Tag Smag....A Play Day in the Rain!

Thank you George Tallabas and Connie Tebyani  for allowing me to play in the Rain.

This one is pretty easy since the questions were supplied.

1. Who is your favorite musical artist? Have to go with The Eagles.  They always make me smile & reminisce.  Plus you probably can sing along to all of their songs!  Sometimes a plus..sometimes not! Ha- ha!

2. Who is your favorite artist? I am an impressionist fan so I have to go with the all time classic Monet.  His work is very calm and inviting...like Home Staging!

3. Who is your favorite blogger?   Ahhh there are soooo many great bloggers!  Jeff Turner   Kathy McGraw  Marti Garaughty  Brad Carroll and of course Craig Schiller!  But I could go on an on an on!

4. If you could meet anyone (alive or dead), who would it be and what is the most interesting thing about them? I would have loved to have met my maternal Grandmother.  She was an immigrant from Austria and entered the US through Ellis Island.  My mother speaks often about what a wonderful person she was and how she died too young.

5. What did you want to be when you grew up?  I always wanted to be a Magician or Artist.  Now that I think about it Home Stagers are Magician and Artist.  :)

6. What is the most interesting piece of trivia you know? Every time I read this one I try to think of something clever to write ....but I can't get out of my mind that little boy from the Jerry Maguire movie that says "Did you know that the human head weighs 8 lbs?"  That's all I got!

 7. If you could live in any point in history what would it be and why?   Well I was born in the 60's but I would have loved to have experienced the 60's!!!  Everything was so free and that's the way I would like to be!!! 

 8. What is the most interesting job you have ever held?  It would have to be the one I am doing now - Home Staging.  I am always pleasantly surprised with every job!  I am constantly learning and growing while helping.  Can't get much better then that!

 Now I would love to learn more about the fabulous Lori Kim Polk !

A Little Slice of Heaven!

I have always been a Wine Lover and like to think of myself as an Amateur Wine Connoisseur (aren't we all?).  Not a bad thing when you live in California.  Always great wineries to visit...relax in and enjoy a wine tasting, glass or bottle! :)

I am lucky enough to live in Murrieta which is about 15 minutes away from Temecula Wine Country which I have nicknamed "a little slice of heaven."  I shared my weekend favorite My Weekend Best Kept Secret  and now I am ready to share with you my favorite thing to do on Monday!

On Monday's (My day off...kind of!) my  best friend Laura and I venture out to a winery and  (this is the fun part!) pretend we are in another city, state or country! :)  Sometimes its Napa, sometimes France and sometimes its Tuscany!  Depending on our mood!  We mingle among the tourists and chat with the wine pourer's or if they're not busy the wine maker! 

Everyone is happy, no one is in a hurry, the scenery is beautiful, the employees are friendly, the wine(and food...if available) is delicious and if your lucky you can meet and make a new friend!  I have met Realtor's and Home Seller's which became my clients at a couple of the wineries!!  Wine & Networking gotta love it! 

I NEVER take my Monday's off for granted.  I am blessed to have a wonderful area to visit and enjoy with my BFF!  If you are planning on visiting Temecula give me a call!  I would be happy to show you around!

What's your Slice of Heaven??

Do you see why I call the Temecula Wine Country "A little Slice of Heaven?"

Don't forget to Stop and Smell the Vineyards......

Janice Sutton - Home Stager - Home Staging the Murrieta and Temecula CA Valley

951.704.097   www.1stStage.net

Active Rain, and Referrals, and Blogs...OH MY!!!

The power of Active Rain and the AR community is amazing.  I never thought that searching online and finding AR would be such a blessing to me and so many other AR colleagues.

About three weeks ago I received an email from a home seller that was looking for a Home Stagerin the West Palm Beach area to stage her vacant property. WEST PALM BEACH????  OK, why am I surprised, you ask?  Well, I live in Murrieta, CA which is approximately 2,650 miles from West Palm Beach according to Yahoo Maps! 

West Palm Beach? Who do I know in West Palm Beach?  Right away I thought of AR Home Stager Fernando Rosado owner of Eclectic Home Staging located in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.  Have I ever met him? No.  Have I ever talked to him?  No.  Does he even know who I am?  I don't know!  But, what I do know is that I feel like I have met him, like I have spoken with him, so I was confident to refer himdue to AR and our posts!  Awwwww the power of Internet NETWORKING and the MIGHTY BLOGS!! 

Check out what happened HERE after a quick email to Fernando followed up by an email to the home seller and a phone call from Fernando!

A couple of days later I received a phone call from a home seller that was looking to stage his partial vacant-furnished property in Calabasas, CA.  Where is that??  Ok, back to my Yahoo Maps.  Ok..this one is closer but 115 miles to stage a vacant property is pushing it a little! Once again I knew who to contact due to Active Rain.  AR Home Stager  Connie Tebyani owner of Platinum Home Staging who I had the pleasure to meet at AR Home Stager Michelle Minch's Professional Home Stagers Networking Get Together in Pasadena in March. 

A quick email to Connie and an email to the home seller and VIOLA!!  Check out what happened HERE!

Last but not least, I was called by another home seller that needed her vacant home in the Hollywood Hills staged!  Ok...maybe I need to move! :) 

This time it was easy to quickly refer the seller to none other but the great home stager Michelle Minch owner of Moving Mountains Design. 

THREE in one week!!!  What would I have done without Active Rain??  I think I can offical call myself the Home Staging Referral Queen of the week! 

Do you see where I am going with this?  If you haven't taken advantage of the amazing tools here on Active Rain you are missing out on expanding your network and your business.  Who knew I would be able to receive and give referrals to home stager's as far as 2,650 MILES AWAY! 

I am still in awe and forever grateful to the brillant minds of the AR GODS and my wonderful professional colleagues on Active Rain!  Thank You All!

Now does anyone have a home in the Murrieta Temecula Valley they want to stage?????  :)

May Good Listings be with You!

Awwww How Cute.......

But not when you're selling your property!

Homeseller's need to de-personalize and declutter their properties to allow potential home buyer's the opportunity to imagine themselves living in the home.  Period. 

Unfortunately many homeseller's don't understand why buyer's can't look past the "cute" little added touches. 

I reminded this homeowner that he needed to paint over his children's growth chart, handprints and footprints in the laundry room.  I understand these are precious memories but he needed to make his property as neutral as possible to appeal to the majority of home buyers.  To make it a little easier on him, I advised him to take pictures of these memories before repainting the space.  :)

Well, I am happy to report he finally repainted the laundry room.  :) How easy was that!  Sure he could have added a warmer neutral color and added knobs to make the built-in cabinets "pop".  But instead he used the exisiting wall color and spent a small amount of time and money on this home staging project.  

Painless and priceless!

Now buyer's can see "the space"....not somebody else's space! Period.

(Now I need to go back and added some accessories!)

This Murrieta, CA property was home staged by 1st Stage Property Transformations. If you are preparing your home for sale please contact Janice at 951-704-0597 or email janice@1ststage.net  for a free home staging estimate. 

31131 Kahwea Road, Temecula CA 92591 - A Meadowview Community Home

Distinguished Meadowview Home!

31131 Kahwea Road, Temecula, CA 92591 View Map

3200 sf,4 bedrooms + office,3.5 ba,3 car garage on over an acre of fully landscaped grounds! Upgrades include granite kitchen counters,travertine with granite inlays & upgraded carpeting! Other features include crown moulding, window casings,upgraded baseboards, mirrored closet doors, neutral paint, granite counters in bathrooms, recessed lighting, double oven, built-in cook top, and ceiling fans. Enjoy the park like settings with fruit trees, kids play area with a swing set, gazebo, and lots of lush landscaping!

Offered by Marcel Hensley of Keller Williams Temecula (951) 719-0355

Details

Asking Price:

799,000

MLS:

H734276

Sq. Feet:

3207

Lot Size:

1.01

Bedrooms:

4

Bathrooms:

3.5

# of Floors:

2

Garage Size:

3

Year Built:

1997

Contact Info

Janice Sutton
Home Stager

Dir 951-704-0597
Email | Website

 

Sing it with me "R-E-S-P-E-C-T....find out what it means to me!!"

I wanted to share with my AR Home Staging colleagues something that may help your days go smoother when you are out of your office but you need a desk to work at, time to organize between appointments, time to relax or time to just look at some fabulous furniture!  :)

After our Stage It Forward Round Table at Brook Furniture Rental in Newport Beach, CA I received a lovely email from Teri Nelson the District Sales Manager:  

I enjoyed meeting you at the Stager's Round Table.  Thank you so much for giving us the opportunity to host your group.  What a great bunch.  I was struck by the great amount of business savvy that these stagers have and the many contributions they were able to make to a very productive discussion.

I was sincere when I made the offer for your group to use our showrooms as a "pit stop" whenever needed.  We can always offer a comfortable chair, a place to plug in a computer, desk top work space and probably a cup of coffee too! "

Brook Furniture Rental is a wonderful company with friendly & extremely helpful customer service and excellant furniture. What more could you ask for? 

I was truly touched by this email.  I finally believe Home Stagers are getting a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T!  Just a little bit......:)  This is only the beginning of a lot more to come for the Staging Industry!  Wooo Hoooo!

Warning...this blog may make you smile...which will give you wrinkles!

I saw this on YouTube this morning and it made me smile so I wanted to share it with the rest of the AR Baby Boomer's.

Living in Southern California can be difficult. Advertisements regarding face lifts, Botox, tummy tucks, breast implants, etc.... are rampant. What ever happened to growing old gracefully? People spending tons of money trying to maintain there youth. I say enough already!  Forget Anti-aging.....think Pro-aging.

OK that's my rant. Now relax....smile....and embrace your wrinkles.