Beaux R'eves

Sunday, February 2, 2014

Home Staging: Before and After ~ Week 2

Thanks so much for all of your wonderful comments 
on my Home Staging post last week.  
It is hard sometimes for me to put that kind of post out 
because it is not what I think if as true decorating.  
Real decorating is planning and selecting furniture, 
accessories, paint colors etc. 
over a period of time for and with the homeowner. 
Staging is more like problem solving to me.  
I go in, I go out, I only have a certain amount of time 
and I usually never interact with the homeowners much.  


In this particular staging job I did go in and take pictures beforehand 
and I generated a report listing all of the things that they should do before 
listing the home.  

Let's get started.
The homeowner was the nicest lady! 
She needed to downsize because her last son was headed to college.  
I feel that pain right now!  
It is a four bedroom home with a living room, dining room, kitchen on the main floor 
and all of the bedrooms upstairs.  
The basement was unfinished which will hurt the sale in my opinion.  
The school district is excellent and it is in a very desirable area.  
The entry was small 
but it was two stories which makes it look bigger.  
The light fixture was outdated and I suggested that it be replaced.  
She was planning on painting and replacing the carpet 
so I brought along my paint decks 
to look at some possible color choices.
She didn't replace the light...
but with a fresh coat of paint and new carpet 
it looked fresh and updated.  
The dining room to the left of the entry was problematic.  
The bottom half is painted bright yellow/gold 
and the chair railing is falling down.  
The ceiling fan was hung in the middle of the ceiling old school style 
with the chain dangling down the wall.  
On the plus side, the french doors are pretty 
and the ceilings are nice and high. 
I wasn't sure why she had this glass table here 
and trust me if I am confused then potential buyers will be very confused!  
I suggested that she put the original dining room table back in its place 
and remove the hutch altogether 
to make the room look larger. 
When I am taking pictures I am not thinking about blogging it afterwards apparently.   
I am usually walking around trying 
not to be obtrusive 
and snapping photos of things 
that I want to remember.  
 Here is the After photo.   
I brought in a lot of my own accessories for this job.  
She didn't have any large items that were usable 
so it was just easier to go into my storage and gather what I needed.  
The buffet was moved from the family room 
and I placed matching floral pictures above it.  
I wanted it to look simple and elegant.  
I removed the blue drapes to show the 
pretty arched window off.  
Remember that you are selling real estate not decor.  
The attributes of the house have to stand out and not be hidden.  
This room is to the right of the entry.  
They were using it as a sort of den area. 
Again, it is confusing for buyers 
when there are too many purposes for one room.  
My suggestion was to paint, remove most of the furniture 
and stage it as a music room.  
You will see why 
when we go into the family room and kitchen area.  
You can see lots of cords and wires dangling everywhere.  
This has to be fixed because it is distracting to buyers.  
All the see is "Danger" when they see lots of cords and wires.
And After!  
It is always amazing to me what a little paint can do!  
The mirror was eventually hung up 
but it was heavy and the realtors were going to do it for me.  
The basket under the table 
is hiding the router and a bunch of cords.  
See, no one would ever suspect!  
This room was also a real problem room.  
It is off of the kitchen 
and was packed with furniture.  
In this picture you can see the layout of the home.  
In this one room she had a sofa, 
two chairs, two ottomans, a piano, 
a buffet, a cocktail table and another smaller chest/buffet.  
Wayyyyyyyy too much furniture!  
Buyers are buying space!  
We relocated the buffet to the dining room 
and the piano to the "Music Room" 
and rearranged the furniture for a better traffic flow.  
The cocktail table was too large 
so we tried a couple of different pieces 
before deciding on this end table.  
I threw a couple of my pillows on the sofa 
because I felt like the floral chairs were overwhelming the space.  
 Painting the bookcases and the insets over the bookcases 
helps to neutralize the space 
and make the fireplace a focal point again.  
Now it looks very spacious and light and bright.  
Overall the kitchen was looking pretty good .  
Painting and decluttering will snap it back into shape.  
It was the same yellow/gold color that was used thru out the home.  
Here you can see the formal dining room table 
and some ladder back chairs.  
 Lots of clutter on the top of the cabinets 
and on the counters.  
My rule of thumb is no more than three appliances 
on the counters and preferably only two.  
Refrigerators always need to be decluttered!  
 Now doesn't that look like a great kitchen?  
All we did was paint and declutter.  
Most of the time that is all that a space needs to be show ready!  
Remember that most people look on the internet first 
when choosing which homes to visit.  
If this is the photo you saw wouldn't you put it on your list?  
Of course a little greenery goes a long way 
in freshening up a room.  

Let's take a look upstairs.
Bedroom number one.
 Bedroom number two.
Transformed 
by removing the drapes 
and folding down the comforter.  
It was too dark with the comforter pulled up 
and in pictures it makes it look like a dark hole in the room.  
Bedroom number two got a little rearranging.  
It looks so much larger now.  
The bed looks a little messy to me... 
I remember now 
that we were in a hurry to finish 
because there was a showing in the afternoon. 
The master bedroom had some challenges.  
Lots of dated furniture and lots of clutter.
The mirror over the dresser was actually broken.  
This sets off warning bells in a prospective buyers mind.  
When something is broken 
they see the home as not well cared for 
and it scares them.
The homeowner didn't have the budget to paint upstairs so 
we had to make do.  
The bedding set is mine.  
I keep four or five of the 
"bed-in-a-bag" 
sets handy to use for staging.  
We brought up one of the dining room chairs 
to place at the writing desk.  
 The Master Bath was in the process of being re-tiled.  
She had the most interesting closet.  
Those two sets of mirrored doors that you see 
are one closet that goes 
all the way behind the tub.  
Lots of storage!  
 I didn't do a thing but hang this picture.  
Simple and clean is always a winner.
The other bathroom all staged.  
Again, simple and clean is what people want to see.  
I would show you the before picture 
but that wouldn't be fair to the homeowner.  
I have a feeling that she told her college son 
to clean up before I came over 
and like most boys that age 
their idea of clean and ours are vastly different!
I am happy to report 
that this house had not one but TWO offers 
on the very day that I was there to do the final staging touches!  

The moral of this story is neutral and light and bright sells homes!  

I hope you are still enjoying this series!  

I'll be back next week with another fun one!  

Until Next Time,
Beaux R'eves

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16 click here to Comment:

This N That said...

I don't know where to start..What a great job you did..The kitchen is amazing..Needed to get rid of that gold and all that furniture..Those flowered chairs need no company..Good job Cindy..As I said before..What fun that is!!

ℳartina @ Northern Nesting said...

Cindy I love this series! Getting rid of all that gold made the house so much lighter and brighter...fabulous job!

Beca said...

Wow! the difference is substantial. I am so glad you are doing this series because we will be putting our home on the market soon. I will be reading your posts over and over again and then making the necessary changes in my home. Thank You!

Debbie said...

I missed the previous one so I'm going back to check it out. I really love to see those who know what they are doing stage a home. You did a wonderful job! To me, my favorite transformation might be that music room. We're currently getting my MILs house ready for the market. I don't live near her house, but the other sons finally bit the bullet and got a stager. Can't wait to see what she does.

Unknown said...

Amazing transformation. So many great tips.
Sandy

Leena Milligan Lanteigne said...

Wow! You definitely made a change for the better in this home! So glad for the homeowner that she received offers so quickly! Looking forward to more staging posts. Hugs, Leena

Heidi Kay @ Muslin and Merlot said...

Love seeing the before and after staging pics. You did a fantastic job!

Anonymous said...

I came across this post simply by scrolling through Between Naps on the Porch and I'm so glad I did! What a lovely post! I am in the (constant) process of trying to simplify my life by getting rid of the things we do not use. I'm hoping that I'll have a clearer mind with less clutter around the house. Seeing what you've done for staging has inspired me! Thank you! Dana

Monica said...

I am in love with the Master bath closet concept. Never have heard or seen it before. The music room redo great idea. I think the homeowner should have taken your suggestion to change the entry light since it is the second thing you see besides curb appear. I have so enjoyed these staging post!!

Connie said...

Enjoy your staging so much. Thanks for sharing your work.

Stephanie @ The Cozy Old Farmhouse said...

Keep these posts coming, I'm enjoying them! They may not be "ideal" decor, but like you said it's all about the problem solving and I enjoy that aspect of it very much. Looking forward to next week's post!

Ann @ Corner of Plaid and Paisley said...

OOH! I'm loving these!! I like what you have done and enjoy seeing the improved looks. Thanks for sharing your photos.

lala said...

These are so fun - just love seeing how you transform a space - keep em coming!!!!!

KimMalk said...

You did a phenomenal job staging. Decluttering and using a calming pallet go such a long way. I like how you removed or repositioned the big items (china cabinet, cleaning out family room). Great job. (Yes, I have teens who's idea of cleaning is vastly different than mine!)

Sarah said...

You do an amazing job! No wonder these properties sell quickly. You showcase the best qualities of a home.

Unknown said...

What an amazing job you did, it's just beautiful! So fresh and clean!
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