How to Make Your Home Feel Happy

Ever notice how sometimes you just walk into a home and it feels ‘happy’? The last house I Staged, felt like that. Was it the cheery colours, the aged wood floors that creek when you walked on them, the rich architectural details that were full of history or was it just the adorable curb appeal?

Showcase the Features

In order to draw your attention to the architectural details, I minimized all the artwork. I kept the client’s beautiful turquoise acrylic sculpture since it was one of the colour inspirations. It also balanced the fact that the wall measurements on either side of the fireplace weren’t the same.

Now you notice the trim and the wood door instead of all the artwork. Remember, we are Staging the house to highlight the benefits of the house. The ‘before’ photo was perfect for the client, since it showed her personality, but for Staging we want to appeal to the masses.

You always want to carry the accent colours through from room to room for a cohesive flow.

Symmetry and Balance

When light pendants are not centred over the dining table, the little hairs on the back of my neck stand up lol. The table is covered in dishes since the glass cabinets were going to be removed. Moving the buffet also draws your attention more to the window.

Adding the tree filled up the bare corner and added some softness. I was so excited when I realized I had this artwork that tied in perfectly with the client’s accent cushions. Removing the end chairs also gives the illusion of a larger room since the sightlines are no longer blocked.

A few colourful glass accessories was all that was needed. I intentionally went with glass to tie in with the turquoise acrylic artwork in the living room.

Declutter

This is typical of every kitchen during the initial consultation since let’s face it, it’s how most of us live daily. However when you’re Staging your home, it needs to be completely decluttered. Especially when it’s a beautifully renovated one.

Tying All The Colours Together

This room had every colour imaginable in it. Green walls, pale blue and gold table, gray chair, brown sofa and a hot pink closet door (not seen in this photo). Each and every colour was bright and cheery, and I was so relieved that I had this larger artwork in my inventory since it tied everything together as well as brought in the colours from the front of the house.

It’s amazing how one thing like the artwork, was a jumping off point to tie all the accessories together.

This room is definitely a huge selling feature of the home so it was very important to get it right.

Furniture Placement

This spare room was basically used as a ‘catch-all’ room. The first thing I needed to do was rearrange all the furniture and it made such a huge difference. The room instantly looked so much larger.

It’s never a good idea to have the bedframe go beyond the window. Showcase your windows and let in as much natural daylight.

By moving the wall unit to this wall, there was enough traffic flow around the bed.

Simplify

I loved the artwork above the bed, but I felt it was a bit too high and it distracted buyers from looking at the space. I was able to use the artwork in the hallway instead. To keep the bed looking interesting, we added more layers of linens and more cushions with colours to tie everything together.