Have any of you encountered a model home that was "over-decorated"? I experienced over-decoration on a recent Parade of (New) Homes this past Spring. When I first entered the home, my eye went to the large and unusual window treatment on the Palladian window. I was awed by the fact that the fabric was sewn and mounted for a very curved window. My mind started to wander about how costly this must have been and how professional it looked. I never noticed the great view of the outdoors as I was too taken with yards of lovely, draped fabric.
Next, I tried to squeeze my way past some large over-stuffed furniture, a two foot vase with dried plant material and an ottoman on my way to the kitchen. The furnishings were beautiful but there was just too much of it! (I forgot to mention I was in a ranch-style condominium.) The kitchen surprised me with loads of cabinets, a soaring ceiling to give the illusion of space and a sun-tube that allowed extra light into the windowless room.
Despite all of these lovely qualities I felt claustrophobic. Why is that? Because there was artwork and accessories on the countertops, on the backsplash area above the counters and above the cabinets all the way up to the ceiling. The artwork looked like old signage from the past and made me reminisce about our old house and the 50’s café we had in our basement.
When my husband and I were finished viewing the home, I was overwhelmed. Once in the car I had trouble remembering the layout of the living room, dining room, den, etc. I couldn’t recall the type of appliances that had been there either. I was too enamored with all the great stuff that was in the condo.
This all got me to thinking about how we stage homes to sell. The way we live in a home and decorate it to our tastes and functions is so different than if we were actually selling it. We try to create an impression for the Buyer but not overwhelm them with too much of a good thing.
Here is an example of a home that was "over-decorated" and we re-staged it:
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Hi Laura, I enjoyed reading this post. However, I had some questions. While it was very helpful to look at both the before and after pictures, I wondered why you did some of the things you did. For instance, was the valance on the slider a distraction because of the lower ceiling length which prevented the eye from being drawn outdoors? Were the splashes of red color on the throw and rug overwhelming for the space? It's hard to determine these things from the screen shot. Thanks for an educational blog to help agents in Grand Rapids understand the benefits of staging.