Need interior design help?

Get the look you want while keeping your costs down.

By SHARON EPPERSON

Do you love flipping through Pottery Barn, West Elm and other furniture catalogs, but hate the idea of looking at 300 fabric swatches for a new sofa? Or, maybe you aren't sure what furniture to put where in your L-shaped family room. In that case, you may want to hire a professional interior designer to help. If you already have saved some money for new purchases, adding the cost of expert design services doesn't have to break your budget.

Get free advice. A number of furniture chains, like Ethan Allen, and independent retailers offer free design services with a purchase. Of course, they are going to suggest their own lighting, rugs and chairs, but you don't have to buy everything they offer.

Contract by the hour. The American Society of Interior Designers (asid.org) can refer you to local members. Fabric stores, such as Calico Corners (calicocorners.com), charge a modest fee ($75) for a 1 1/2-hour in-home consultation on furniture, window treatments and other designs. To trim costs and help the designer quickly zero in on your tastes (remember, time is money!), do some initial legwork and be ready with fabric swatches, paint colors and pictures of rooms you like. Sketch the dimensions of the room and the size of any furniture you plan to keep.

Seek advice online. For example, Interior Design Hotline (interiordesignhotline.com) charges $80 an hour for e-mail or telephone consultations. Or, you can give the company photos of a specific room and its furnishings, plus download some graph paper to submit an exact floor plan. A designer then sends back at least two proposed space layouts with suggested furnishings, artwork, plants, lighting, rugs and window ideas. You also get two or three color and material schemes, as well as at least two hours of consulting. Fees for each room run $500 and up, depending on its size.

Sharon Epperson is the personal finance correspondent for CNBC.