Why I Chose Real Estate! The Family Culture
Here's my Mom, Winkie, bringing me home from the hospital.
The arrow is pointing to the first clue about my chosen profession: Real Estate Home Staging.
The antique, solid brass door knocker has been removed in preparation to restore the front door on my parent's first house. You can see the "footprint" it left behind.
Shortly after they were married, my parents moved to very, very old cottage in Cornwall, Connecticut. It needed a lot of work, and my father was just the man to tackle it. He had helped his parents restore several historic homes in Litchfield County. It was my grandparent's avocation: buying, restoring, then selling lovely old houses that were in disrepair. They were preserving history and creating homes for families. Their passion became part of our family culture.
Daddy is enjoying special time with Julie in her very own bedroom; it was the first room completely finished in the cottage. Although I was only two when we moved from this house, that wallpaper is etched upon my memory!
Home improvement is in my blood. Dad started us early: appreciate the house, celebrate its character, and improve it. Every house we lived in got a makeover. Walls were removed, added or moved. Closets were expanded. Rooms were added on or retrofitted to increase functionality. It was probably against child labor laws, but I can't tell you how many sheets of wallboard we kids had to hold up while Daddy screwed them to the framing!
Decorating is also part of our family culture. My maternal grandmother was an Interior Decorator, but my father had his own very particular ideas about decorating. His style, and that of the houses we lived in, was very Colonial American. Historic paint colors had to be used to complement their furniture collection.
My poor mother didn't get her way until years later. She preferred a much prettier, fanciful, yet still traditional, style, much like that of her own mother. Kind of a New England version of Hollywood Regency.
Growing up in a historic neighborhood in Fairfield, Connecticut, I had no idea about modern styles. Then a wonderful family moved in two doors down, and brought a fresh breeze of Danish Modern with them. Since their daughter, Libby, became one of my best friends, I was there all the time, soaking up that creative household. Together, Libby and I redecorated each other's doll houses. We made and decorated houses for our Trolls, paper dolls (yes, they were two-dimensional), and even tiny wooden ladybugs.
There're my sister, Annette, brother Andy, Libby, and me in front of our house for the first day of school. Plaids, smocking and gingham were all the rage.
My undergraduate degree is in Art History and Architecture. After a career in corporate America, I decided it was time to get that Interior Design education. Nestings was born, offering interior decorating and antiques.
Real Estate Home Staging was a natural outgrowth; Staging leverages my skills, talents, and passions. I am able to help people sell their single largest investment for the greatest return. Using compassion and empathy, I can get my clients to see their home as a buyer should. I draw on my family culture to appreciate the house, celebrate its character, and improve it. My education and innate talents help clients bring a fully realized product to the market that will appeal to the target buyers.
My parents and grandparents would be proud!
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