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Interior Designers in Somerville and Hillsborough, NJ
By Tiffany Slowinski
I think most people wait too long to call an interior designer.
We wait until the furniture is already ordered.
The contractor is already hired.
The kitchen layout is already “basically decided.”
Then we bring in somebody with design expertise and say, “What do you think?”
Dangerous question.
If you are searching for an interior designer in Somerville or Hillsborough, one of the smartest things you can do is figure out what kind of help you need before too many decisions become expensive to change.
That does not mean every project needs a designer from day one.
It means the earlier you have unanswered layout or function questions, the more useful planning can be.
Maybe you are renovating a kitchen.
Maybe you are changing a bathroom.
Maybe you are moving into a new house and need furniture.
Maybe your existing home needs paint, window treatments, rugs and lighting.
Maybe the family room has never really worked and you finally want someone else to explain why.
There are designers for all of those projects.
They are not necessarily the same designer.
Some firms focus on full-service residential interior design.
Some are especially strong in kitchens, baths or cabinetry.
Some have local showrooms.
Some work on new construction and renovations.
Others may be a better fit for furnishings and decorating.
Look at the actual service, not just the portfolio.
If construction is involved, ask about drawings and planning.
Can the designer show you more than one layout?
Will they coordinate with the contractor?
Do they select plumbing, tile and lighting?
Do they help make decisions before orders are placed?
Can they provide a plan contractors can actually price?
That structure matters.
It reduces the number of decisions being made under pressure when the house is already torn apart.
If you are furnishing instead, ask whether the designer can work with what you have.
Most of us are not starting with an empty white box and an unlimited furniture budget.
There is a dining table.
There are family pieces.
There is the chair nobody else likes but somebody in the household has apparently formed an emotional bond with.
The design has to account for reality.
Budget is part of reality too.
Tell the designer the range.
Ask how fees work.
Ask whether the project can be phased.
Ask what is included in ordering and installation.
Ask whether a consultation is enough if you mostly need a direction and want to execute some of it yourself.
Those questions help you find the right level of service.
This Garden State Circle guide compares interior designers serving Somerville and Hillsborough based on what each practice publishes about its services, credentials, showroom or office and consultation structure.
Use it if you are searching for interior designers Somerville NJ, interior designers Hillsborough NJ, interior decorators near me, kitchen designers, bathroom designers, full-service interior design, home renovation planning, custom cabinetry, furniture selection, window treatments, space planning or interior design consultations in Somerset County.
The goal is not to hand your taste over to somebody else.
It is to get enough expertise around the decisions that your house works better when the project is done.
And yes, ideally it looks fantastic too.
The Guide: Interior Designers in Somerville, NJ
How We Selected These Designers
This guide covers Somerville and Hillsborough.
A design studio appears in the first table if it is a working interior design practice with completed residential projects and either a studio, showroom or office in one of those towns or a website of its own that says it serves one of them or the county they sit in.
Both halves of that are things you can check yourself. The practice is the work shown on its own website. The service area is what that website says.
That is a test, not a judgment, and it is the only route onto this page. One studio meets it. They are listed alphabetically.
The second table lists studios that met the same criteria and have their premises in another town (listed with the town their own site gives).
About This Guide
This guide is produced by Garden State Circle. Designers appear here because they meet the criteria described above — a working design practice with completed residential projects and a studio, showroom or office in the towns this guide covers, or a website of its own that says it serves them. That is a test, not a judgment, and it is the only route onto this page. No designer can pay to be included in this guide, to be listed higher, or to change what the comparison table says about it. Designers are listed alphabetically, and every detail in the table was verified against each firm’s own website, or against documentation the firm supplied, in September 2026.
Everything under the heading that begins this guide is governed by the rules above, on every guide we publish. Where a sponsor’s message appears above that heading, it is paid for and labelled, and it buys nothing in the guide. Garden State Circle is supported by the businesses that participate in it. Participation pays for our ongoing work: keeping a business’s entry accurate, re-checking its record, and publishing a page of its own details that the business maintains. There is no paid placement in this guide. Participation does not buy a place here, a position here, or anything the comparison table says.
Garden State Circle is published in New Jersey by Tiffany and Jake Slowinski and covers Somerville and Hillsborough. Contact the publisher at jake@gardenstatecircle.com. How every guide is made, in one place: how every guide is made.
The Studios, Compared
| Designer | Business and town | Credentials, as published | Known for | Showroom | Consultation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Sfisco | Design Studio of Somerville, Somerville | Not published | Full-service residential interior design | Yes, Somerville | No charge |
Also serving these towns
| Designer | Business and town | Credentials, as published | Known for | Showroom | Consultation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arlene Reilly | Bernards Decorating, Bernardsville | Allied Member of the ASID; two 2024 Design Excellence Awards, New Jersey chapter ASID | Residential design, fabrics and furnishings | Yes, Bernardsville | No charge |
| Pam Cooper | Cooper Interiors, Warren | Not published | Architectural detailing and project management | Not published | Not published |
| Gail Whiting | Design Consultants, Bedminster | Certified by both the NCIDQ and State of NJ; past president of NJ ASID; New Jersey Monthly Designer of the Year 1988; NJASID Silver Award 2002; NJASID Bronze Awards 2000, 2006, 2007 | Full-service residential and commercial | Yes, Bedminster | Yes, $250/hour |
| Abby Jochnowitz | DesignAnts, Bernardsville | Not published | Residential and exterior design; new construction | Office, Bernardsville | Not published |
| Denise Jones | J2 Design Studio, Bedminster | NCIDQ certified December 2008; Certified Interior Designer, State of New Jersey, since 2008; NJASID Gold Award, Commercial, 2018; NJASID Bronze Award, Residential Kitchen, 2018; Metropolitan Builders & Contractors Association of NJ Award of Excellence, Commercial Renovation, 2025; Bachelor of Fine Arts, New York School of Interior Design | Pre-construction master planning; kitchen and bath | Yes, Bedminster | Complimentary showroom consultation |
Details verified against each firm’s own website in September 2026. Designers are listed alphabetically.
Common Questions
What is the difference between an interior designer and a decorator in New Jersey?
New Jersey certifies interior designers. It does not license them. A designer who has passed the NCIDQ examination and registered with the state may use the title Certified Interior Designer, or CID. The certification is voluntary, and many experienced designers in this market do not hold it, so its absence is not a mark against a firm. What it tells you is that a designer has passed a national examination covering building systems, codes and construction documents.
The distinction between certification and licensure matters more in some states than others. New Jersey protects the title. A handful of states, Georgia among them, go further and license interior designers to sign and seal drawings for permitting, which is a different level of authority than New Jersey grants.
Do I call a builder, an interior designer, or an architect first?
It depends on what the project changes. Work that moves load bearing walls, adds structure or changes the footprint of the house usually starts with an architect, though the strongest outcomes tend to come from projects where a designer and an architect are involved together from the beginning rather than in sequence.
Non load bearing or cosmetic work, and kitchen or bath renovations, more often start with a designer, because the decisions that drive the cost are made in the planning, not on site. A contractor prices a plan more accurately than a conversation, which is the argument for planning first either way.
What does an interior designer charge?
Designers in this market work on flat fees, hourly rates, a percentage of the construction budget, or cost-plus on furnishings, and most do not publish their rates. The comparison table above shows which firms publish a consultation fee and which do not. Ask for the fee structure in the first phone call. It is a fair question and any designer will answer it.
One designer in this guide has put real figures on the record. What a kitchen renovation actually costs in the Somerset Hills sets out cabinetry ranges, the rule of thumb for estimating a finished project, and what a cabinet quote leaves out. The same designer has also been reported on in the kitchen and bath finish decisions you cannot undo and how a kitchen gets planned before construction starts.
Should I tell a designer my budget?
Yes. A designer who does not know the budget is guessing, and the expensive corrections happen later, once orders are placed and drawings are filed. Naming a real number early is what lets a designer show you options at that number instead of above it.
Do I need to visit a showroom?
Not necessarily, but it changes the conversation. Several firms in this guide keep a showroom you can walk into, which is noted in the table. Bringing plans to a first showroom visit is the fastest way to find out whether a designer is the right fit for the project.
Where a firm does not publish something, this guide says so rather than guessing.
Details in this guide were verified in September 2026.
Something Out of Date?
This guide is maintained. If anything here is wrong or has changed — a name, an address, hours, or whether a business has closed — tell us and we will check it. Businesses listed here are welcome to write in directly.
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