plans and more) and 3D (renderings and perspective drawings) so you can picture exactly what it will look like when it is finished plus prepare your technical drawings for use with your clients, trades and contractors.
Learning SketchUp will save you time, money, mistakes and so much more! It is a well known piece of software in the interior design and architecture industries and will give you a solid technical drawing skill that will immediately upgrade the professionalism of the work you are doing.
I teach an online course for beginners that is focused specifically on using SketchUp for interior design purposes. We have had more than 10,000 students come through the course with so many fantastic projects designed and built!
We have all sorts of students in the course including designers and architects, cabinet makers, home renovators/remodelers, kitchen and bathroom designers, event planners, landscape designers and design enthusiasts.
To find out more about the courses we have on offer click the link below. And reach out if you have any questions I can help with :)
Enjoy the rest of your day!
Clare x
Dr Clare Le Roy
