Home stagers, I’m so tired of one house after another filled with boring neutrals and nothing memorable.
It washes over me like a sea of nothingness.
I don’t remember any of the rooms or the houses.
During a home staging consultation, we can be so afraid to take a risk. So we stick with whatever is safe and totally neutral.
It won’t offend anyone, but it won’t excite them either.
I found this photo of a “Blue-Footed Boobie” on Facebook, shared by Greenpeace USA.
He blends nicely into his environment, but what makes him so amazing, lovable and memorable are his “blue suede shoes.”
That goofy look on his face that seems to say, “this is me” and the pop of color make all the difference!
He inspired me to create this color palette for your home staging, interior redesign and color consulting projects.
The typical home buyer might tour 6 houses in a day. At the end, they’ll try and remember what they saw.
If it was one big sea of beige, what will make one home stand out from another?
Boring won’t sell your home staging services either.
Boring home staging won’t help a property be memorable in a buyer’s mind. The same thinking should be applied to your brand image or company personality.
Is there something you can do to make your business memorable?
Perhaps it’s your home staging business name, or your logo.
Or maybe it’s a particular marketing strategy that makes you stand out from the pack?
Perhaps it’s how you communicate on social media or the home stager stories in your blog?
Beyond how you stage your clients’ homes, or market your business, I also see an analogy for how we live our lives.
Women, especially, are often raised to be people pleasers.
While we’re not all walking around in white gloves, pretty dresses just below the knee, and shiny high heel pumps the way many of our mothers did, there is still a lot of pressure to conform.
To not rock the boat.
To not let our own needs, talents and desires shine.
So we dull ourselves down not to stick out.
We play small and “follow the rules.”
We put everyone else’s needs ahead of our own and do what others expect of us.
If you never dress, say, or do anything that others might object to, you probably won’t have “haters.”
But you also won’t have raving fans or a business that reflects your purpose and passion.
Please add your thoughts in the comment section and share this post in social media if it struck a chord with you.
Debra Gould, The Staging Diva®
President, Six Elements Home Staging and Voice of Possibility Group Inc.
Debra Gould knows how to make money as a home stager and she developed the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program to teach others how to earn a living doing what they love. There are over 10,000 students in 23 countries learning her home staging business model. Debra is the best selling author of 5 guides including Staging Diva Ultimate Color Guide: The Easy Way to Pick Colors for Home Staging Projects.
Hi Debra, I think there’s a time for neutrals and a time for colour. I guess it’s back to listening to what the house needs. I’ve seen neutrals done beautifully and I’ve seen colour accenting gone very wrong. For me what makes a house memorable is the ‘can’t explain it’ emotional connection that buyers have when they view it. This is about making the house less like a display house and more like a potential home. It’s the difference between perfection and real, the difference between ‘staged’ and real. I do remember one piece of advice another stager gave me which was if in doubt take the braver option – whether this is colour or an oversized piece of art or an edgy coffee table in a more traditional space. Good advice!
Very well said Imogen, thanks so much for commenting! For anyone who doesn’t know, Imogen is a very gifted stager and so perfectly captures the magic of not “looking” staged. I wrote about this and featured one of her projects in this related article, Great Home Staging is Invisible.
Funny timing on this article. I’m currently writing a feature for my newsletter with this very theme. A staging client painted the wainscoting and trim in her bath black to blend with the tile. It was her favorite change, although the agent was not quite on the same page when I first suggested it at the consult.
Well, the house sold the first weekend and part of her testimonial stated, “The entire house looks great, but the bathroom is especially transformed. The black wainscoting looks amazing! What a major improvement. I wish I had known you 6 years ago. I could have spent more time enjoying these changes. Hope others are inspired to bravely follow your suggestions too.”
At first I too thought traditional (i.e. “safe”). But I’m so glad I broke out of my comfort zone and took a risk by suggesting the black. She loved the idea and we both agreed that it’s just paint. If we hated it we could always paint it a different color. Needless to say we went for it and it was a success!
The answer to fixing this boring and busy bath was just outside our comfort zone. And isn’t that almost always true for solving most of life’s challenges?
Susan I love the example you just shared, and you’re right that IS true of most of life’s challenges! Also love that you’re trying bold choices, means you’re really stepping into the power of your creativity!! So awesome, thanks for sharing!
Great post, and that picture really drives it home. So many colors blend well together or complement each other that it is real shame to stick to palette of only beige or gray throughout. I’ve used accessories of cobalt blue to offset gray/light rooms and orange to complement dark woods. Both were used sparingly but served to enhance the overall look. Pops of color can really help guide the eye around the room as well.
Love those examples. Thanks so much for commenting and sharing your experience Dee! Really appreciated!