Imagine you are looking at this beautiful property in Evanston, Calgary that used to be a show home. You enter the living room and see the large fireplace and windows. They are so grand, it makes the rest of the room look tiny. It would feel overwhelming in the room, like they didn’t belong. The feedback the sellers kept getting from possible buyers was: there was no room for a sofa. Buyers love a living room with a fireplace to make a room feel cozy but not if their furniture won’t fit. This was a vacant property before we staged it.
 

To properly stage a large fireplace within a small room, it’s important to keep it in perspective with the other features of the room. Stage it to ‘fit’ and therefore sell. Ideally, buyers don’t want to be left wondering how to deal with a potential problem, ie their furniture won’t fit. So you can make their lives (and therefore your sale) easier by staging the solution for them.
 

With the addition of the proper furniture, placement, and strategic use of colour, the space is bound together as one unit, creating ease and comfort. Staging allows this large fireplace to work as the feature it’s meant to be. You can see that the mantel is actually higher than the stair railing going up to the next floor. In fact, even on a step ladder, we couldn’t reach to hang the artwork. Instead, it’s leaning on the ledge.
 

Did I mention? This property sold the weekend after staging was complete. We staged Friday and it sold Sunday.
 

For more examples of the power and impact staging can create in a space, take a look at the Set Your Stage Facebook albums featuring many before and after photos of the various homes and condos that we’ve staged for sale.
 

Staging your property doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Refresh furniture to make a big impact with existing pieces that can easily fit into your overall staging plan. Professional stagers do it too!
 

When you’re staging a house or condo for sale, furniture selection and placement matter. It’s quite possible that some of your existing pieces should be removed. That said, you may have an item that has “good bones” but needs a little refresh (or could be swapped with furniture from another room). If it can fit in with the overall feel that you want to create in the space, give it a little attention for some added life.
 
In this Set Your Stage YouTube video, you’ll see how I quickly refreshed these contemporary dining chairs that I like to use when I stage properties for sale.
 

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Of course, if the chairs were from the 70’s and had orange and green patterned fabric on them that smelled like smoke (you get my point), I would probably recommend switching them out for more modern chairs (through a staging furniture rental option).
 

The main point to remember is that, when you’re staging a property for sale, you are setting it up to appeal to the potential buyer’s desired lifestyle, NOT for you and your family. So you need a critical eye with experience in understanding exactly how to accomplish that.
 

Do you have some favourite tips for how to refresh furniture? Leave a comment. And find out more staging tips by following Set Your Stage on Twitter @setyourstage.
 

When you’re selling a property, you don’t have to de-personalize to the point of going bland. Staging accessories can add a pop of colour to give life to a space. Decide how you want potential buyers to feel and then choose an appropriate colour to accomplish that. Staging accessories give you flexibility.
 

Do you notice how different colours make you feel? There is a psychology of colour and it’s worth paying attention to when you’re trying to sell your home. To find out more, Benjamin Moore has a fun “Color Basics” tool that shows the psychological, emotional, and behavioural responses of different colours.
 

In this vacant condo/townhouse we staged in Braeside Estates, we chose to go with staging accessories that created an upbeat feeling. Why? Because it’s a space less than 1000 square feet in size, located in an older building, and likely to be purchased by a first time buyer. The goal was to make it feel warm, modern, energetic and social.
 

That’s why we chose to use mostly red, orange and yellow in the staging accessories in the main living areas while keeping the large furniture pieces, wall, and flooring neutral. In the bedrooms, instead of the reds, we used greens which are more calming.
 

As you look at the photos of the staged rooms, how does it make you feel? That’s the power of colour.
 

For more examples of the power and impact staging can create in a space, take a look at the Set Your Stage Facebook albums featuring many before and after photos of the various homes and condos that we’ve successfully staged for sale.