The incredible design and staging before and after photos that won the April Best of the Best Awards truly represent how unique our industry has gotten in terms of services offered!
You will get some amazing business tips and service ideas from this bunch of winners...
When Your Market is Tough for Staging...
As a business owner there will be times that we need to get creative when it comes to finding the "real need" in our market and meeting that need. Holli Miller transitioned beautifully into various areas of design when her real estate market got tight and here's her story and award winning photos:
Unfortunately for me, the past 6 months the real estate market has been booming in South Carolina, especially on Lake Murray and homes are selling within 48 hours. Most often, the sellers are getting over asking price. So, there's not a need for the extra cost of staging, and I had to come up with another way to utilize my staging education. That's where the creation of Fig Jam & Bubbles came about.
I love to tablescape and did a lot of that last year for family and friends while I was working remotely as a paralegal at a small, boutique law firm in Columbia. During the holidays, I was very busy with table scaping, and it appears now people are beginning to entertain again I have had an increase in requests for dinner parties. We all miss entertaining!
Also, my sister and I have a short-term rental on Lake Murray in Leesville, South Carolina and we wanted to stand out from the rest of the vacation rentals. We offer a fun, unique picnic experience with Fig Jam & Bubbles to our guests. These boho styled picnics are set up on our private dock, indoors at our lake house or at the lakeside covered gazebo on the property. It's been fun putting these together and the guests seem to really love it. Our STR is the pink house in the background of one of the photos (Lakeside Pink).
Thank you again for choosing me as one of the Best of the Best for April. I have truly enjoyed my education, experience and the amazing women who inspire me and provide guidance with all things staging. I spend hours reading posts and comments and learning from this group.
Holli has taken her HSR training to a whole new level and I couldn’t be prouder! Check out the links below for more information.
https://www.facebook.com/Fig-Jam-Bubbles-102685681785870/
https://www.instagram.com/lakesidepink/
https://www.facebook.com/Lakeside-Pink-at-Lake-Murray-120405076423537
Spend 100K and Get 370K+
One of my favorite, veteran home staging friends is Dora Grondz of Staging by Dora Design out of the bay area who takes the cake in this months return on investment for sellers!
For this particular property, the home needed updating. We advised the seller on flooring, paint, kitchen, and a bathroom remodel, as well as new carpeting, new light fixtures, and appliances... Then we staged the property. The client spent $100,000 on our updating recommendations and got $377,000 over asking price!
Paint Saves the Day
Every market is so different and this little cabin sat on the market for months before real estate agent and stager, Susan Miku of The Well Designed HŌM saved the day!
They had tried to sell the house themselves for $120K, and when it didn't sell they had it appraised...it came in at $115K.
Every room of this little house was a different color, and I thought she was going to cry when I told them that we were going to need to paint it, to "neutralize" it, in order to help them get the highest price possible. She commented that she loves color!
Before Staging
We had the entire interior (minus the loft) painted SW Neutral Ground, and then staged it with a "mountain cabin" feel. When they saw it finished, they were blown away!
We listed it for $147,500, Sold it for $150K, and the appraisal came in at $152K!!! Proof once again that paint is $$ in a can, and STAGING WORKS!
Green and Pink for the WIN
Every home stager and designer has their own aesthetic that they put into each home and Jackie Low of Stage the Vibe (a two time winner) definitely loves her color.
Thank you thank you!! What an honor! Wow. When I walked into this home, in the Waco, TX area, I realized this gorgeous color palette was already set! The builder’s choice in paint colors and finishes made the stage that much more enjoyable. I am definitely a color stager and the deep forest green and dark brown with light oak accents was absolutely stunning on its own. However, I love the unexpected, so I went with beautiful pinks to mix with the green and it worked! It is still my favorite stage to date. Most people suggest going with neutral tones when staging to appeal to more buyers, but I believe colors, especially ones that aren’t usually seen together, are showstoppers. This house sold within about 7 hours of being listed so it was GREEN and PINK for the WIN!
From Sitting for 500+ Days to Selling in 32
The photo and story behind Holly Meyers of Gray Staging and Design is why I LOVE my job!
Wow! I am so excited! Thank you! This was a rehabbed home in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana. The house was on the market vacant for over 500 days without any offers! It is a corner house, and there were so many windows you felt like a fish in bowl, and everyone could see you!
My friend who is a realtor got the listing and insisted to the owner that it be staged. Sheer curtains were added, and we staged it. Staging helped so much! It was on the market 515 days then we staged it and the house sold in 32 days!
Colors, Textures and A Full Stage
I love Gina Gailing of Big Style Staging use of bright colors and textures in her work! She’s not afraid to step out of the comfort zone when staging and it shows beautifully. This house, in the South Florida, Fort Lauderdale, Broward County area was under contract 4 days after staging AND sold for $20,000 over asking price!!! Way to go Gina!
Best of the Best Vignette Winner
A family room with multiple built-ins is no problem for Liz Landers of Doe Eyed Boutique, a home staging and holiday decorating business in Richmond, VA. They take a boutique approach with each of their clients and cater to the vibe of the home. This built-in is beautifully done, and I think it would look fabulous in my office!
The winning photo incorporates so many things I love, antique books, foliage, golden accents, greens and blues with bright whites. This particular stage was put together for a family room that had multiple built-ins, so we used phrases that are loving and welcoming while incorporating fun accents like wishbones and oversized dice. I often use antique books in many of my design projects. They add so much texture and to me books are like people, we are first attracted to them by how they look... the bindings draw us in, but we really fall in love with are the pages. Just like the people we choose to surround ourselves with, we are first attracted to faces or how they dress and then we fall in love with what they are made of. The particular set of books showcased in this photo were written to be the equivalent to a Harvard education so a pretty unique set.
Design and Doing What You Love
This bedroom by Laura Martin of Laura Lynn Interiors is absolutely stunning! I love her use of various textures. She’s ecstatic do be pursuing her dream job!
Thank you so much!!! I’m so excited and proud to be recognized. The HSR training has given me the best tools to start my business off right. I’m having the time of my life doing what I love.
Design Plan to Reality for the Perfect Office Space
I thought it would be cool to have an E-Design board and the completed look in our April Best of the Best, so I chose these photos of an office by Trish Jacobs of To The Nines Design. She made this office come together beautifully using the items from her E-Design board. Nice work!
True to Style
Jennifer Dobson of The Queen of the Castle did a fantastic job designing this country style kitchen. I really love how she managed to update it yet allow it to keep it's personality and warmth.
Mood Matters
When we design for clients, setting the right mood is important. There's something about this dining area that exudes calm and style.
