Well, seems Haverhill is drawing more attention to itself. The more they shout from the mountain tops about their greatness the more writers look in to the owners of the company.

Despite repeated attempts to get information about the success of the business as well as the success of the 'graduates' Haverhill refuse to divulge any statistics to aid potential 'students' determine if HaverHill does in fact provide the hundreds of jobs they claim to be hiring (from ONLY graduates of their training).

A new article has been released, enjoy the read and make your own decisions!

There's a stager born every minute: Haverhill offers big promises -- and shady associations

Author:  Zac Bissonnette

BTW, notice the photo was a staging done by Craig Shiller...beautiful job!

I've been getting very excited about blue paint color for walls. Did you know blue is the number one paint colour in homes in North America?

When using blue paint be careful not to select drab or dated looking colours. Blues of today are warm (hint of red undertone) and fresh.

Here are a few photos for some inspiration for you!

image source, Real New York House Wives

This fresh blue looks stunning against the white trim and marble. Adding in the blue and white ceramics provide a lovely grounding for the walls.

Blue looks striking when combined with black and white! This blue reminds me of Bombay Saphire's blue gin bottle...makes me thirsty for a Bombay Saph &T!

image source, Apartment Therapy

image source, ladyreynolds (Flickr)

I'm so loving this door!

Due to my desire to put blue *somewhere* in my house, my daughter will be getting a room in Robin's Egg blue! Sigh, I'll have to wait till the front entry is done first before beginning yet another project!

About the author:

Dane Caldwell is the Lead Design Consultant for Toronto and GTA's 2 Hounds Design and Home Staging.

www.2-hounds.com

"I won't be the person who sells your house, but I will be the reason it sells".- Dane Caldwell, Toronto, GTA & Durham Region Interior Design/Decorating + Home Staging Specialist

With the economy as it is today many of us are not spending on the more frivolous purchases such as decor items. The desire to reuse as much as possible and wanting to make our homes uniquely reflect our personalities rather than looking like everything was purchased at one store has inspired many to come up with some wonderfully inventive decor items we can all do in our own homes.

I went hunting around and found some simple ideas I felt would inspire you. I hope you find the ideas as refreshing and exciting as I do!

This organized corner is a simple way to spruce up a laundry room/mud room inexpensively while staying stylish. Of course, I'd use some felt or other cushioning fabric to protect your boots from getting marked up from the office clamps but they make for a very inexpensive way to help keep their shape!

Image source: Sasa Antic

A simple update for an old bed. Slipcovers!

Image Source: Martha Stewart

A contemporary take on the wallpaper headboard! I love the idea of breaking up the wallpaper horizontally.

Image Source: Better Homes and Gardens

Another great storage idea using cereal boxes! Imagine the fun you could have with the kids designing their own storage boxes for their bedrooms.

Image Source: Apartment Therapy

About the author:

Dane Caldwell is the Lead Design Consultant for Toronto and GTA's 2 Hounds Design and Home Staging.

www.2-hounds.com

"I won't be the person who sells your house, but I will be the reason it sells".- Dane Caldwell, Toronto, GTA & Durham Region Interior Design/Decorating + Home Staging Specialist

I'm always looking for what is coming down the pipes which will be new and exciting in the interior design/decorating field.

What will be the next big trend colour, what colours are going to be the staple for years to come, who's the hot new designers to watch...questions I'm always asking. I had not thought about one aspect of design I realized.

So I went looking and I have to say, I think you will be very excited! Yes, you can thank me! LOL

Technology in my mind was the newist insulation, wind turbine, non-toxic glue etc. Technology was therefore mostly about the materials. I have design software...but I'm terrible slow at it and therefore always chose drafting paper and scaled drawing.

To me, design software (that's a hint) has become sononamous with 'evil' and ment to 'break me' reduce me to tears curled up in a ball in the corner of my office.

Till today!

I will begin posting some how to's over the next little while!

From simple DIY issues to get your house show ready and increase it's value substantially:

- like leveling your cupboard doors in the kitchen

to

- putting a permanent end to the squeaky doors

As well, I will show you the tricks I've learned along the way:

- stripping popcorn ceilings

- wallpapering

- tiling

- replacing a ceiling fixture

- replacing a light switch for a dimmer switch

And for those who like to watch the design process:

- decision making: when you really want something but it is labour intensive and therefore cuts in to budget - but it will look Freak'n Amazing!! Should you or shouldn't you?

You will watch as I begin what should be a simple update of my front entrance. Currently builder basic from over 2 decades ago.

- Ripping up the old tile

- putting in new tile

- decision time on the labour intensive but oh so marvelous reno move...what COULD this be?!

- painting: decorative finish to keep costs down. Forgoing the wallpaper I want and recreating it with paint and stencil

- swapping out the existing lighting for something with a little more presence.

My Foyer Update will be a no budget reno for the most part. I will be scrounging for what I need and show you how to get the designer style with little to no budget...for REAL!

In case you missed Part I 

Moving on:

Location.

Location location location. Yes it is important to the buyer but also relevant to price. They are tied to one another. 2 identical houses, one on a quiet court the other on a busy street, are not going to be valued the same. 

Bottom line with location is to make sure the price takes the location in to consideration. Every property sells even those with less desirable locations...say one with an abattoir behind it or train tracks...whatever the 'pink elephant' is.

 Condition.

Look around yourself but through the eyes of your Mother-In-Law. Then remind yourself the saying goes 'if it isn't broken don't fix it' and NOT 'if it's broken don't fix it...sell it'. Totally wrong. Myself, before the days of self-cleaning ovens my personal motto was if the oven needs cleaning I need to move. Silly, in hind sight...I could have just gotten a new stove...but I digress because I'm trying to help YOU sell your place.

I.)

Really, I can't stress this enough: people do not like other peoples filth and crap. Blunt but so true. If the house is dirty potential buyers will turn around and walk out the door not wanting to touch anything. Harsh...but my lord I've been a potential buyer too many times to count where I've gagged and gotten the panicked look in my eyes as my Realtor says they have to at least stop long enough to leave their business card. I, the potential buyer make a mad dash out the door.

Filth does not sell. An example...as a nosy neighbour (with my house listed to sell) I got a showing of the house down the street from me...OMG! The adult son's bedroom:  gamers chair, tv, cpus, wires everywhere but the little tickle at the back of your throat...the gag response, was activated by the B.O. I mean this was oily smelling B.O. We (my Realtor and I) crinkle our faces and start to back out of the room and that's when we saw it:  the un-made bed with a very visible oily body stain. Come on! Well, at least they cracked the window open a bit....

Have you been out shopping and noticed someone with B.O.? First thought is to get away right? (If you don't know what I'm talking about I would recommend you invest in renting an industrial strength ionizer.

Same goes for pet odours and houses that smell like ashtrays.

The condition of the house (or condo) is perceived to be poor when the house is a mess. Donate, sell, get rid of what you haven't used in the last year. Clean like you've never cleaned before.

II.)

Make any repairs which are outstanding. Make sure the doors are hung straight and close properly. Doors that close on their own are NOT a selling feature. Squeaky door, fix it. Squeaky floor, fix it.

See you've got problems and I'm not just pointing them out...I'm providing solutions! Actually, I will be adding videos showing you how to take care of these simple but distracting petty (yeah, yeah but do you want to have to fix the doors in the house you will be moving in to?) annoyances.

Fix any holes in the drywall, replace the stained carpet, refinish or polish the flooring I could go on and on but will instead write a blog post with a list of potential repairs instead. Bottom line, fix what's broken.

Why is My House Not Selling - Part III - Coming Soon! 

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Opinions expressed in this blog are that of the author!

Dane Caldwell is a decorator and leading real estate home stager in the Greater Toronto Area as well as having clients in the U.S. and the Caribbean! You can read more about Dane and her firm 2 Hounds Design at:  www.2-hounds.com

If you are reading this post chances are you are sitting in your home researching, pulling your hair out looking for some intangibles that will help jump start the stale listing you are sitting in. There are a number of reasons a property does not sell.

For the most part you are able to control whether or not your house sells but there are always the uncontrolable like a metiorite, tornado or some other 'act' of god. Since we can't do anything about these...and they are the 'exception' lets assume this is not the problem with moving your &@#$ house and move on to the posibilities you have some control over shall we?

In no particular order:

Price.

Good rule of thumb for price on a new listing: If you've had 10 different mortgageable showings come through with no offer...drop your price.

Did you, be honest now, set the price or did your Realtor? Too many homeowners place far too much value in their home. Yes, some of us are guilty of thinking or wanting to have as nice if not a nicer house as the one that sold down the street last year.

Problema:  it's not your house. There are so many reasons why houses sell for the price they do. Past housing sales are only a part of the information used to price your home when assessed by knowledgeable Realtors.

FSBO.

Which begs the question...do you even have a Realtor or are you 'saving money' and selling your place solo? If so, cowboy, this could be the issue you need to take care of...and you have indeed come to the right place! Active Rain has 10's of thousands of Realtors. 

Over on the top right of your monitor screen you will see the row of hyperlinks...click 'States' and just keep clicking till you find a list of faces staring back at you. Those are some of the Net savvy Realtors in your area. Do some research, read their blog posts...find a Realtor!

 Moving on:

Why is My House Not Selling - Part II  

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Opinions expressed in this blog are that of the author!

Dane Caldwell is a decorator and leading real estate home stager in the Greater Toronto Area as well as having clients in the U.S. and the Caribbean! You can read more about Dane and her firm 2 Hounds Design at:  www.2-hounds.com

I've experienced the Holy Grail of sleep.

Imagine waking in the morning with a smile...after the best night of sleep you've ever had.

There is no other bed to compare to a Hästens; it is the Bentley of beds. The founders of Hästens set out to make the best bed available at any cost and my word, they've done it!

A bed is hand made (really!) with natural products. These beds are designed to last a lifetime.

Unlike other manufacturers of beds who claim 25 year warranties but can't prove one still in perfect shape after 25 years of nightly use, Hästens has customers with beds over 100 years old still in use and still in great shape. 

You deserve to sleep on the best bed made. If you'd like to see for yourself, let me know and I will arrange for you to try one out and learn how truly incredible these beds (are from the Argentinian horse hair (humanely harvested through regular grooming) to the steel springs made by Hästens themselves and the 70 year old pine trees harvested in Sweden).

To learn what is known about sleep, to see the product lines, history of the bed and how it is made and to find a Hastens store in your city be sure to visit the Hästens website.

Sleeping on a Hästens is better than sleeping on air. You won't understand that until you've tried one.

Oh, and the new ad campaign is damn sexy!

Cheers,

Dane - Hästens Suprema King with Black and White ticking

The Toronto Hästens store is located in the Distillery Distirict.

Saturday in the city!

Up and out bright and early this morning, Steve:

and I were on the road by 11:30! Ok, not so bright and early but we were bright eyed and bushy tailed! ;)

I'd dragged Steve out of bed 2 weeks ago thinking it was...today...May 2nd...bright and early. I was excited to the hit the city. Kimberley Seldon holds an annual 'Paris Flea Market' in Toronto's Distillery District. This year the market is held May 2nd and 3rd.

Although we didn't buy anything today I did completely molest a grey mohair velvet ottoman for a good 5 minutes so I was not *too* disappointed to be leaving empty handed. Next year I will get the dates straight and be standing in line when the market doors open. Lesson's learned!

The market is on again tomorrow (Sunday May 3) for those of you who are thinking 'damn I missed it'!

Cheers!

Dane

There are many rules in design and it's off shoots (decorating, staging, re-design). But the best designs (those stop you from flipping the page or stop you in your tracks) are always when someone has challenged the rules.

If may not be obvious to you that some design rule has been tossed out. Nor would it have been carelessly tossed out. Great thought goes in to stunning design. Those who challenge design rules are recognized by the industry for their ability to create engaging environments. Those who follow all the rules...create rooms that while may be beautiful technically, they lack the ability to truly draw in and engage us.

In home staging there are so many rules which so many stagers feel are sacrosanct. An example:

Mary Lou Teague of Knoxville TN's Home Style and Staging recently posted on her blog what I think is a Brilliant (with a capital B) foyer for her home. Now her home is not for sale and she only posted the blog to show us something she was really proud of...rightly so. Despite Mary Lou's post having nothing to do with staging many felt the need to say that IF it were a staging clients home they would tell their client to remove the decor.

Home staging since the early years (remember the woman in Hollywood who listed her house and draped her luxurious fur coat across her bed) was, and even more so now, is about creating a warm feeling in the buyer...one where they can say 'I can have family and friends over here and my house will be full of love and good cheer'.

Take a look at Mary Lou's wonderful foyer...you'll see something similar in my next staging clients house!

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Opinions expressed in this blog are that of the author!

Dane Caldwell is a leading decorator and home stager in the Greater Toronto Area as well as having decorating clients in the U.S. and the Caribbean! You can read more about Dane and her firm 2 Hounds Designat:www.2-hounds.com