Introduction to Home Staging

i’ve been designing dresses since i was a little kid, now i am at a stage where i have to think about the future etc. I want to persue something in the fashion designing area, but the only skills i have is able to draw good ideas of clothes on paper, but the thing is i would really like it if i had skills to make a garment. Sadly i do not have the skills, so please help me if you know any courses in London that teaches skills and techniques in fashion designing.

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http://www.freewebs.com/fashionstyling4u/

Hello,

I am wondering what the cost would likely be to hire a professional photographer to take photos of my staged house so I can put them all online.

I am in the San Francisco area.

Thanks!

It depends on the size of the house and what you’re looking to capture (sort of like picking a wedding photographer). My guess is anywhere from $3,000-$10,000.

Real architecture photography would require a more specialized camera (medium/ large format) that can compensate for the distortions made by the lens (via swing/ tilt/ risers controls). Those cameras usually cost $20,000-$60,000, not including lens and extra adaptors. And the photogs will camp out for day(s) just to capture the right natural lighting. That’s why architecture photography can be expensive.

I don’t know of any photogs in SF area, but try to find something comparable to these guys:
http://www.atticfirearchitecture.com/

I bought a new home two years ago. I have wall-to-wall carpet in most of the house. Though I vacuum my carpet everyday and deep clean it once a month, the carpet is starting to get smashed down and doesn’t "fluff" back up when I clean it. Now, this is in areas of high traffic. How can I make my carpet "fluff" back up, and not look so worn down? Any tricks??

yeah, i agree–shampoo it, but w/one of those shampoos that sort of stiffen the carpet. get an old brush and swushy fluff it back up and try some hair spray.

I am desperate for details on home staging… anything anyone knows will help. thanks!

home staging is a coined term that you can actually get sued over believe it or not, so when marketing your home, never use that term, use newly showcased instead. I showcase homes because the fee to get the license to be a stager is too nominal for what it’s worth in these times.

The big thing is to de clutter the home and to rid of/hide any photos, personal affects and toys of all things, kids toys are big turn offs. if you have a child’s room set up to look like it, you should immediately work at getting that room to look like a spare room or office, or a room for an older teen in the sense that kids rooms really throw people off.

all wall paintings should be hung at eye level. big mistake that is made that really makes a room look off. do not make a tv viewing area a focal point.

strip wallcoverings that are out dated and paint a neutral beige or gray tone. it is ok to have accent walls in the home to carry the eye throughout.

furniture rental companies can also help stage your home ifyoure in a pinch for the right furniture.

remove clutter in the kitchen most of all this is the no. one selling point of a home.

Home Staging shows on hg are really true to form.

good luck.

Everytime I get my hair cut I ask to get my bangs more whispy but I get home and they start fluffing up and it looks silly. How can I get them to lay flat and not look so thick?

you could try straightning them, it usually makes your hair feel thinner and more smooth.

hope i have helped.

I would love to start a home-based cake decorating/bakery out of my home since I can’t afford a store. I discovered running one is illegal here. But I come across a few people who whip out their cake portfolios and try to sell you their services anyway. I’d like to make birthday cakes for maybe friends of friends and just have them pass the word around that I can bake custom cakes. Would you still do it and try to keep it low-key or just forget your dream?
The reason it’s illegal in GA is because it is food, and that they will then require a seperate building w/ a commercial kitchen, then inspect it. But I have ran across several women in the past who just do this out of their own home anyway.

HMMMM. Odd I know two ladies here in my town that make cakes and run a small cake making business out of their homes (in fact one of those ladies has made my kids B-Day cakes for years) . It is like any other home business (I have my own too). However they have to report their income on their taxes. Otherwise, I don’t know how it can be illegal. Don’t go by what people say, call the BBB and find out what the laws and regulations are. I am sure you can still follow your dream and bake those yummy cakes. obtaining a home business license might solve your problems too. I only had to file for a Tax ID number (for a home business) so I could file at the end of each year and pay my taxes due to the state. Simple as that. Good luck to you.

Congratulations on entering the home staging business world! Sure, your main objective is to sell your client’s house the same day-ideally-at the highest price, with your attractive arrangement. But, many professionals love this type of work because of the artistic factor. You are not alone if you value creating an appealing space as much as landing the contract. This sort of profession is also great for people who do not want to pursue a formal degree, but still want to interior decorate.

Creating an attractive space does not have to cater to a few individual tastes; in fact, that would be detrimental in selling a house to a wide number of prospective buyers as possible. One factor in having a successful home staging business is creating attractive spaces that appeal to the general public, where individual buyers can picture themselves living in the house. But, popular trends as well as local trends should be considered, such as with choice of furniture or art, if you choose to rent such materials.

The grass can certainly seem greener when you look at the profession from the other side of the fence. The ease in starting and the lack of formal credentials required make it appealing to people who want to become self-employed. Also, the growing demand for redesigning services and the potential high profit is another lure. But home staging business demands a lot from you: Flexibility with sudden requests, lots of time marketing yourself, and an ability to think creatively and often on your feet. New ideas seem awfully simple until you try and work things out from scratch. The end result that transforms an ordinary room into a dream may seem obvious, but, more often than not, the result was through much hard work and lots of thinking.

If you are ready to get started, visit Decorate-Redecorate at http://www.decorate-redecorate.com to sign up for a tutorial course you can take at home. The learning company is based in Orange County, California, which has one of the biggest real estate markets in the U.S. Barbara Jennings, the owner, has been in the Home Staging business for 20 years. Jennings offers one-on-one advice for people who sign up for her training. The training is divided into several levels, depending on your interest and skill. The website also offers resources for self-promotion, leads on client, and an electronic newsletter for the latest in the industry.

Iprwire Staff Writer
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/welcome-to-the-home-staging-business-135761.html

The photos you put in your professional home staging portfolio are among the most important photos you will ever take. Your portfolio is used to show your prospective clients what a talented home stager you are, and whoever is looking at it is expecting dramatic transformations to justify investing in your home staging services.

Even great home stagers can detract from their portfolios (and in turn their own image) by simply not having the basic digital photography skills to make their photos fabulous. A good portfolio shot should demonstrate your Home Staging skills. A great photo will compel people to look at it because it says something. It should be well lit, straight, in focus, interesting and free of distracting details.

The following tips should improve the quality of your photos dramatically:

Think before you shoot. Get to know your camera. Take the time to set up some practice shots in your own home and experiment with shooting the same image from slightly different angles, with and without the flash, with the lights on and off, with and without a wide-angle lens, and even try standing on a chair or ladder to see how the shot will turn out. You can also try different resolutions settings. Before shooting your image, make detailed notes to remind you what you did. When you load the images on your computer and look at your notes you can compare what they look like on screen and when they’re printed. You’ll start to learn how your camera works and what can be accomplished by doing a couple of things differently.

Be mindful of these digital camera basics. We’re all in hurry these days, but when you’re shooting images for your portfolio, slow down a bit. Pay attention to how you’re holding your camera and be sure that you have it straight and you aren’t covering the lens or flash with your finger. Don’t move after focusing or while you’re shooting the image – move into position before you shoot and stay still. Avoid shooting towards a window because everything will come out too dark if you do.

If you can change the resolution setting, put it on the highest or next to highest setting and see what size the image will be. Usually an image size of 1 MB is sufficient quality for anything you’ll need in a portfolio. (You’ll use more memory at higher resolutions, so buy a larger memory card or even a second one so you won’t be stuck with insufficient memory when you’re on your shoot.) You will get a crisper more detailed image at higher resolutions, and you can always reduce the resolution later. If an image is shot at a low resolution originally, you can’t make it higher later. This is a problem if you want to make a printed image larger or if you need to supply images to the media.

In part two of this article series, you’ll learn about the importance of your attention to detail and capturing strong staging stories when taking photos for your home staging portfolio.

For help putting your portfolio together, the Staging Diva Ultimate Portfolio Guide can help you determine what to include in your portfolio and it has an entire chapter devoted to photography in staging.

Debra Gould
http://www.articlesbase.com/entrepreneurship-articles/staging-divas-top-photography-tips-for-home-stagers-part-1-755082.html

Are you looking forward to Christmas this year? If so, there is a good chance that you cannot wait until it arrives. While it is difficult, in fact impossible, to make Christmas come any sooner, there are ways that you can bring the Christmas spirit into your house before the holiday actually arrives. You can do this by decorating your home for Christmas.

When it comes to decorating for Christmas, there are many individuals who place a focus on one room and one room only. That room is likely the room in which their Christmas tree is in. While it is important to decorate your Christmas tree and the room that it is in, you should also think about decorating the rest of your home. In a small amount of time, you can easily show your appreciation for Christmas, in each and every room of your home.

Since, the room in which your Christmas tree is in was already touched on, it is best to focus on other rooms, besides your living room, family room, or den. Perhaps, it is best to focus on the bathroom. After all, it is one of the most used rooms in any home. If you are interested in decorating your bathroom for Christmas, you can often do so with a few small, yet affordable Christmas decorations. You can hang a Christmas picture in your bathroom or replace some of your bath towels with Christmas bath towels. If you want to, you could even replace your bathmat or shower curtain with one that has a Christmas theme.

The kitchen is another room that you could easily decorate for the Christmas holiday season. With the kitchen, like the bathroom, there are a number of low-cost ways that you can go about getting your decorating done. For instance, did you know that you can purchase Christmas themed potholders, over mitts, and kitchen towels for only a couple of dollars each? If money is not an issue, you may want to think about adding some Christmas themed kitchenware into the mix. For a little bit more money, but still a relatively affordable price, you should be able to find matching sets of bowls, plates, and cups that come with pre-designed Christmas themes.

You may also want to decorate the bedrooms in your home, especially if you have children. One Christmas decorating idea that all children love is Christmas lights. In fact, there are some children who decorate their rooms with Christmas lights all year long. Simply by hanging Christmas lights along the perimeter of your child’s room, you could easily help to create a Christmas-like feel in their room. If your child would prefer not to have Christmas lights in the bedroom, you could easily hang a small Christmas picture in their room. This picture can be a nice framed one or it can be one of the Christmas cardboard cutouts that you can purchase in a package at most dollar stores.

In addition to decorating the rooms inside your home, you may also want to think about decorating the outside of your home as well. If you are looking for a simply way to showoff your Christmas spirit, you could easily run Christmas lights along the outside of your home. There are special Christmas lights that are developed just for this purpose. If you would like to do more, you could also decorate your lawn for Christmas. A few Christmas yard signs may be nice; however, you can go even larger than that. There are a number of retail stores that sell large inflatable Christmas trees, reindeer, or Santas. No matter how much or how little decorating you do outside of your home, it may be a good idea to showcase your love for Christmas to your entire neighborhood.

The above mentioned Christmas decorating tips are just that, tips. If you want to decorate your whole home for Christmas, go right ahead; you will likely be pleased with your decision to do so. However, you don’t have to. For some individuals a simple Christmas tree is all the Christmas spirit that they need have.

David Riewe
http://www.articlesbase.com/advertising-articles/decorating-for-christmas-decorating-your-whole-home-80069.html

I ask the question following Hoylakes first staging of an open since 1967

9 courses are currently in the rota:
St Andrews
Muirfield.
Royal St George’s:
Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake
Royal Troon
Royal Lytham & St Annes .
Carnoustie Golf Links
Royal Birkdale
Turnberry