Staging & Spirilizing

This was a fun house to stage.  Check out the architecture!  This is the view from the front door as the buyer enters.  It definitely has the 'wow' factor.

 Here is a picture of this grand family room before staging.

I wanted something dramatic on the back wall.  The position of the electrical outlets limited the kind of artwork that could be displayed.  Aren't these metal and wood ornamental pieces perfect?

Love me some big bright pillows on the sofa and chaise!  The red pillows really pop in real estate photography.  I added a small glass top coffee table for some visual interest. The glass top and open base  'disappear' instead of eating square footage.

Those black and rattan chairs have been with me since my early days of staging.  They are the most versatile pieces that I use for staging. These chairs adapt to any decor!

The  tall bookcases flanking the fireplace did not match in dimension. (Why Mr. Builder? Why?) They were a bit challenging to stage.  Too many items and the shelves would have appeared cluttered.  The casing surrounding them is heavy.  However, the height of the shelves is low.  Does that make sense?  The owner said she was at a loss as to what to display on them.

AFTER

Before

AFTER

Before

The brown love seat and purple ottoman were removed.  A small upholstered chair and ottoman from the original decor was moved near the fireplace.  It made for a cute sitting area near the fireplace. Now on to my latest discovery!

Have you Spiralized?

I am having a love affair with my new Spiralizer!  I am a self-professed pasta junkie.  Always looking for a healthy alternative, I thought I'd give the Spiralizer a spin.  Holy Curly-Que! Veggie pasta is da bomb! Zucchini noodles really are delicious with spicy tomato sauce on 'em.  Spiralized yellow squash are succulent cooked in a little EVOO with garlic and parmesan.  Tonight, I spiralized a Videlia onion and sauteed it.  A sweet potato was twirled into spiral noodles and added with a tad of chicken stock. Fresh spinach, goat cheese and a few pine nuts were thrown in for good measure . It was so YUMMY!

Those spiralized savory sweet potato noodles were easy-peasy-quick-n-tasty comfort food to ME.

Cowboy was very suspect and took a pass. 

Get the Big Picture for Staging

Oh my goodness, it is hot as a firecracker in Raleigh, NC.  Hope you are managing to stay cool.

Wanted to share with you the importance of large art for staging.  Large, bold and colorful art pops in MLS pictures.  Of course, big art also makes rooms show better.  Below is an office after I added 3 large art prints. 

Here's the office before.  The wall sconces look kind of puny in relation to the rest of the room.

Over the piano, I placed a Geranium print for a splash of color.  It is displayed higher than I would have preferred.  The Kincaid picture it replaced had heavy screws anchoring it into the wall.  I had too many fish to fry on staging day to remove the screws, patch the sheetrock and repaint.

My apologies to any Thomas Kincaid collectors.  I am well aware that his art cost is pricey.  I'm not a fan.  Just sayin'.... I always tell home sellers with Kincaid's (truthfully!) that landscapes don't photograph well.  Also, our target market for this house is a young family.  That buyer gravitates more towards contemporary pieces.

Below is example of one of  my BIG accessories--a ceramic urn and lush peacock feathers.  Folks always seem to be baffled by those dang niches.  "I've never known what to put there."

Ya think?

I love my job!