September 2011 Staging Tip

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Sept Flowerbed A
If your flowerbeds have been taken over by weeds, late summer is the best time to get great deals on perennials.  Make sure to get a professional grade landscape fabric; skimping on a cheap fabric will lead to weeds in just a year or two!  Your plants will have time to develop good roots this fall and next spring you will have a beautiful flower bed.  Don’t be afraid to go with a bold mulch color, one Minnesota winter will naturalize the color without leaving it feeling drab. Sept Flowerbed B

August 2011 Featured Before and After

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Sometimes the layout of a room can make it really difficult for furniture placement.  In this long, narrow room, there were 2 large doorways and a bay window so the homeowners had 2 separate seating areas.  To create just one seating area, we put the furniture on an angle to take advantage of the floorspace in the bay window and still allow access to both doorways.  The plant was from another room and we added a few new pillows and accessories finish it off.
Woodbury Living Before

Woodbury living after

August 2011 Staging Tip

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Numbers a
Last month, we showed you how to update a fireplace screen with a little heat resistant spray paint.  Now, just expand your thinking to house numbers, hardware, lighting, picture frames, lamp bases and more.  My favorite spray paint is the Rustoleum Oil Rubbed Bronze, but a satin nickel works great, too!  Don’t forget to use painters tape and newspaper to block off the areas you don’t want painted!
numbers bORB Paint

July 2011 Featured Before and After

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When a room has white trim, walls, ceiling and floors, there is nothing to define the different surfaces and create visual interest.  In this living room, we wanted the white trim and crown moulding to stand out, so we added dark wood floors and a rich wall color.  Draperies and furniture create an inviting atmosphere.
Our living before

living after

July 2011 Staging Tip

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Many older homes have brass fireplace screens like this one.  With a $7 can of black heat-resistant spray paint, you can completely update your fireplace.  Most screens are removable so you can do it outside.  Otherwise, use a little painters tape and newspaper to cover the glass and edges and open some windows.  We took it a couple steps further by adding a mantel and painting the hearth tile a more nuetral color.

June 2011 Featured Before and After

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This fireplace screamed 1980.  Because fireplaces are usually the main focal point of a room, it’s always important to make sure they look great.  We removed the mirror (no easy feat!) and added a panel painted a shade lighter than our rich wall color.  We also added a wood mantle that was stained to match the wood floors which adds a ton of warmth to the fireplace.  The design and custom craftsmanship was all completed by the Simply Staged team.  What a difference!
fireplace before

June 2011 Staging Tip

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Bathroom Before
If you have one of those old shower doors that is leaking or just won’t come clean, you’re not alone.  A beautiful and inexpensive option is to replace those doors with an oil rubbed bronze or nickel shower rod and rings and a rich fabric shower curtain.  Just make sure to caulk the holes from the shower door with a caulk in similar color to your tile.  And use a weighted shower liner so that water doesn’t leak out onto your floor while you’re showering!
Bathroom after

May 2011 Featured Before and After

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This kitchen struggled with old cabinets, minimal counterspace, an old stove and very dated flooring.  We painted the walls and cabinets very modern shades of gray, which we tied together with a glass tile backsplash.  The flooring was replaced with environmentally friendly marmoleum and black granite countertops that we extended into unused space that now hosts 2 barstools.
Edmund Kitchen

May 2011 Staging Tip

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Guest Bedroom Before
Replace old draperies or vertical blinds with elegant floor-length draperies.  Start with a great oil rubbed bronze or nickel rod with substantial finials.  Mount the brackets about 8″ away from the window trim so that when you hang the draperies, the don’t block any light from the window.  My favorite place for draperies is JC Pennys, but if you’re on a budget, check out the faux silk draperies at Walmart for only $14.97 per panel (shown in the photo below).  For colors, chocolate brown looks great against almost any wall color, especially if you have brown throw pillows on your bed or sofa.  Otherwise, selecting a shade lighter or darker than your wall color gives an elegant tone on tone look.
Drapery Rod
Guest Bedroom B