Property Styling Pet Peeves

What I love most about the staging and property styling industry is that there isn’t one way to style a house. All stylists have different ways of working and think different things look good.

However, the ugly truth about being a stylist (and I hope not just my ugly truth) is that sometimes I’ll find myself looking at a property listing and think “what were they thinking?”  By ‘they’, I’m not talking about the home owners, I’m talking about their stylists!  Allow me to be ‘Judgemental Judy’ for a few moments and share my property styling pet peeves:

1. Throws that are ‘strewn’. Diagonally over the corner of a bed, diagonally over a sofa. I can spot a ‘I’ve been styled’ diagonal throw from 10 paces.

2. Tray on the bed. Set for breakfast, or just randomly styled with a picture frame and few other choice pieces. Also, a single red rose on the bed (yes, you guessed it, strewn diagonally)

3. Champagne and champagne glasses. On the outdoor setting or, a crime far worse, on the corner of a spa bath

4. Vases on the floor. I don’t understand this one at all. A Vase filled with fake flowers or sticky things, just sitting in an empty corner. Like a naughty vase. Too low, too distracting.

5. Tables set for dinner. Best china, cut glass. My table’s always set for dinner – isn’t yours?

6. Dolls House furniture in large rooms, especially tiny sofas, chairs and coffee tables. The scale needs to fit the size of the rooms.

7. Furniture that doesn’t fit the style of the house. For example a Scandi look in a heritage house. One staging style does NOT fit all.

8. I haven’t seen this one in a while but it used to be popular – furniture, especially beds and sofas that are placed on the diagonal – Why? To be different? To look ‘staged’? Stop with the diagonal people!

9. A heavy handed accent colour. It’s like the stylist has walked round the furniture warehouse thinking “turquoise, I’m accenting in turquoise” and consequently picks up every cushion, piece of art or accessory that contains turquoise. The effect is, well, way too turquoise.

10.  Cushions on the floor. In my house the cushions are often on the floor but not because I think they look good there. I’m not actually sure this is a stylist thing. I’ve seen photos from houses I’ve staged with cushions placed on the floor so maybe it’s the photographer or agent. I’ve also had a cleaning company go through and put the cushions on their pointed edges like a row of diamonds. Not my best friend.

I’m very aware these are just my pet peeves – for example there isn’t a stylist I know who agrees with me about the diagonal throws!  I’m also very aware that, as stylists we are all just doing our best. We’re all at different stages and have access to an ebb and flow of inventory.

I suppose what the above comes down to is ‘try hard’ staging and styling. It’s all a bit contrived, not real. It becomes a cliche.  My aim always is to make the styling invisible. For buyers to just see a happy, comfortable and above all real house that they can see their future in.

Are you a stylist, agent or home owner? I’d love you to share your pet peeves or just to disagree with any of mine!

 

I’m Imogen Brown, a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you would like me to stage your house to sell in a ‘non cliche’ way then I’d love to help. Contact me through my website or call me on 0432994056

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good Home Staging is a feeling

I’ve been trying to find the words to explain the difference between a well staged and poorly staged house.

I realised today that I can’t find the words because good staging is a feeling.

I think we’ve all experienced walking into a property that on paper doesn’t tick all the boxes but that just ‘feels right’.  It’s something to do with seeing a glimpse of the type of life that you could live if you bought the house, the kind of person you would be. It’s aspirational yet achievable. I wanted to buy a house once because the laundry cupboard was filled with labelled baskets of beautifully pressed linen and the sofas were squishy and piled with ticking fabric cushions. The fact that the swimming pool was open to my toddlers and the house was in a flood zone didn’t seem to enter into my decision making process (although luckily my husband was more level headed). I honestly saw myself as Rachel Ashwell, wafting round in my faded jeans, gypsy lace top and bare feet. I don’t think that the house I fell in love with had been staged. Maybe it had. That’s my point. It wasn’t at all obvious and I didn’t think about it. I just saw a comfortable, stylish family house and I wanted a piece of it!

“This house has been staged” is the worst thing you could say to me. I want people to think that the house is owned by stylish and tidy people and that they could live that way too if they bought the house. Susan Atwell, a fellow stager, explains it as “if it looks staged we did it wrong” and Debra Gould from Staging Diva writes “bad staging is when everyone walks in and says ‘this house is staged’  So what makes a house look and feel ‘staged’

• Staging 101 Cliches.  Tables set with best china, breakfast tray on the bed, ice bucket of champagne and glasses on the patio (or worse, in the bathroom) and my personal pet hate (as my stager friends know and tease me about) – throws strewn everywhere. We don’t live like this in real life so we don’t need to stage houses like this
• Furniture that doesn’t go with the style of the house.  There’s a lot of modern, scandi looking, glossy white staging inventory out there. Fine in a modern 2 bed apartment. Screams ‘staged’ in a Heritage house.
• Furniture that doesn’t go with the price point of the house. If you are staging a modest cottage then high end furniture that the owners could never afford just ‘jars’
• Some stagers feel the need to over accessorise every available surface.  Look at all my stuff! Look at my styling skills! No thanks – I’m trying to look at the house
• Conversely to save money many houses are staged on a shoestring budget. With the barest level of furniture and scant layering from accessories the house can only have been staged. I say shoestring but I’ve also seen very sparse styling from high end staging companies
• The ultimate ‘this house has obviously been staged’ mistake is to only stage a couple of rooms. To be avoided at all costs

So, knowing the above, how do you stage a house so it doesn’t look staged? Cindy from Turnkey staging in Seattle says that “you know you are done when a space ‘feels right'”  OK, back to a feeling!  Let me try and put some words and actions around that

• I don’t believe people buy perfect houses. I think they buy comfortable, real, liveable and happy homes.
• It’s really important to get inside the demographic and lifestyle of your most likely buyer. This means that you will add in a big family dining table, or a homework space, the rumpus will have board games and the ‘right’ cook book will be on the kitchen counter.
• When staging an occupied house think twice about storing all the furniture and hiring everything from scratch. Think of ways to use some of your client’s furniture but maybe in a different room or in a new way. If you are hiring furniture it doesn’t all have to be display house ‘matchy matchy’  or all in the same timber. It needs to feel as though the house has evolved over time, which most houses have.
• Listen to the house. Think about how it needs to be staged and the look and feel you want to create. I’ve been told many times that the houses I stage all look so different. This is because every house is different and needs to be treated differently.
• If you hire furniture, and if at all possible, make sure you have access to a wide range of furniture and styles. That way you can deliver what’s needed rather than ‘what’s available’
• Pour yourself into every job you do. Never just go through the motions. Keep going until the staging ‘feels right’

So, what does all the above mean anyway. Why is it important?  The reason houses are staged is for a quicker sale at a higher price. If the staging is too overt and cliche or if it’s too sterile and ‘staged’ the buyers are going to be alert to the fact that the property has been staged. If the staging has been done well and the buyers don’t even think that the house has been staged then their response will be to the house and not the staging. They will fall inexplicably in love and won’t be able to explain why and that’s the ultimate feeling.

I’m Imogen Brown a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you are staging to sell your house but you don’t want the staging to scream ‘staged!’ then give me a call on 0432994056 or contact me through my website

Further reading:

Staging Diva: Great home staging is invisible

Home Staging Brisbane: Stager as House whisperer

Real Estate.com: Home Stager as cupid

 

The house is the star (not the stager)

A conversation with another stylist at the furniture warehouse prompted this post. He was talking about a previous job as a merchandiser in a furniture store. His brief was that ‘the furniture is the star’ so any merchandising needed to support that. He left when his new boss arrived and started placing cushions on the TV units!

I said that for me, staging was selling the features of a house and showing buyers how they could live in the house and it wasn’t about ‘showing off’ my stylist skills and taking the buyers attention away from the house. I firmly believe that staging is there to support the house and not the other way round.

Let me expand on what I mean

Selling the features of the house (and not all your clever vignettes and box loads of accessories)

I always start with the house. What are the features I need to showcase? what does the house need from me in order to appeal to the most likely buyer?  Where shall I position the furniture and what colours and furnishing are needed in order to pull the attention to a great view, or lovely fireplace or wonderful ceiling?

The house below had an amazing bank of windows in the living area overlooking the Brisbane river.  It needed some seating but I selected 2 chairs instead of a heavy sofa, the colours were muted ‘river’ colours, I pulled the furniture off the ‘wall’. It was all about the view.

This new build had an amazing double height atrium over the living room. A large piece of art helps to focus the eye onto this feature

Queenslander houses have lovely features – high ceilings, fretwork, timber floors, lead light windows and VJ panelling. Again sympathetic furniture placement and appropriate furniture and accessories helps showcase these features

I’ve just been hired by the owner of a Queenslander. He wrote “The property is charming but not ostentatious and we like the restrained, elegant look your work brings. Less is more”.   This is exactly what I’m trying to achieve when I stage. This is not about me taking the attention away by setting the dining room table or having elaborate flower arrangements or cluttered vignettes on every available surface. The trick really is for no one to think that a stager has been there.  “This house has obviously been staged” is the worst thing you could say to me!

Showing buyers how they could live in the house and the life they might lead if they bought the house.

Most buyers cannot imagine what an empty house could look like or where their furniture would go or if it would fit. My role is to show buyers the purpose and potential layout of rooms through furniture placement. For example a comfortable rumpus room in a family house, a small desk and chair in a teenager’s bedroom for study, a guest room within a family house, a homework space in a family room, a quiet reading area in a master bedroom.

The house below had an odd shaped but large kitchen. I wanted to show that this space was more than a kitchen/dining room and could become a comfortable and well used sitting area too.

 

The space below was being used as a formal dining room when I first saw the house. With only 1 living area in a house built for a family I turned it into a 2nd quieter living area and positioned a family dining area off the kitchen.

Context is everything.

I think a mistake that some stagers make is to force their style onto every house they stage. This may be because they have their own inventory so their modern and funky style furniture and accessories get used in an acreage property or 2 story 1980’s brick built house when it would be better used for inner city apartments. Or it may be because they love and are comfortable with a certain look (e.g. french provincial) they stage every house that way. Also a $400k brick built on an estate just outside of Brisbane needs to be treated in a different way than a $4m house on the river. You can’t use the same furniture and accessories for both. The aim is for the look to be real and achievable yet slightly aspirational.  Above all it needs to look appropriate for the house.

This high end bedroom in a $1.5m house looks appropriate but not if it was in a workers cottage in Oxley

Conversely, the look in this $350k Acacia Ridge house wouldn’t work in a $1m dollar house in Ascot.

I think, in summary that staging should be about showcasing the house and NOT the stager’s talents. Love the house not yourself : )

Are you a stager reading this, or a homeowner who has used a stager? I’d love to know what you think.

I’m Imogen Brown a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you would like me to showcase the features of your house when you sell then give me a call on 0432994056 or contact me through my website

 

 

 

Home Staging: It’s more than buying ‘Package B’

My latest 2 clients have both given me the same piece of feedback – that I spent time thinking about what each house needed and didn’t just offer an ‘off the shelf’ package.

To paraphrase one of those clients: ‘you were here for a couple of hours. You told me what to store, what to leave and what you were going to hire by room. What you did was comprehensive. The other staging company were in the house for 20 minutes and I felt sure they were just selling me Package B.  You were also a lot cheaper because you only hired what you thought I needed.’

That’s the thing with staging to sell. Every property I see is different, is aiming at a different buyer, is in a different location, has a different layout. In terms of furniture required each room requires different furniture and in a different style.  The approach is (and should be) different every time. If the house is occupied not vacant these differences will be even more apparent. Maybe the client has a bed but needs bedlinen. Maybe they have 2 bedside tables but they are better used in the kid rooms, and on it goes.

Staging is not just plonking a package into a house. Staging should deliver a bespoke approach not a ‘one size fits all’ package.  This takes time, thought and planning and, I believe, better results.

 

If you are thinking of selling your house and would like some thought through advice then give me a call on 0432994056 or contact me through my website

You may also like:

Good home staging isn’t cheap

Home Staging – It’s all in the layers 

Home Staging, it’s not a half way house

 

Home Staging – Not a half way house

 

One of my future projects is to stage a vacant house. I’m staging the living and outdoor spaces plus the master bedroom but not staging the remaining bedrooms or the office. There are special circumstances surrounding the house but really I hate to only stage part of a house – the first time I’ve ever agreed to do it.

As I write this post I have a quote under consideration that is ‘competing’ with a quote from another stager who recommends not staging the bedrooms, office and rumpus of a lovely modern house in Brisbane. Obviously her quote is cheaper and the client is weighing up his decision.

Primarily the decision to only stage half a house comes down to money. These are the kind of reasons I hear from clients:

” The quote has come back for more than I wanted to pay. I need to shave some rooms to save money”

“I only have X. How many rooms can I afford?

” I just want to stage a couple of rooms to show people what’s possible”

Agents can get caught up in this money issue with their clients and tell me:

“I’ve told the owner that he doesn’t need to do all the rooms – just the ones that will be in the photos”

As a side issue I find that many agents are nervous of telling their clients how much staging will cost – maybe fears that they will lose something from their marketing budget?

 A Staged dining/living room and an unstaged bedroom. Confusing isnt’ it?

So, what’s my view on staging only some rooms in a house.

• “Buyers shop on logic but buy on emotion” (Staging Diva). They buy the lifestyle they will lead if they live in the house. Imagine your buyers walking through the house “oh, this living area is fabulous -more than enough room for our sofa and a place for the kids to do their homework. Look at this beautiful dining room, this table is a fantastic size for family gatherings… oh, what happened here? what’s this room for? Where’s the furniture? Is it a bedroom or office? would our bed fit? did they vendors run out of money? did someone move out? are they desperate to sell? what’s the story?  The focus moves from lifestyle to ‘what’s happened here?’
• My aim when staging is for prospective buyers to think that the house is owned by people with great taste who have prepared the house well. My aim is never for buyers to think the house has been staged. A house where only some rooms are staged has obviously BEEN staged.
• 9 out of 10 buyers can’t imagine the purpose or layout of a room unless it’s shown to them. Buyers will be confused by every empty room they see even if the agent is standing next to them saying “this is the bedroom”
• Half staging a house is a mismatch, a confusing contrast, a feeling that something isn’t ‘quite right’
• Staging a property is a means to an end – selling a house fast, for the best price and with the least stress. My view is that this will be more successful if the whole house is furnished

If you are planning to stage when you sell and are considering doing half the job, I hope the above has given you another point of view.  I’m not negating that money may be an issue but I urge you to think of return on investment not just initial cost outlay. Your buyers and their offers will thank your for it.

I’m Imogen Brown, a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you want to (fully!) stage your vacant property then I’d love to help. Contact me through my website or on 0432994056

You may also like:

Latest RESA proof that home staging works

Home Staging – it’s all in the layers

Good home staging isn’t cheap (and cheap home staging isn’t good)

 

Good home staging isn’t cheap

I came across this quote the other day on the Rooms in Bloom twitter feed. They are a home staging company based in Ontario, Canada and I always enjoy reading their blog.

I’ve been mulling a blog post on this very subject for a while now and this quote encapsulates everything I wanted to say.

Home Staging or Property styling is still a relatively young industry here in Australia. As with any growing sector, new businesses position themselves within the market through services offered and price.

Often a business decides that the only way to secure new business is to offer a service for a cheaper cost.  I sometimes find myself ‘pitching’ against these companies and sometimes I don’t get the business because I don’t discount.  Anecdotally I’m hearing of stagers who are offering silly prices just to get the business, stagers buying their own inventory from ‘cheap’ furniture package companies, real estate agents who go to a specific ‘one style’  interiors store for all their staging.

5 Bed Queenslander. Sold at first open house

For me, the difference is between getting your house staged vs getting your house SOLD.  

If you’ve only paid $2.5k and the house doesn’t sell vs $5k and the house does then the more expensive option is the best. Obviously home staging isn’t the only factor at play here but with all else being equal a well staged house beats a sparsely and poorly staged house every time.

With home staging as with other businesses you do get what you pay for:

4 Bed house on market for 5 years. Sold in 3 weeks after staging

So, how do you know you’re getting a good stager not just a cheap one?  Here are some things to look for.

Does the home stager have a professional looking website?  Are the before and after photos inspiring?

Do they offer testimonials and are they happy for you to ring previous clients?

Can they provide you with recent examples of their work and how quickly their properties sold?

Can they provide you with an example of staging a house in a similar style to yours?  If you have a heritage house and they only stage or have inventory for modern houses then the staging won’t work

Do they discuss your most likely buyer? Good staging concentrates on appealing to your most likely buyer not any buyer

Do they give advice on all the fixed elements of your house e.g. flooring, walls, window treatments, kitchens and bathrooms, yard etc. Do they advise you on upgrades and repairs and where you need to invest your money for best return on investment?  A stager who just puts furniture into your house without considering any repairs and upgrades required is like a partygoer who dresses beautifully but doesn’t shower or clean their teeth before leaving the house.

Do they have good contacts with tradespeople who can help you?

3 Bed Queenslander. Sold before listing

Do they understand who your competition is and what’s required at your price point and area?

Can they refer you to great real estate agents?

Where do they get their furniture from?  If they have their own inventory, do they have enough and in the style required?  If they hire does the hire company have enough furniture and in the style required. Why do they recommend the hire company?

How long is the hire period? Make sure you are comparing apples with apples.

Do they have enough accessories? Accessories take a house from bare to beautiful

Are they there for you throughout the process? Do you feel that they are ‘on your side’?

Do you feel as though you are getting honest advice? Would the stager advise the same if this was their house?

I hope you find this list useful and good luck finding a good stager!

3 Bed Queenslander on 88 acres. Sold in 10 days

I’m Imogen Brown a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you are looking to sell your property I would love to help. Call on 0432994056 or e-mail through my website

 

 

People who stage their property: No. 2 Downsizers

This is the second post in a series called  “people who stage their property” The first post was about families. This post considers downsizers

I love working with downsizers…

• Their properties are often most in need of home staging because the decor and furniture are dated
• They live in sometimes overwhelmingly large and cluttered houses.
• They are open to suggestions as they are often fed up with their decor and furniture and can’t wait to move and buy shiny and new. For more on this read “talkin’ ’bout your generation”
• They usually have the money to spend on preparing the property and understand the return on investment argument
• They’re just really interesting people to chat to and make a good cup of tea!

 

The most important concept for downsizers to grasp is that there is a mismatch between how their house looks and the way it is set up and what their (younger) buyers are looking for. For example bedrooms used as store rooms or craft rooms need to be re-purposed as kid bedrooms,  a dining room may need to be re-purposed as a play room,  well tended pots all over the yard removed to provide more scooter space. I ask my clients what their son or daughter would be looking for if they were buying. Buyers with young kids are busy and they watch the block!  They want a house that is move in ready, aspirational and has a layout that works. They don’t want dated bathrooms, flowery curtains and teapot collections (I generalise).

This is a good example of a dated kitchen bought up to date for a younger buyer. New floor, spray painted cabinets and new counter top

 

In summary, this is what I tell my downsizing clients…

1. Get clear on the most likely buyer of your house (and they won’t be like you or at your life stage)

2. Give each room and area of each room a clear purpose to attract those buyers

3. Keep the fixed elements of the house a neutral colour (window treatments, floors, walls etc).  New carpets are often needed and I often replace curtains with blinds. Wall colour may be a 1990’s version of neutral with a yellow or peach undertone. Re-painting with a more on trend neutral pays dividends

This house had lilac in the bedroom, flouncy curtains (is that a proper design term?) and dated pine furniture. A neutral re-paint and more modern furniture were used instead.

4. De-clutter!  Downsizers usually have too much furniture and too many things on display. This needs to be culled right back. Remember the Barb Schwartz quote:  “how you live in your home and how you need to prepare your house for sale are 2 different things”  Don’t forget inside of cupboards and garages. This is your chance to throw, give away and sell. You will have to do this anyway when you move so do it now and increase the saleability of your house. For ideas on how and where to get rid of clutter read this post.  Note to any agents reading – It takes a long time to de-clutter 30 years of ‘stuff’ – give your clients longer than a couple of days before arranging the photographer.

5. I may need to hire some more up to date furniture, artwork and accessories.  I will always try to use what my clients have and fill in the gaps with hire pieces.  This makes a huge difference to the appeal of the house.

In this home I swapped out the dated furniture and accessories and bought in furniture that complemented the style of the house but had a more modern look and feel.

6. Do the work now, spend a bit of money now where it counts and you will safeguard your precious equity and be able to move on .

I’m Imogen Brown a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you are downsizing and need some help preparing your house to sell I would love to help. Call me on 0432994056 or contact me through the Home Staging Brisbane website

 

Home Stager as House Whisperer

I love reading Staging Diva’s blog. I trained with her and she always has something interesting and relevant to say about home staging. A recent post titled: Home Stagers, Do houses speak to you? caught my eye.  Her post and the comments it provoked from other stagers seemed to agree that houses ‘speak’ to stagers and tell them what they need to do in order to prepare the property in the best way for sale.

It’s an interesting concept isn’t it? Megan Morton the well known Australian stylist calls it House Whispering*  Megan says she “makes atmospheres that make people obscenely happy”  and people like to buy happy spaces.

Of course we are more familiar with the term horse whisperer from the movie of the same name. Plenty soppy but I’d watch anything that stars Robert Redford (Out of Africa anyone?).  A good definition of horse whispering is “a sympathetic view of the motives, needs and desire of the horse based on modern equine psychology” (source)

So… we could call house whispering “a sympathetic view of the needs of the house”

I love this!

Many times I’ve parked outside that day’s consult or completed my walk-through and my heart has sunk. It might be an ugly 1980’s brick or be full of clutter or feel ‘cold’.  Often the house is a mirror of it’s occupants – for example it’s difficult to keep a happy home when you’re going through an acrimonious divorce. If my initial reaction is “I don’t love this house” then that’s probably what the owners and buyers are thinking too.

But as I move through the rooms, build rapport with the owners and get to know them and their house I start to look at the house more sympathetically. I start to see the potential, and yes! the house starts talking to me and telling me what it needs.  For me this is a feeling that becomes words and every house is different. It might be that I need to take some things out, or add some things in. It might be a style to aim for or colour scheme, room purpose, room balance or flow.  It’s a very intuitive thing.  Finally a job where I don’t HAVE to be good at maths – I can go with my gut!

A recent story to illustrate:  The owners were divorcing and selling their house. They had some lovely pieces and some battered stuff too. The dogs had made a mess of the furniture, the whole thing needed a good clean. My heart sank. Probably their hearts had too.  The clients had agreed to some hire furniture. I asked them to leave me alone to walk through the house. I sat on the floor taking in the atmosphere and making plan sketches, I paced out the flow, I ducked from room to room working out purpose and where each piece they were keeping would look best.  I stared at the view, I even stroked some of the heritage features (yes crazy I know). By the end of the consult I’d fallen in love, throughout the furniture selection it was getting very serious and by the time I’d finished the install I literally couldn’t leave the house. I just walked from room to room wishing I lived there!  Result? Contract accepted within 10 days.

The other thing a house will tell me is who the buyer will be.  I’ll admit that this isn’t just a gut feeling – a family is more likely to buy a 4 bed house than a 2 bed unit but I have fun with it anyway. Through the consult or whilst staging the property I’ll have a strong idea of who will buy the house – I’ll even give the kids ages and names.  With this in mind I can choose the title of the magazine on the coffee table and the type of toy in the little boy’s room. It’s amazing when I find out who bought the house how close I can be!

Are you a homeowner or stager? Do houses talk to you? I’d love to know. Just leave a comment in the section below.

* Not to be confused with the American version of House whispering by Christian Kriacou who deals with energy clearing and alignment for owners who wish to stay in their homes.  A bit more ‘woo woo’ than what we’re discussing here but coming from the same gut feeling and reaction.

I’m Imogen Brown a home stager based in the western suburbs of Brisbane. If you are thinking of selling  and you need someone sympathetic to your house and its needs then give me a call on 0432994056 or contact me through my website

You may also like:

Home Stager as Cupid

 

10 Home staging tactics that help make your house a home (plus one more)

Home Staging (to sell) and interior design (to stay) are two different things. Top line, home staging makes a house appealing to as many people as possible whereas Interior design makes a home a personal place to live.

However there are a number of tactics that I use when home staging to sell that home owners can learn from when decorating their own homes to stay.

Lets take a look:

1. Start with your audience

Home Stager: Before I do anything else I get clear on the most likely buyer of the house. This helps me work out room purpose and layout and the look/feel that I’m trying to achieve

Home Owner: When decorating for your own home you need to get clear on who lives there now, in the future (more kids, less kids), who visits and how you all use the house. There’s no point in having huge entertaining spaces if you rarely entertain or making your kids do their homework in their rooms if they’d prefer a more communal table. I’m very aware that women (and I include myself in this) decorate to please themselves and therefore their kids and particularly their husbands, if they have one,  have little space to themselves or aren’t allowed their ‘things’ on display. Everyone in the house needs to be considered.

2. Be Objective

Home Stager: One of the main reasons clients call me for a consultation is that I can view their property with fresh eyes and can give impartial advice

Home Owner: Its worthwhile to get some objective feedback before you start decorating. You can do this yourself by taking pictures, waiting a few days then viewing the pictures as if for the first time.  Think about your immediate reactions. What’s working and not working. You can also collect feedback from family. Ask them what the house looks or feels like to them now and how they want it to be. Ask your friends what they would love to be able to do with your house and what would suit the house and you.  You don’t need to act on all feedback but its all good information!

3. Make What you’ve got work

Home Stager: When staging a property it’s ALL about return on investment. For example, a new kitchen counter might cost $2k but if it helps the house sell for $10k more and in a quicker time its worth the investment.   Any changes I recommend are with return on investment in mind. Many changes e.g. new bedlinen cost little but make a huge difference.   I tell my clients that home staging is a face lift of what they already have NOT major surgery.

Home Owner: Big renovations seem to be a knee jerk reaction in Australia. Did you know that we live in the largest houses in the world? We seem to be putting a lot of money and expectations into ‘major surgery’ when maybe we need to be asking ourselves ‘How can I work with what I’ve got?’ OR in other words –  Its not what you’ve got its the way that you style it. If you are yet to be convinced take a look at places where there is a strong rental market e.g. Brooklyn, USA. Owners there can’t make structural changes or even paint the wall and yet many have beautiful interiors.  Be honest about your reasons for making major changes. Do you love a project? Are all your friends doing it? Do you think it will make you happier? I think we all need to get better at making what we’ve got work.

4. Have an overall look or set of words

Home Stager: When I stage a vacant house I need to pull a look together quickly.  I often find a picture or better still a set of words that   I can keep in mind whilst selecting items. For example I’m staging a house next week near Samford. My words are “Eclectic, Modern, Country”  The unit I staged this week on the river in Tennyson was “glamorous comfort” The Queenslander I measured for last week is   “Easy Breezy, Shabby chic, happy”

Home Owner: There are lots of places where you can collate an overall look for your home. Houzz allows you to build a scrapbook from thousands of interiors searching by room or style.  Pinterest is a virtual pinboard of images. I love British Colonial interiors so my inspiration board is called just that.  I’ve then translated this into products that could work within that look. This board I call House to Home  If you’re looking for a colour palette Design seeds is fabulous.  You can plug in a colour and it will suggest a palette or you can search by theme e.g. summer or vintage.  I still get my clients to rip pictures out of magazines. Both what they like AND what they don’t like. If you do this, don’t over think it. If something appeals or doesn’t rip it out. You’ve then got 2 piles and can start getting into specifics.  Think about your 3 words. What would they be?  Remind yourself of these before every shopping trip.  A note here on guilty gifts – you know, the ones that you’ve been given that don’t fit with your interior. Your environment is too precious to hang onto things that you don’t like. So unless you have an emotional attachment to them its time for them to go.

5. Keep an eye on re-sale

Home Stager: Neutral properties generally sell quicker and for more than personal properties. This is why I recommend that blue kitchens are re-sprayed off-white and highly patterned wallpaper is taken down.  The general rule is that all fixed elements (walls, floors, bathrooms, kitchens and window treatments) need to be neutral. Neutral doesn’t mean just white – beige, grey, green/grey can all work too.

Home Owner: If this is your forever home – go for it!  However if you think you may be moving at some stage then neutral fixed elements are the way to go. Also worth keeping neutral are large and expensive pieces such as sofas.  This is about re-sale but its also about the flexibility of changing styles when you want to. Its a lot easier to change your towels than your tiles.

6. Give each room a purpose and layout

Firstly, purpose:

Home Stager: 90% of buyers can’t imagine the purpose or layout of a room unless its staring them in the face. If a room will sell the house better as an office I make it an office, not a bedroom.

Home owner: Assign a purpose to each room and each part of the room. Make each room count. If you don’t eat formally turn your dining room into a music room or study instead.  If you have a family room try to keep this multi-purpose so that the family can be all together but still doing their own thing. Kids playing, Dad checking e-mails, Mum watching TV.

Secondly, Layout

Home Stager: Many houses I see have poor layout or are unbalanced or lack flow. I work to improve all 3 elements whilst also showcasing the features of the room e.g. fireplace

Home Owner: Mentally or physically empty a room. Then, starting with your largest piece of furniture (which usually goes in line with the longest wall) and ending with your smallest put it back in again (and you probably won’t need it all). Play around with the positions as you go until you get the best flow (can you walk around properly) balance (is the furniture spread across the room, are the heights in balance) and layout. Additional tip: Try floating your furniture away from the walls. Even 15cm can make a difference. Many rooms look like the furniture’s been pushed back and the dancing is about to start!

7. Layer it up and don’t stop too soon

Home Stager: When I first started staging empty houses I often looked round after the furniture had been placed with terror in my heart. It always looked so boring and bland. This is where layering through accessories such as rugs, artworks, bedlinen, cushions, books and accessories come in.  This is what brings the interest, the comfort and the personality. The houses I consult on just need pulling together. Instead of one lonely cushion on a sofa (stopping too soon) try 5 in a mix of geometrics and pattern but in the same colour way.

Home Owner: Layer it up e.g. Add 2 Euro pillows, 2 feature cushions and a throw to your bed and see the difference. Place a pile of coffee table books on your coffee table along with a tray containing a small plant, accessory and candle and see the difference vs a couple of remote controls and yesterday’s paper. Put a runner down your dining table in a modern chevron then add a large white glazed bowl full of lemons.  This is not clutter. This is layering. If in doubt don’t have any accessories less than the size of a grapefruit. That will stop you moving into itty bitty territory.

8. Shop your house then shop with intention

Firstly Shop your house

Home Stager: I see occupied houses that I’m staging as one big jigsaw. If I see a chair on a verandah that might be better used in a bedroom then I use it. Or I say to the owner “what we need here is a little side table” and they reply “what about the one in the study?” Perfect example of shopping your house.

Home Owner: You can have fun shopping your house in 2 ways. 1. Think about what you need e.g.  a large vase for a console table then walk round your house  to see what could work  2. This is more radical. Collect up all your small furniture, artwork and accessories in one place then re-distribute around your house. This will force you to use what you’ve got but in new ways. You might find you don’t need to go shopping. As you do this keep in mind your overall picture or words. Do your accessories fit what you are aiming for?

Then Shop with intention

Home Stager: When I’m working with an owner on their occupied house or even staging a whole house I always list exactly what I need e.g. Large abstract artwork over console 1m x 70cm or large bowl for kitchen counter. This helps me select exactly what I want and my clients to buy exactly what they need.

Home Owner: Working from a list helps you avoid expensive mistakes, buying more of what you don’t need or buying the wrong size. Keep the list with you and if you see a rug in a store you will know exactly the colour, style and size you are looking for.  You can buy the rug when you see it and know it will work.  Use pinterest to help you pin products that you will buy. When you’ve finished pinning items for e.g. your family room you can then start buying.

9. Mix it up. Its not meant to be perfect.

Home Stager: My aim when I’m styling a house to sell is that  no one will say “oh, its obvious this house has been staged”. I just want it to look as though the owners have great taste and live in a comfortable and happy home. One of the ways I do this is to not get too ‘matchy matchy’ or display home. I think perfect interiors are boring. It’s the times when I’ve had to  work with what a client had or when there wasn’t much choice at the furniture warehouse that I do my best work.

Home Owner:  Start with the pieces you want or need to keep then mix them up with pieces from other stores. If you only go to Freedom then your house will look like a Freedom catalogue and not like your home. There’s nothing at all wrong with Freedom or IKEA but mix it with pieces that you’ve found on ebay or gumtree or bought from an on-line interiors shop or better still on holiday so that the piece means something to you.  Also know that no one lives in a magazine shoot all the time. A friend’s house was in a magazine shoot recently. She told me the stylist and photographer were there all day and not one item of furniture or accessory was in its usual place! It’s not real. Your home is : )

10. Style it

Home Stager: This is the icing on the cake for any stylist. Basically I aim to put together a series of pleasing groupings (or vignettes as they are often called). For example, a reading corner with chair, floor lamp, lovely cushion or an edited book shelf filled with books and accessories, a bowl of lemons on the kitchen counter, a flower from the garden in a sweet jug in the bathroom. You get the picture.

Home Owner:  Styling really does come with practice and I’m testament to this. So just play around (this is best done when you’re procrastinating about cleaning the house!) If the result pleases you, keep it. Your house doesn’t have to be stactic. We’ve all been to houses where the dried flower arrangement sits on the sideboard for 10 years or more.  If you’re struggling with styling then use magazines, and the internet for inspiration. I have written a series of blog posts about styling i.e. how to style your coffee table or styling your house with books

11. And one more…. Take your time

Home Stager: I don’t have the luxury of time when staging a property. The client and agent usually want to list yesterday. I might measure for furniture on Monday, select all furniture, artwork and accessories on Wednesday then install them on Friday. I therefore have to be very decisive, something I’m not and don’t need to be in my own home.

Home Owner: The only pressure you’re putting on yourself is coming from you so take your time and enjoy the process. Life has a habit of taking over and things don’t get done and really, how much does it really matter? So focus on one room at a time, find your inspiration, pin some ideas then go shopping and styling.  This is not a competition – you’re just making yourself and your family somewhere nice to live. Isn’t that what we’re all aiming for?

I’m Imogen Brown, a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you are selling your house or if you need help to stay then call me  on 0432994056 or  contact me through my website

You might also like:

Home staging: because we don’t all live in a magazine shoot

How to live in your best home all the time

Before you run shopping to Freedom read this

 

Home Stager as artist (or why I aim for watercolour when staging)

I love an analogy, don’t you?

Recently I’ve been thinking about staging houses and the look/feel that I’m trying to convey to buyers. Home Staging is a creative process so it’s natural that I’ve turned to art to illustrate what I’m trying to achieve when I stage a house.

There are 4 ways to prepare a house to sell:  Blank Canvas, rough sketch, watercolour and oil painting. As a home stager I’m aiming for water colour.  I probably need to explain!

1. Blank Canvas

A blank canvas is literally an empty room. Most buyers can’t imagine the purpose of the room, where to place furniture or if their own furniture will fit.  There’s no value, buyers look for faults, are in and out in 5 minutes then put in a low or no offer

2. Sketch

This is marginally better. It’s what sellers sometimes ask me for if they are on a budget, and I try never to deliver.  The above outdoor area is a good example. It has a few pieces of furniture to show purpose but it’s too bland and one dimensional with no feeling of lifestyle or emotional connection. It needs colour, cushions and accessories – another layer.

3. Watercolour

When I stage a house I think watercolour, like the Cezanne above.  Where there is a purpose but a lightness of touch. Where I know where to ‘paint’ and what should be left blank so that the house has great flow and light yet interest. It’s all about less is more but with a lasting emotional pull.

4. Oil Painting

An oil painting (like this Caravaggio) is generally where the staging goes too far. Everything is spelled out, nothing is left to the imagination, it’s all a bit ‘full on’ cluttered and over done, the colour too saturated. Buyers lose sight of the features of the house, there’s a heaviness about everything.

I know this all a bit generalised (I like to generalise almost as much as I like a good analogy!) but I hope you see my point. Art is such an emotive subject as is home staging.  It’s really all about selling a feeling and that’s what I constantly aim to do. A feeling from buyers that “this feel right, I could live here”.

I’m Imogen Brown a home stager based in the Western suburbs of Brisbane. If you would like to book me for a consultation or to stage your vacant house you can find more details here or contact me here

You may also like:

So you’re thinking of staging your vacant house to sell?

Advertising industry tricks to help you sell your house

Got questions about Home staging? Frequently asked questions answered here