What is Upstage Home Staging?

We help houses sell quickly and profitably, because a staged home can sell up to 30% faster than a non-staged home. The use of proven techniques will attract buyers.

For example:

• Pocket of Emotion – allows a buyer to bond with the home and remember it later.
• Furniture Placement – the furniture arrangement determines how the buyer views the home.

A professional home stager is like an encyclopedia of home staging techniques. Even a home that shows fine and is well kept by the homeowner can benefit from staging. Because how we live in the home is different from how the home should show to buyers.

It’s like Retail 101. When a house is for sale, it’s a product. It needs to be packaged and marketed, just like all those items on store shelves.

Let’s face it with so many properties on the market today, it’s difficult for buyers to remember individual houses. Especially when they look at 10 in one weekend! A home stager will ensure that your house stands out in the crowd.

That’s what we call, Upstaging the Competition!

Design Star - Upstaged

Since I couldn’t be in New York to compete myself (even though I really wanted to be), I figured I can at least critique those who were. After watching this second episode, I have gotten past my funk about not being cast and am ready to dish. So here goes…

This season’s designers are being thrown right in. They’ve had little time to get to know each other, which adds to the element of competition. How very Mark Burnett to add this element of Survivor to our Design Star.

The designs so far have definitely suffered. And, I’ll give the contestants that benefit of the doubt and say it’s the extreme pressure of the rapid fire challenges and not their design abilities. However…I’ll pick apart a couple for starters.

I’ll start with the one who was sent home after challenge 2, Tera. I liked her white box bedroom design. It was well planned and cohesive, but she doesn’t seem to play well in the sandbox. Apparently, she never got over being last to choose her fashion inspiration, because she was totally uninspired during the apartment challenge. It was lack of creative thinking that led to her dismissal. Come on, using the colors from the outfit on the walls was just lazy…or huffy from being last to pick.

Nina seems to be filling the shoes left by last season’s Antonio. Every good show needs a villain, the one we love to hate. This too, follows every good Mark Burnett show. Problem is we don’t have a reason to love her yet.

How annoying is it to see her be so sweet during judging?

Now for the overall designs seen on this episode.

Men’s Apartment

These spaces really aren’t that great. But it looks like the men worked with what they had rather than fighting what they were given. They seemed to use passion and energy that resulted in a better design.

The verdict.

• Some good overall design planning looks evident.
• Interesting choices created a sophisticated space in the living/dining room.
• Bedroom is lacking the same level of detail – Who’s idea was it to pair the wedding dress with those pjs? Functionally they work in the bedroom. The judges said it best, the romance element is missing. I don’t think the two styles work together. The whimsy of the pjs is also lacking.
• Accessories would be best way to inject the missing personality, and the men missed the mark accessorizing throughout the apartment.

Women’s Apartment

Nina’s headstrong opinions can be hard to take, but the best thing about this space? That red rug that the other women didn’t want. It starts the personality direction for the entire space, and certainly pulls in the red from Emily’s outfit. Why was she complaining?

Here’s what went wrong.

• They wasted too much time throwing disparate ideas into the room, and focused on the negative, rather than saying, "Ok we have this to work with. Now what?" Their argument against the red rug? It doesn’t work with the navy drapes…those ugly, cheap looking, drapes that are too small for the windows. Get rid of them. They are the worst part of the room. Whose ideas were those? She should be the one to go.
• Stacy’s chair I like, but don’t see the connection with the fashion. The dress uses pink (remember the rug?)and pastels. She could have done so much more with that rug there. I like the drink cart.
• I am surprised at the lack of pattern usage. There was so much to work with here from the two fabulous dresses. But everything in the space is solid or textured.
• Where are the plaid and zippers in the bedroom! They had two on trend styles that were completely overlooked by the designers. These two were uninspired by their outfits, and could not get over it. A designer has to have an appreciation for the work/choices of others. That’s what separates a designer from your average person. It’s the ability to “see”.
• Nina’s ideas are the only ones apparent here. Maybe her strategy is to wear down the others, so that they’re too tired from fighting with her to think brilliantly. Her competition should stop focusing on the things they cannot change, and focus on what they can control…their own choices and reactions.

Can’t wait to see what happens next week! They have certainly changed our old predictable Design Star.

Color Theory 101

Whether you love to play with color or prefer a safe beige, knowing a few simple terms can help you talk the talk.

Hue – Refers to the color or base color. A true hue is one that is found on the color wheel. Misuse – to describe lighter or darker a variation in color.

Tint–Put simply, a tint is a lighter variation of a color. Tints are created by adding white to colors. For example, pink is a tint of red. Misuse – to describe the application of color to something (e.g. blue-tinted hair).

Shade–A hue that has been made darker by adding black to it. Navy is a shade of blue. Misuse - when used to describe any color. Note: shades are darker than the base hue.

Tone – Created when gray is added to a hue, a tone is created. Tones are generally more muted versions of colors. Misuse – to describe any variation in hue.

Value– This term describes the lightness or darkness of a color. Colors with more white (tints) have higher value, and darker colors (shades) have lower value. Misuse – this term is often not used. Typically shade or tone is misused instead.

Saturation– The purity or intensity of a color is called saturation. The most-saturated colors are vivid and strong, where less-saturated colors can appear washed out or muted. Misuse – sometimes used to describe opacity.

With a better understanding of these color terms, you can easily choose color palettes for any application from walls to your wardrobe.

Look for more color tips to come.