I staged a house yesterday that was mostly vacant and had some basic decor put in place to "stage" it by the previous listing agent. You know - too many veggie and vinegar deco jars, the greenery, and towels that are put in a house to "stage" that really don't do the trick. On top of that, there was a mirror placed above the fireplace leaning in a niche and I had to ask myself - "Why is that there? It's too high and it is not reflecting anything of interest."
It always makes me scratch my head when I see a mirror hung in an odd place where it is not reflecting anything but another wall or is hung so high that the viewer cannot see into the mirror anyway. There are guides for using mirrors in living - and in Staging.
The most important one is to consider what the mirror is reflecting back in the mirror as it is hung. If we want more light, it can reflect a window. If we want to feature a view, the mirror can reflect that. To me, the mirror should not just reflect back a chunk of wall if it is hung as art. There should be something interesting framed in the reflection.
When we are hoping to capture the Buyer's reflection (as psychologically it helps for them to "see" themselves "in" the house - and a mirror does the trick) - the mirror needs to be hung at the appropriate height (average woman is 5 foot 4 inches so imagine her looking in the mirror and hang it so the middle is at her eye level). I like seeing a small mirror in the entry area - but not reflecting the door as it opens - that is "bad feng shui" and also is a little glaring to immediately be looking at ourselves when the door opens. A better technique is to hang the mirror on the side wall in or near the entry.
We often use mirrors in a dining room - they reflect the image of the buyer, and usually the light fixture which highlights it and adds a bit more light to the room. We only do this if there is another wall where we can hang something with color - art or painting.
Why is it that so many people get the mirror hanging thing wrong? I have seen photos where a mirror with an interesting frame was used over a fireplace that is up about 10 feet off the ground. The mirror is not reflecting anything - and it looks silly. A piece of artwork or a wrought iron grille would be much better served in that place,and the mirrror used where it can actualyl reflect something of merit.
So when using mirrors, it's not so much about using something that fits a space or has a neat frame, we have to ask ourselves, what are we reflecting back to the buyer. If it is not something that we want to highlght or is wasted because of the height, pick anohther item to hang and use the mirror next time.
- Jennie
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