Design Firms Critique

http://www.designsbymarkinc.com/
Designs By Mark is based off of a location in Pennsylvania. This unfortunately is one of the negatives about the site, it does not list the address. The site greets the viewer with trendy music and a slide show of pictures and logos. It is a little too much at first glance. The site is fairly easy to access. The before and afters are impressive, but seem to be from the same home. There is not much diversity. The award pages are impressive, but it would be more helpful if the designers showed the article in the magazines that featured their work. The portfolio was very diverse in work which was a good touch, but the philosophy needed a little more depth, history of the company perhaps?

http://www.deliointeriors.com/
This site was very unimpressive. I think less of the designer based on the design of his internet site. It seemed very plain, with no color. When I clicked on the different links the pictures seemed old and not up to date. The designer specializes in yachts, soft sculptures and interiors. This site appears that it has not been touched since 1988. He looks like he has potential, but has displayed it very poorly.

http://www.alidpa.com/Home.htm
Audrey Long's website impressed me. It not only was simple and easy to view, but the pictures were clear and could be enlarged. Her site also explains her history and awards along with pictures to show a portfolio of her work. Her site also adds an address, along with the email and phone number, which most of the other sites did not feature. The only details I would change would be the first page, it seems a little bland and has nothing to do with design. I also would change the location of the next sticker for accessing pictures.

http://www.balongue.com/
This site is by far my favorite. I enjoyed looking at the different types of designs. The company appears to do residential spaces, but specialize in hospitals, country clubs, restaurants etc. The portfolios were very impressive and the designs were completely different showing ability to adapt to certain preferences and demands. The site had contact information and showed the designers. It was very organized and easy to move about.

http://www.interiorconceptsofde.com/index.htm
This site was a bit confusing, but had a beautiful layout, which I feel made up for the confusion. The designers were pictured, but not spoken about which I felt was a flaw. I also wish there had been more diversity in the pictures. Even though all of the shots were magnificent, they featured the same style in every photo. I also was confused by the furnishing sites. Is this what furniture they use, or prefer....??? How come there aren't many pictures of examples?

http://www.gngenterprises.net/
This site was different then all the other ones I experienced. I enjoyed the slideshow of pictures, but it was a little confusing to me. I did not think a lot of the pictures were photo worthy, maybe they were before and after shots? Atleast I hope so... The other part that I appreciated as a customer, but I do not know if it appears to be the most professional is the listing of prices on the website.

http://www.carrilynndesign.com/
I throughly enjoyed this site. I loved all of her pictures and the style of her design. I thought the site was fairly easy to manage. The only flaw was the speed of internet page turning so to speak, but that may be an effect off of the connection I was getting. I enjoyed her biography and clients testimonies they added a good recommendation.

http://designlinesltd.blogspot.com/
http://www.designlinesltd.com/home.htm
This site was extremely fascinating to me. I thought the pictures were all beautiful and well thought out. I enjoyed the biography and really enjoyed the blogfolio link that they attached. It showed their process and theories throughout different pieces. The website was a little confusing to look around and I did not like the idea of having the home link at the bottom of the page.

http://www.jtidworx.com/index.htm
This website was very confusing. The links seemed to go to another page and only list qualities the architects specialize in. I was not impressed with the pictures or layout. It seemed very dull and not detailed enough. I like the black against the color contrast, but the site needed more pictures to actually build it to make a statement.

http://www.beverlytaylordesign.com/
This was another somewhat dull site. It included one picture of the designer's work and the rest was contact information, fee structure and other links to different sites that respresent her honors, but her website does not show these honorable awards in action.