Staging on The Cheap. 10 Ideas Under $100

1. De-clutter- You should take out 40-50% of the items in your home and store off site to give the illusion of more space. Try a local storage facility or a friend/family member with some extra room.
2. Paint- Tight budget? Get paint for free at your local recycling center. If color doesn't matter you can also get paint that was mixed by mistake at your local hardware store or paint speciality store for around $5.00 per gallon.
3. Fixture Fix Up- Don't replace those fixtures, paint them. Get a good primer, a great color and finiah and you have a brand new looking fixture.
4. In Need of Furniture? Try Craigslist or eBay. You can also check yout local paper for weekly garage sales, free and thrify ads.
5. Throw pillows- Instant update for a saofa. USe 3-5 colorful pillows, larger sizes are better.
6. End Tables Nearing Their End? Cover the tops of the tables with a beautiful fabric and secure underneath the table. Top it with a custom glass piece to complete the look.
7. Update those lamps- Attach trim or ribbon horizontally along the top and bottom of shade with fabric glue.
8. Bookcase Blues- Need to add color and interest to those bookshelves but you have no books? No problem, Half-Price Books has you covered.
9. Need artwork? use empty picture frames painted exciting colors. You can also use them to frame smaller items on the walls that you would like to bring attention to. You could also use them in layers propped on a a fireplace mantel.
10. Curb Appeal- Trim the bushes, mow the lawn and manicure the flowers. If it looks great on the outside more people will want to come inside!

Last but not least, make sure the house has been thoroughly cleaned!

View the latest issue of The Decorator's Notebook

Well, the January issue is here! View the complete issue HERE. Be sure to pass it on to your family and friends!

Happy Decorating!
Jill

Most of the time when we think of the process of staging a home it involves many important steps, most of which are time-consuming and take a great deal of money to execute. How can we eliminate these steps and save money and still accomplish the same results?

It is called virtual home-staging which can be done at a fraction of a cost of traditional home staging. Over 80% of homeowners look at pictures on the Internet before they go look at a property in person. With the growing number of home due to relocation's and foreclosures, this in an excellent opportunity to make your home stand out in a over saturated market. Home staging is about the buyer envisioning the potential of the home while helping you (the seller) to sell your property more quickly and for more money. Virtual home staging enhances the show ability of any home. It gets people that may not normally consider your home, a chance to see the potential that your home has to offer. While it would be completely dishonest to make certain changes to the home such as hiding a flaw or changing it structurally, it is completely acceptable to make a home look good with the proper decorating and accessories.

You can send pictures of your home to decorators or designers that provide this "virtual home staging" service and in just a few days and a few phone conversations you can have this done in no time! Here's to quick selling!

Important safety information

On a serious note...there was a recent window treatment safety recall (December 2009). I have had many calls and questions about this and as an industry we have halted production on roman and roller shades with strings until a ruling from the Consumer Products Safety (CPSC) and the Window Covering Safety Council (WCSC) posts a ruling on what we need to do to make these treatments safe for children and pets. Please see document posted in regards to this issue here.

Are you afraid of ME?

Yesterday I had the pleasure of spending an evening with "just the girls" learning to play the game of Bunko. There were about 14 ladies laughing, talking and getting to know each other, it was the most fun I have had in a long time! About half way through the evening the hostess came into the room and I told her that she had a beautiful living room. It was decorated traditionally with a great fireplace, leather furniture with a bit of contemporary flair and best of all it overlooked the Mississippi River...really nice! She said that she was nervous about having me over because of my occupation, she felt I would judge her home negatively. That really made me sad as her friend...I wonder how many people think that I would judge their beautiful homes if invited over?

Now I am being completely honest, as a decorator as well as a friend to you all. I guess part of being a successful decorator is understanding that in order to be successful you need to be able to turn it on and turn it off.... "It" being of course the decorating ability. If you ask for my help I would be honored, otherwise I honestly will not notice! I promise!

After pictures from the Extreme Makeover Home Edition

The Extreme Makeover Home Edition episode that we were asked to participate in aired over the weekend on ABC. Here are a few of the after pictures from Ty's secret room (the master bedroom for the Morris family). We fabricated bedding, pillows, window treatments, canopy and upholstery for the room...36 yards of Dupioni silk sewn in just 18 hours!

Simplistic Design Trends

As we begin each New Year, we typically see many forms of rebirth around us. From fiscal years to mother nature we see several processes start over with a new beginning. For many reasons I think it is calming and cleansing to be surrounded by light, airy colors that seem to float around the room like they barely exist to the human eye. I like to think of minimalistic design as a type of a new beginning. Here are a few places that have inspired some of my minimalistic design projects.