A dream is a wish your heart makes when you’re fast asleep. Whatever you wish for, you keep. Have faith in your dreams, and someday, your rainbow will come smiling through. No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dreams that you wish will come true—Cinderella, 1950.
Cinderella believed in dreams, but she was also lucky enough to have a Fairy Godmother at her disposal. Do you ever wish you had one, too? She’d throw a little pixie dust around and transform your cluttered, dark, closed-in space into a sparkling, fresh, modern home? One that buyers are frothing to purchase?
Well, let me introduce myself — Jill Vegas, Resident Fairy Godmother, at your service. I’d love to share some of my favorite magic wand staging tips with you.
For starters, clutter eats equity. My client Lisa (not her actual name) lives in a beautiful, sprawling pre-war apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The architectural details are simply gorgeous. However, there is clutter EVERYWHERE, making it impossible for potential buyers to see the actual space.
A few examples:
-Piano in a narrow foyer = bad idea. This is true for any oversized furniture shoved into a tight space. Hello, claustrophobia.
-An overflowing coat rack with rain coats, sweaters, hats, handbags = visual no-no. It’s a nice idea to have a coat rack but limit it to a few items.
-Closets jam-packed with mismatched hangers and miscellaneous STUFF = no room for potential buyers to imagine their own items in closet. Use one style of hanger (recycle the wire dry cleaning hangers) and remove 2/3 of the contents inside. Nothing on the floors. Leave a shelf empty for the buyer’s imagination.
Re-do the bed. This is an easy, do-it-yourself MUST that will provide a five-star vibe in the bedroom. It’s like swapping out your tired winter jacket for a new summer dress. Breathe new life into your bedroom with new bedding. Pamper yourself with luxurious Italian sheets. Buy a new comforter and pillows for your bed. Buyers will love it.
If you get stressed over what bedding to purchase, I’ve recently partnered with an Italian manufacturer to create my own bedding collection for a no-fuss, no-stress solution when it comes to dressing your bed for maximum resale value. Check out this bedroom makeover if you need inspiration.
Keeping with the de-cluttering theme, strip down your bedroom to the bare essentials — nothing under the bed. And get rid of everything you haven’t used in the last three months by donating to charity. The trick is to figure out the absolute essentials of the room. Everything else goes.
In the fresh, de-cluttered bedroom, such as the one pictured below, the room includes only a bed, a reading area and a nightstand. Keep things open and soft by hanging simple white sheers.
Once de-cluttered, try painting the room. For a dreamy, ethereal sleep, all white can be too stark. Layering-on textures makes the room inviting.
Or, create an instant reading nook. Find a nice chair or bench for sitting and reading, accompanied by a table and lamp. Voi·là. You can stack the New Yorker on the table and a good book or two (my favorites right now are short stories by Grace Paley).
Fresh flowers are another way to bring the summer indoors. They add a burst of color and you can pick them up at any deli or grocery store.
So here’s my advice — if you’re dreaming big like Cinderella but paralyzed at where to start, think about giving your room a quick update. Or, if you’re really stuck, give me a holler. Everyone needs a Fairy Godmother every once in a while.
jill vegas 