staging

Must-Have Home Staging Stock

June 15, 2018 by Naomi

When you reach a certain point in your home staging business, acquiring stock and inventory is an essential step up. At first purchasing this stock might seem like a bit of a leap, and depending on what stock you purchase it might be. However, if you are smart about what stock you purchase and how much of it you purchase it could make all the difference to your home staging business.

When it comes to stock there is typically two types of stock, soft furnishings and hard furnishings. Soft furnishings include items such as pillows, linen, lamps and small accessories. The way I like to think about soft furnishings is that, if I needed to, I could pack them in a box and put them in my car. On the other hand, there are hard furnishings. Hard furnishings are big items such as lounges, arm chairs, dining tables, coffee tables, and so on. These are the items that can’t be packed into a box and loaded into your car.

Depending on what level of your business you are in you could be thinking about acquiring one of these two types of stock. Logically, soft furnishings should be acquired first, and then later down the track hard furnishings can be acquired. However, as everyone is at different stages in their business, it is important to be able to look down the track and consider what sort of stock you should be acquiring.

SOFT FURNISHINGS

When it comes to soft furnishings, these items can be purchased relatively cheaply and in bulk.

Pillows: sure, pillows can be expensive, but purchasing pillows that work well in a wide range of environment is a great way to get the most out of your money, and add texture in a range of environments. Purchasing pillows in a few colours and designs is a great idea as they can be used on their own or grouped together.
Faux flowers and plants: Faux flowers and plants are great as, when the right ones are purchased, they can look amazing, can be used in a range of spaces and styles, and can last a long time.
Books: there doesn’t have to be a theme to this, and they can be purchased from a op shop, but books are a great way to add texture and a lived in feeling to any space. These are the most cost-effective soft furnishings and can be used in any environment, from a study, a bedroom to a lounge room or even an outdoor setting.
Knick-knack accessories: by this I mean small accessories that can be used in a variety of environments, anything from vessels, small bowls, candle holders, or any other small accessories.
Linen packs: this isn’t absolutely necessary, but having at least coverlets and toppers is necessary as it can transform a room from something dull to something amazing.

229f1da3e9e8b569b0beceee69dce779 — Image via immyandindi.com.au

HARD FURNISHINGS

As for hard furnishings, these items are more expensive, and it is beneficial to go for quality over quantity.

Mattresses: often times clients do not have enough beds for how a property can be staged to show off the best of the space, or they have moved and have taken their mattresses with them.
Dining chairs: not all dining chairs go with tables, or look good with them, so having some neutral dining chairs that work with a range of colours is a great idea so you can use the clients dining table and your businesses chairs.
Bedside tables: bedside tables have the potential to open up the bedroom and transform the space into something amazing. Having bedside tables that are unique, yet work well in a variety of environments is essential.
Lounges: when used everyday, lounges can easily begin to look old, worn and unpleasant. Having lounges in stock that are a neutral colour is a great idea as they can be used in a range of spaces in a range of different styled homes.
Coffee tables: Coffee tables are great ways to show off the space in a lounge room and add an element of homeliness into the space. Not everyone has a coffee table, and if they do it might be old and worn, having new, amazing coffee tables as part of your stock can transform and fill a space amazingly.

5512a478c1edcd04581dc6e05593f575 — Image via southernliving.com

Faux or Real Plants

June 10, 2018 by Naomi

Today, as I always say, I’m going to give you my perspective and a little bit of the experience that I’ve undertaken in my years in home staging about a specific topic.

You can thread from that what works for you, what agrees with you and what strikes a chord in your business and then make decisions about how you want to move forward from there.

Today, I want to talk to you about faux or real when it comes to flowers and plants.

In my home, to be honest with you, I only allow real, living plants and flowers and tree and nature.

But, in home staging, it is a little different. The community is a little divided on it, whether to use faux or whether to use fresh.

There are obvious difficulties when it comes to using fresh flowers, especially if it’s a vacant property. I’ll give you a bit of an insight as to what we do here and you can take from that what you need for your business.

In all vacant properties, unless they’re in the prestige price bracket, we often use faux plants and faux flowers.

Purely for the reason that rarely does someone have the budget and is able to afford us continually going back to the property every week or every two weeks to refresh the flowers, to water the plants and make sure that everything’s in working order.

The reason that that is important is there is never a time when walking into a property to a dead plant or to smelling, molding flower water is okay.

It actually is a bigger distraction than having a faux plant or faux flowers in the property.

Obviously, there are some markets where that just doesn’t work. There are some markets, even when it’s a vacant property, that we invest in having real and authentic plants and real and authentic flowers in there.

We come up with a pricing system and a process that allows for us to go in and interchange the plants and interchange the flowers during the time on market.

If you have a property that is occupied, you can actually negotiate with the owner if they’re there and if they’re happy to, around the concept of them topping up the flowers and them taking care of the plants.

But again, this takes some negotiation and it takes a little bit of work.

What I will say, though, is if you choose to use faux plants or flowers, you really need to make sure you maintain them well.

There’s nothing worse than dirty, dusty, musty smelling fake arrangements, fake plants or fake flowers. It’s essential that when you’re storing these items, if you choose to use them, in your warehouse, that they’re always bagged up so they don’t become a dust collection.

What you can do if you do find that happening is actually use feather dusters on them or, even in some cases, I have vacuumed our plants.

Another great tip is that you actually have a roster and a process where all of the fake plants and all of the fake flowers get cleaned. This can make a massive difference to how long they last and how good they look.

My biggest advice if you need to use fake plants or flowers is to invest in really good quality plants and flowers.

It will cost you quite a substantial amount, but there are some amazing products on the market internationally for this. There’s amazing freestyle arrangements that you can make and there’s also some amazing premades. You even have some really cool things like premade terrariums and all sorts of things.

My big tip is choose the price point of the property. The client and the type of installation, whether it be an occupied or a partial, before we make the decision about whether you’re going to use real or whether you’re going to use faux foliage.

There’s my take, guys. One thing is for sure, either way, you need to make sure that the faux flowers and foliage that you use is perfectly targeted for the property, for your brand and also for who you are selling to.

Choose wisely.

What Beds to Use in Home Staging

June 5, 2018 by Naomi

Hey, guys. I’m back again for another installment to answer some questions that have been emailed through to me.

I’ve had a few people email through their question and I’ll read it to you here.

We’re just starting up our home staging business and we really need to know about how you do your beds.

That’s an interesting question, isn’t it? I am going to answer that to the best of my ability and hopefully everyone will be able to take a snippet from that.

I’m assuming that this question is pertaining to what sorts of beds we use in our installs. Let’s look at our options.

The first option is, obviously, a traditional slatted timber bed that needs to be pretty much built on site. It has the side rails that has the header and the footer and the slats that the mattress would sit upon. There’s one option.

The next option is an ensemble bed and, obviously, the last option is a bit of a more temporary bed. It may be an inflatable bed, it may be a camp stretcher with an inflatable mattress on top or it may be a camp stretcher with a foam mattress on top.

These are all different sorts of options. That’s not all of them, but they are some of the different options that you have when you’re staging a property and you want to put in some beds.

What do we do? If I’m going to be dead honest about what we do here at Silk Home, which is my brick and mortar home staging business, we actually use a lot of ensemble beds.

We used to use the slatted headers and footers with the side rails, but the time it took to construct the beds on site meant that our productivity was greatly diminished.

And that meant that we needed more than one person to be on site installing every single house, even after the initial drop off of furniture was complete by the muscle, basically. That was a bit of a negative for us. It really did take some time.

The other thing we noticed is that the mechanisms that you’re adhering everything to did, over time and after multiple assembling and disassembling, wear. We steered away from that.

That pointed us to our ensemble beds.

We have, as well, used all varieties of camp stretchers and foam mattresses/camp stretches and air mattresses, but one of the big problems we found with air mattresses was that sometimes they do go down.

You often find that the time you get a call is 7:30/8:30/9:00/10:00 on a Saturday when, often, you’re busy doing other things, saying,

“I’ve just taken everyone into an open home and the mattress is deflated. I need something else here right now because the open home has pretty much been ruined by the fact that there’s a deflated mattresses and a slump-looking bed sitting in what might have been an amazing master suite before.”

One of the problems I have with inflatable beds is they certainly have their locations, but one of the things that you need to make sure you think about is they aren’t 100% reliable.

I can probably hear many people going, “What about those places where you can’t get an ensemble base into?” Absolutely right. It’s a huge, huge challenge.

There are many places, especially in the older parts of town, where the stairwells are too skinny and the lifts are too small and the landings at the top of stairs are too small to be able to work an ensemble base around.

In those cases, we actually have to use a mattress and we prop the mattress up on tubs.

There you go. There are our sneak peeks and our behind the scenes of what we do at Silk Home for beds. I hope you’ve learned something from that; I hope that there’s something that you can take and integrate into your home staging business and into all the different situations that it may be applicable.

I’ll be back next week. Make sure if you have any questions that you jump onto our Facebook page and we can help you out.

If you have really specific questions about your business, make sure you pop over to our memberships. Our Shine Membership has a closed Facebook forum where you can pretty much ask anything you want.

The members of the community and myself will be jumping in there to help. Jump on over and check them out. They’re all on the website.

I’ll see you guys again soon. See you.

Our Favourite Rugs!

February 9, 2018 by Naomi

1. Kenza Rug – Freedom

2. Madras Rug – Freedom

3. Nomad Grey Rectangle Rug – wholesale supplier

4. Gold Black and White Rectangle Rug – wholesale supplier

5. Gold Navy Rectangle Rug – wholesale supplier

6. Atrium Pilu Natural Rug – wholesale supplier

7. Eco Herringbone Marble Rectangle Rug

8. Stockholm Rug – Ikea

9. Colca Wool Rug – West Elm

10. Atrium Wish Gold Round Rug – wholesale supplier

5 Ways to Connect with Real Estate Agents

January 25, 2018 by Naomi

Stylists versus real estate agents—it’s not a boxing match but a partnership, so why the adversarial relationship?

Many of the students here at the International Institute of Home Staging are unsure and even a little scared about connecting with real estate agents. This can be for a number of reasons, primarily because they can be intimidating, but also because agents have a lot of power when it comes to engaging a home stager or property stylist. If the agent is hard to catch or simply not interested in pre-sale styling, it can be an uphill battle for stylists to get a foothold in the property industry.

There are a couple of simple reasons why an agent may reject your services: either you’re not approaching the agent in the right way, or you’ve not done the research to find the agents in the right places. Having just one agent on board can change your business in a very small time frame.

Here are five ways you can successfully connect with agents.

Be proactive and responsive

Do your homework and select agents that you believe will be open to having their portfolio of properties styled. If you’re particular about who you work with, try to get to know how they interact with colleagues, contractors and clients before you make your approach. Take the initiative when it comes to the stager-agent relationship and always be open to the agent’s needs when they do decide they want styling, including integrating their feedback into your work.

Be the ultimate communicator

Polish your communication skills and you’ll be able to identify and match the communication style of the agent you are dealing with. Some agents are direct and you may need to be clear and straightforward in your dealings with them; for others who communicate in a less direct manner you may need to coax out what they really want from your correspondence or conversations with them. People like it when they are being heard and understood—be that person.

Show them the benefits

Agents may not know the value of a stager, so make sure when you approach them to be clear on what you do, how you do it and what’s in it for them and their clients, the property sellers. If you have a portfolio of past work, a visual example may be the best way to demonstrate the value you bring. Support your pitch with data regarding return on investment (ROI).

Stave off concerns

Whether through false assumptions or bad experiences, some agents have misconceptions about the staging process and what it entails. Combine your communication skills with your value proposition to explain the staging process, to demonstrate that it won’t slow down the timelines greatly and to emphasise that it will yield a better result.

Be professional

Professionalism goes a long way to create a good impression. Dazzle them with your confidence, styling skills and property knowledge. Always be polite and gracious, even when handling a rejection or feedback; the real estate industry is a close-knit community and word will get around about how you are to work with, so make sure the right message is sent.

Have you tried other successful ways of working with agents? Leave a comment and let us know your tips!

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Why is Defining the Function of a Space Important?

March 15, 2017 by Naomi

When someone moves into a new property, one of the first things they tend to think of is ‘what will I use this space for?’. Some spaces are obvious…the kitchen is for cooking, the bedroom is for sleeping, the lounge room is for watching television. But we all know this isn’t true!

More often than not, especially if you have kids, the kitchen becomes a place for homework to be done. The master bedroom, your bedroom, becomes a communal meeting point in the morning where all the kids come to you with their issues for the day and permission slips that should have been signed at the start of the week and, of course, the room you had designated as the play room has been relocated to the lounge room. This is just part of life, and it is something that we adapt to.

However, as home stagers, the spaces we create don’t have to be practical for day to day living. It is important that we hold onto the hopeful ‘what will I use this space for?’ mentality that buyers have before they enter the space. The spaces we create contain an in an ideal world this is what the space would be used for.

So, why is it important to define the function of a space as a home stager?

Image via amberinteriordesign.com

When a property is put on the market empty, potential buyers are likely to become overwhelmed over the prospect of what they will use each space for. What room is better for a teenager and what one for a preteen? Should there be two living spaces? Is there enough room for a study space or home office?

Similarly, when a property is put on the market in the same design as what the seller had when they were living in the space, the property won’t fell like it is for sale. Doing this will create elements of clutter and uncertainty about what space is to be used for what. This is because, as mentioned above, we adapt to how our families use a space and often times don’t notice that there is anything out of the ordinary about this.

This is where the magic of home stagers come in.

When staging a property, it is up to the home stager to determine what a space is best used for. If there is an awkward space between two bedrooms, a home stager may place a study desk there. This is something potential buyers might not have thought of doing, but seeing the desk there allows for the space to seem larger, and like the desk was always supposed to go there.

Image via cocolapinedesign.com

The accessories and furniture home stagers use allow for a space to have a clear and obvious activity attached to it. The items in the bedroom show that the space is used for sleeping, and the same goes for the lounge room, study space and kitchen. Doing this allows for potential buyers to see the size of the space, as well as the ideal activity to be done in the space, creating a homely and ‘I could live here’ atmosphere for all potential buyers.

Image via myscandinavianhome.com

IIHS Open House Tips

April 18, 2016 by Naomi

It can be a challenge to sell a home these days! When holding an open house, having a nicely styled home can be the difference between a quick and profitable sale versus months, if not years on the market. It’s important that potential buyers can imagine themselves in your home, so de-cluttering, depersonalising and neutralising the colour palette are vital ways for getting a timely sale. But all that’s easier said than done! Depending on your home’s condition, home staging can be a large and overwhelming job. So read our five tips below and make preparing to sell fun rather than a chore!

Here are our 8 easy and fun tips to help sell homes quickly and more than the asking price!

1. Have a house number

It may seem obvious, but being able to identify your home from the kerb is essential. It also means people won’t get lost when it comes to open house! Make sure the number (and name if you have one) is in excellent condition, visible and in keeping with your home’s style.

Photo credit realestate.com.au

2. Keep linen neutral

In both the living room and bedroom, the main focal point is the couch or bed. When buyers first walk into these rooms they’ll be drawn to those pieces of furniture, so make sure the linen and accessories (such as cushions and throws) are neutral and mainstream. You don’t want them to be boring, but it’s important that they don’t polarise potential buyers!

3. Take styling to the next level

When people think home staging, they most likely think throwing a cushion here and there. But to make your home stand out you really have to go the extra mile! So create the finished look by adding such details as: homewares, artworks, lighting and rugs. Rugs in particular can be great for tying a space together, especially if your home is open planned.

Photo credit realestate.com.au

4. It’s all about outdoor entertaining

We are very fortunate to be living in a hot country like Australia, so make that count by creating an outdoor space that is a feature of your home. Don’t worry if the space is small, you can still make it luxurious! Make it an extension of your indoor space by adding such interior pieces as cushions and throws, but with nature themed accents like potted plants.

Photo credit theblockshop.com.au

5. Be a show off

When open house comes along, make sure your house is at its finest. All preparation is wasted if you’re not in tiptop shape on the actual day it counts! Have all the lights on, have the house heated or cooled to the most comfortable temperature, have as much natural light as possible and make sure all your cushions, throws and homewares are placed correctly. Don’t start baking or brewing though, as for some potential buyers that is just a little too staged!

6. Focus on the Foyer

People will usually enter your home through the front door, so that’s a prime spot to make some major improvements. Apply a fresh coat of paint if it’s looking dull, throwaway or hide all clutter (mail, shoes, keys, newspapers), and clean out the coat closet so that it looks more spacious. Then we suggest picking one thing that you could change in this area. Maybe add a new hanging light fixture or replace that family portrait with a large mirror? Or perhaps it’s time to replace that old bowl of potpourri with a simple, fresh floral arrangement or a stack of design books with an ornamental accessory on top. No matter what, the look should be simple and sophisticated.

7. Expand spaces visually

Dark coloured walls can make a room look smaller so focus on lighter neutral tones. Place furniture in groups, with enough space for people to move between pieces easily. Pushing it against the walls actually makes the room feel smaller. Make sure large pieces of furniture don’t block sight lines to a great view or a pretty focal point, such as a fireplace. Rugs are a great way to display space in a room. It should stop a foot or two from walls. Remember a rug that’s too big shrinks a room; if it’s too small it just looks awkward.

8. Let there be light

Nothing is more of a turn-off than a dark and bleak home –and nothing is easier to fix. Rule number one: Wash all of the windows so natural light can fill the space. Rule number two: Replace dark window treatments with light transparent ones. Rule number three: Layer the light in your home! It is said that there should be at least 100 watts for every square foot of space, and well-staged homes have overhead lights, floor lamps, and task lighting (for reading, cooking). One nifty trick is instaling wall sconces. These can up light walls or ceilings, making rooms look bigger.

Naomi Findlay is founder of the International Institute of Home Staging (IIHS) http://www.instituteofhomestaging.com/ and SILK Home Staging & Styling. She is also the author of a bestselling book, Ignite Your Property Mojo.

Staging Furniture: How to Arrange Your Furniture to Attract Buyers

January 4, 2016 by Naomi

When a buyer views a property they need to connect with it, they need to view it in its best possible light.

Staging a home is about bringing the buyer to the best parts of the property first and making sure they spend as little time as possible in areas of the home that are not the feature.

Consequently, for staging to be most effective, it needs to direct the traffic flow of potential buyers during property inspections. Here are the top five things you must consider when placing your furniture for open home inspections:

Tip 1 – Unless it is a dedicated media space, the TV does not have to be the focal point of the room.

Tip 2 – Try not to close living spaces off with a ‘square’ of lounges. Make sure that as you enter a room there is an open space visible, not just the backs of lounges.

Tip 3 – For nearly all occasions (there are some exceptions) when you enter a bedroom the bed should be the first thing you see.

Tip 4 – Allow a width of 80-to-120cm in traffic areas, so two people can pass one another without bumping into each other.

Tip 5 – Make sure the furniture in the living spaces is set up — where possible — to funnel people towards the highlight of the property. For example: the view, the kid-safe backyard, the garden and/or the chef’s kitchen.

Love all things Styling?

November 13, 2015 by Naomi

Love watching Shaynna at Selling Homes Australia, Love property, Love stalking interiors shops online and the great blogs like Interiors Addict?

Then maybe a career in Home Staging could be for you?

If you want to know more about the Home Staging Industry or you are interested in getting started in the profession then come along and learn more about what Home Staging is and how to get into the industry.

Learn how to create spaces just like this!

Join me and the IIHS team in Melbourne on 26^th of November!

Find out more here or jump straight to grab your tickets here!

I can’t wait to meet you there!

Property Staging: Transforming Your Home for Today’s Real Estate Market

November 2, 2015 by Naomi

There are three rules to real estate that I truly believe in. A property will sell if it firstly marketed well, secondly priced right and thirdly presented well.

More and more in Australia there is an expectation for a property to be presented in its best possible light when it goes to market. Decades gone by you would hear people say: “People can see through the mess” or “People can see the potential.” But how things have changed. Now I am hearing agents tell their vendors that they need to meet the market. That there is an expectation of presentation and that to stand out from the crowd in this competitive market you need to ensure that you prepare your property for sale.

And in fact they are correct! Research shows that only 5% of the population can visualise how to use a space when they walk into it. That means of the possible 20 people that view your property, only one of them may be visual, only one of them will be able to see through mess and only one will be able to visualise how the space might look when furnished.

Home staging transforms your property and helps to create an image of a lifestyle the property will offer a buyer. A staged property accentuates the beauty of a property and statistics have shown that the time a buyer spends inspecting a staged home at inspection is longer than that of an equivalent un-staged property. A staged home can give the buyer the impression of a well maintained and cared for property. With all of these elements combined you can give yourself — or your client– the best possible chance of selling the property for more, in the shortest possible time frame.

So next time you sell a property will you transform it to meet the expectation of today’s property market, or will you leave your money on the table for the buyer to collect?

Taking the Big Leap!

August 7, 2015 by Naomi

Have you ever wanted something so badly and continued to hold yourself back? Scared to take the big leap from the safety and security of your current position? It could be a well paid job that you no longer enjoy, or a long term relationship that is no longer in your best interest. You’re not alone. Many people find it hard to let go of the known, even if it’s driving them nuts, to launch out into the wilds of the unknown.

When I work with individuals to bring about their dreams, I generally find they have a big disconnect between their desire and their self belief. Deep down they don’t believe they can really have all that they want. They cling tightly to what they know, fearful if they let go, they’ll have nothing.

Maybe this is what’s happening for you, as you move toward opening your own Styling Business, you want it but are paralysed by fear. You might be part way through the styling course and hit a wall, finding every reason under the sun why you can’t progress to the next module or get that assignment handed in. Or maybe you are sitting on the fence wondering if you should take the plunge and register to start your training.

Want to get unstuck?

Here are some initial steps to help you set yourself up for the Big Leap

Do you REALLY want it?

It’s time to stop crappy self talk. If you’re going to chat to yourself make it good. Now take a few deep breaths get calm and centred and asked yourself ‘Do I really want [insert heart’s desire here]? And listen for the answer – is it yes or no?

If it’s No, you don’t need to read any further, if it’s yes then…

Start a List

What is it that you really want, take as long as you need and flesh it out, be specific. What do you specifically want to have happen? What will it give you that you don’t have now? How will it feel to have what you want? The successful business, the flexible lifestyle, the great car and home, time for your children or grandchildren, travel?

This is important so take some time to write this out and then continue.

Set a Date

This is easy, when do you want it? Setting a date, combined with a clear view of what you want, tends to draw you forward, it inspires the right actions and before you know it – you’re on your way.

Take Inspired Action

Now you’re inspired, take action – it could be anything from planning the time to complete your studying or undertaking a brainstorming session to come up with your new business name or maybe you need to get some help to overcome your fears and plan out the next steps. Whatever it is just get going.

Finally, get excited, imagine yourself in your new business, imagine how you will feel each day doing what you love, what will others being saying to you and what will you be saying to yourself about how much your life rocks!

I’d love to hear about your experience and progress so be sure to leave your comments below.

Property Styling is More than Just Cushions, Lamps and Throws! 10 Skills You Must Have to be a Property Stylist

August 7, 2015 by Naomi

It could not be further from the truth when I hear people say home staging is all about cushions! This is something IIHS feels so strongly about and is one reason we are working hard with HSRA (Home Staging and Redesign Association) in America to get some rigour and standards into the profession.

To some — maybe the hobbyist — it might be all about cushions, lamps and throws, but to a professional home stager it is all about real estate. And to be a home stager you will need a broad and diverse skill set. So if you are thinking about getting involved in one of the fastest growing professions in the country, here are some skills you will need to acquire:

Sound knowledge of design principles
Good knowledge of trends and forecasting in interior design
Strong knowledge of colour
Exceptional communication skills
Expansive local knowledge of the real estate market, its needs and expectations
Negotiation skills
Very strong work ethic
Ability to work in a small team as well as a large multidisciplinary team
Strong sense of style without imposing it on your clients
High level of professionalism and ability to maintain the trust of those that allow you into their homes.

Combining all of these skills will find you well placed in the business of home staging with the potential to have a thriving business. Check out the Australian and New Zealand arm of HSRA to learn how to develop a thriving business.

staging

Be proactive and responsive

Be the ultimate communicator

Show them the benefits

Stave off concerns

Be professional

Here are our 8 easy and fun tips to help sell homes quickly and more than the asking price!

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