5 staging trends to make your home pop
Pops of Color
Nearly two in three home owners say they want more color in their home, according to Sherwin-Williams’ 2015 National Home Design and Color Survey of 1,450 home owners. Stagers are using “movable colors” — bringing in on-trend color pops through toss pillows and small accents such as candles — to offer color that can easily be swapped out when sellers move out, Schwarz says. Paint companies have crowned purple hues the color of the year, and it’s often being paired with other home accents in olive, turquoise, and light yellows. Blue accents are also hot, such as soft indigo, bright turquoise, and darker navy. Slinkey notes that there’s a “navy comeback,” as navy serves more as a neutral to decors, paired with everything from corals to yellows.
Mood Lighting
Lamps are a hot home accessory warming up interior spaces this season, adding artistic and mood-boosting touches. Lamps “create ambiance and the feeling of space, and also can be used to add pops of color. A rustic lamp or glass ceramic lamp can add texture and warmth to a space,” Slinkey says. Plain wrought iron lamps with ivory shades for table tops or floors can offer a modern edge to a room. So can table lamps with more flair, such as metallic or glass lamps that have colorful, patterned lampshades. Lighting is always part of Stern’s checklist when staging a home because it can make a big difference to a space.
Mismatches
To break up the monotony of a space, stagers are mismatching furnishings, fabrics, and colors. For example, non-matching chairs around a dining table can add more visual interest to an area, Slinkey says. End chairs may be swapped out for chairs in a contrasting style. Kitchen islands in a different color than the wall cabinets also is gaining popularity and can turn this kitchen feature into a focal point. My stager-Joanna had the kitchen island in one of her properties painted gray to compliment the white cabinets. The gray island “grounds and warms the space,” Joanna says. “If it were white, in this particular home, it might look too stark, too white, too bland, and too boring.”
Outdoor retreats
Stagers are devoting more attention to outdoor spaces. Nearly 63 percent of residential architects said interest in outdoor living areas is increasing, according to the 2013 American Institute of Architects’ Home Design Trends survey. Some of the most in-demand outdoor features include seating/dining areas, fire features, grills, and decorative water elements. Professionals recommend carving out three spaces when staging a deck and yard: a dining area with tables and chairs; a cozy seating area, such as a group of chairs around a fire pit; and a peaceful retreat with gravel or stepping stones leading to a garden with a small table or a bench overlooking a water feature.
All That Shimmers
Add some bling to your space. Silver, the flashier cousin to gray, is adding shine to interiors this season, according to the Paint Quality Institute’s 2016 color forecast. Gold and titanium also are joining the mix. Metallic can make rooms more luxurious, from silver and gold trays, lamps, and metallic-framed art to oval-shaped mirrors and metallic detailing on throws and pillow fabrics. Warm gold and brass are making a comeback, mostly in small doses, such as a vintage gold-framed mirror, says Slinkey. Metallic offer shine that can lighten dark spaces, particularly when paired with glass, which has long been a stager’s favorite accent.