One of the secrets to successfully staging your home is knowing how to add color in an updated way.

One of the easiest ways to achieve an updated look in your living and bedroom (two of the most important rooms to buyers) is to swap out your pillows for something new and trendy. It’s like buying one trendy accessory to update your outfit. You don’t need to spend a lot or redo your whole look but a little pillow power goes a long way.

I’m going to share with you some of my favorite sources for pillows. Depending on where you live you can use these as a starting point but explore your own neighborhood and metro area to find your own sources. And of course there’s online where you can find an endless variety of pillows.

Are you handy on the sewing machine? Pillow covers – for your existiing pillows – can be whipped up fairly quickly if you just want an envelope shape to fit over the existing pillow. For an example take a look at how pillow shams for bedding are constructed. If you want a more elaborate look with trim, fringe or zipper closure, that will take a little more sewing skill.

Here are my favorite pillow resources:

Target – has a nice variety of trendy colors and patterns at very reasonable prices

TJ Maxx and Marshalls – these two retailers are hit and miss but you can’t beat the prices. Occasionally you will find Ralph Lauren pillows or other name brands at greatly reduced prices. Also try their Homegoods brand with even more selection.

Tuesday Morning – again can be hit and miss but it’s worth the trip to see what you can find. Bedding pillows are usually of high quality and you may find high end brands like Peacock Alley.

Pier 1 Imports – if you’re looking for a one of a kind trendy pillow for an accent try this store. Colors are usually bright and work well in a teen’s room or sunroom

West Elm – this Williams Sonoma brand trends towards more contemporary and is a good resource for pillow covers and trend conscious styles

OneKingsLane.com – sign up for their emails and you’ll get the first pick of this online treasure hunt for top brands and vintage finds. If you are looking for the truly unique you’ll probably find it here.

Department stores – Macy’s, Dillards and JC Penney are worth checking out and if you are looking for that one unique pillow you may find it here.

Okay now for color. When you are trying to freshen up your space, think of keeping a color palette that’s consistent throughout your home. Pillows are a great way to pull in an accent color to one room that you’ve used in another room. If your sofa and chairs in your living room are neutral add a spalsh of color with pillows. Don’t be afraid to mix patterns. If you have three pillows on your sofa, two of them should have a common color or accent color, The third can be a contrasting color.

Here’s a good example of how three different pillows can work together. I would try these red, cream and tan pillows on a dark grey, navy or brown sofa. The light colors would add a nice contrast and brighten up any room. All of these are viewable on Target’s website by the way.

Don’t worry about making a mistake. Buy your pillows together so you’ll have a better chance at color coordinating and then take them home. If they don’t wow you, you can always returnthem and try again.  Pretty soon your pillow prowess will have you staging your home for sale like a pro!

One of the features of our Secrets of a Stager Home Staging Kit is our Do This Not That Guide.  Pictures are worth not only a thousand words but thousands of dollars when selling your home!

Buyers shop online and if they don’t like what they see they will keep on clicking. It’s so important to make sure your listing photos show your home at it’s best. This is your one chance to make a first impression that will get your buyers excited about seeing your home.

So here’s an example of a current home listed online to show you what I mean.
Here’s the living room photo. What does this picture tell you? Do you feel like it would be easy to decorate and be able to place your furniture?

My first impression is there is too much furniture in this room. This is a Don’t. It’s hard to see the size of the room because all you see is furniture. My second impression is the furniture style and slipcovers are not to everyone’s taste. Florals and plaids are very taste specific. These chairs and sofa also look a little tired and worn.

I think removing one or both side chairs and covering a chair and the sofa in a solid slipcover would fix this. A neutral khaki or even a cream color would lighten up the space. Rearranging the furniture layout to have the sofa be at right angles to either the wall or fireplace would focus attention on the focal point, the fireplace.

Adding a few new fresh throw pillows in a warm color would complete the transformation.

Now here in the same home, is a Do. This bathroom looks perfectly staged. I like the fresh white towels and the minimal decor.

Keep these ideas in mind when you are getting ready to stage your home for sale.  First impressions are lasting! You’ll find more Dos and Dont’s in our Secrets of a Stager Home Staging Kit.

We know that it sometimes takes a leap of faith to buy a product or service online. What if the product is not what you expected or fails to deliver the information you’re looking for?

We understand. Because we are consumers too. When you buy online, trust is everything. Because if you don’t trust or know who you are sending your money to, then it’s hard to make that choice to purchase.

That’s why we want you to ask questions. We want to help you find the answers. We’re here to help you get the best home staging advice with our professional guidance.

Our reputation is very important to us. We know it’s important to you too. That’s why we invite you to contact us by phone or email if you have any questions. Visit our company website at Hampton Redesign. Read the testimonials of our clients. Visit us on Facebook and Twitter and learn more about who we are.

But the bottom line is. For whatever reason, if you are not completely happy and satisfied with our Secrets of a Stager Home Staging Kit, then your total purchase price is refunded to you. No questions asked. Oh we may ask if there was something we could have done better. We are always looking for ways to improve and we count on our clients to guide us towards that goal.

So try it out. See if it works for you. And know that we are here to answer any questions you may have. Happy staging!

Some stagers and organizers will ask you to clean out ALL of your closets and cabinets on the chance a buyer will look when your house is for sale. We think this is a good idea but a bit over the top. Remember, focus on the priority transformations, don’t drive yourself crazy with a lot more work. Ideally, since you will be packing things away anyway, take a closet at a time and weed out anything you haven’t used in four months.

The Master Bedroom closets are the exception to this rule. This is an area that home buyers pry into, so it’s a good idea to appear spacious, neat and organized. The more organized you appear to be, the more your home buyer will view the house as “taken care of”. Here’s a step by step checklist of how we suggest you attack your master bedroom closets.

•  Pack away anything you haven’t used or worn in four months.  For most of us, it’s about 80% of our wardrobe. Think ahead in terms of weather and special events but this should not be hard to do. In the Fall, pack Summer and in Spring, pack your Winter clothes.
•  Hang all your clothing by item starting with shirts, blouses, jackets, skirts and lastly pants (If you have a walk-in closet, pants should be in the back.)  Separate the His and Hers sections.
•  Within each item category (shirts for ex.), arrange by color
•  Make sure each item is facing the same direction
•  Organize shoes, preferably in a hanging or floor shoe rack
•  Clear off and pack/box anything on the top of the closet shelf – use decorative boxes
•  Organize any “loose” items such as belts and scarves in matching boxes or baskets on closet shelves
•  Consider buying inexpensive hat boxes/nesting boxes for accessories
•  Consider buying wood hangers OR one color matching hangers
•  Consider buying a closet organizer (Target has these now) which can be very appealing to homebuyers
•  Finally, since closets usually don’t have any natural light, make sure your artificial light is extra bright by replacing the bulbs and cleaning the fixtures

Now you’re ready for the pickiest of buyers. And I bet you found a few things you forgot you had!

If you have questions about home staging you might enjoy listening to this radio interview with Tessa Skeens, owner of Hampton Redesign (and author of the Secrets of a Stager Home Staging Kit) and a local realtor in the Albuquerque NM market.

We talk about the difference between staging and interior design. A lot of folks have this question as it seems as if the two are very similiar. In fact, when we are staging the big difference is we are now presenting our home as a product vs our home. Oh it’s still our home of course but we have to think about it and look at it a different way if we want to appeal to what buyers are looking for.

That’s the main distinction between staging a home for sale and designing a home to live. Staging we cater to buyer’s tastes and needs and designing we cater to the owner’s wants and needs.

We also talked about costs and the different types of staging. Hopefully it may clear up any confusion about the difference between staging when you’re living in the home and when you’ve moved out and your home is vacant.

There’s also a little bit of Tessa’s background and what inspired her to become a home stager. Hope you enjoy listening! Just click on the button on the little blue radio box.