I want to be able to go to the person I have designing it and tell them which parts I would need to be included in the print for the board. I think this would save him time and money on designing.
On the contrary. It is much better to find a competent designer, and tell him what you want to end up with. Picking the right parts is his job, and the more freedom the designer has, the better the design.+1
It sometimes works as you said but most often the other way around - the designer will look at the specs and price and availability and pick a few good candidates. Then, eventually, if you have a preference for any of the suitable components you can say which one you want. In most cases that price list is the answer anyways
As for a starting point - take a look at my signature. The NanoFury project is as simple as it gets. And if you're a bit crafty you can make it a 2-chip, or 4-chip or as many as you want.
