Monday, November 4, 2013

Staging Your Home for the Holidays: Part 1



I'm very excited today to begin our three part series on Staging Your Home for the Holidays. Home staging is the art of presenting your home almost as you would a movie set -- no clutter, no miscellaneous objects lying around, and every part of the scene has the purpose of giving the right impression and telling just the right story.

Home staging is a popular tool among savvy home sellers; it gives buyers the very best first impression so that a home will sell quickly. It can also be a very successful way to get your home ready for your guests for the holidays. After all, we want to give our guests a great first impression too. It can be done with just a few small changes to your current decor, and yet the impact can be huge. Look at the before and after photo below ... all that I can see that changed are decluttering, lighting, and paint, and bedding.  What a difference!

Before and after home staging
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Stop and think for a second about what "story" your home is telling, because you can "Pin" all night and all day, but until you recognize the problem and plan the solution nothing is going to happen. All those lovely pins do not have to become reality (only some of them do) in order to really get your home ready for the holidays. Ready to get started?

We are beginning with things that might take you the longest to do but will last for the few weeks remaining before the holidays. You'll want to backwards schedule to find your time-frame for these projects, but my advice would be to jump right on it, in case you have an unexpected sickness or mishap that throws your schedule off a bit. There are some last minute touches that you'll tackle just days or hours before you welcome your guests. If you did them now, you'd be re-doing them every day. On the flip-side, these changes are short term lasting projects: achievable but requiring a bit of forethought. (Unless you are like me, and painting could very feasibly be something you are doing the night before guests arrive.) For getting your home ready for the holidays, start here:

Paint in neutrals: If you have a room that needs to be repainted, consider painting it in a neutral color. This approach will allow you to keep your current furniture and accessories while still giving it a fresh face to brave the company. Neutrals come in a great variety of colors, so there is still room for finding "you" in the color you choose, but with less commitment than bright, bold palettes require. Check out our Pinterest Board Coastal Paint Colors for lots of neutral paint color ideas, and check out our posts here and  here for even more ideas.

Staging home for the holidays
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staging home for the holidays



Staging home for the holidays



Staging home for the holidays


Paint something bright or dark: Pick a small room like a bathroom and give it a fresh coat of some deep or bright paint.  Choosing a small room makes the project do-able before the holidays, and gives your guests something to ooh and ahh about. Time to have fun with this one!

Staging home for the holidays

Staging home for the holidays

staging home for the holidays
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Finish Projects: Repair that piece in the wood floor, put that knob back on the cupboard (or while you're at it -- replace your hardware!), paint your kitchen cabinets. Whatever the project that you've been putting off, plan to knock it out right now. Knowing that you'll have a house full of guests to appreciate your hard work will be great motivation! We've pinned several tutorials on how to DIY, so check out our board Decor Tips and Tricks.

staging home for the holidays
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Staging home for the holidays
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Staging home for the holidays
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What are you going to start with? Make your plan. Make a list of supplies. Set a date with yourself (and some friends/family) to get started on these projects that will make your home ready for the holidays!

~Natalee

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