Personalize Your Home Painting

Interior wall colors are not just about red, green or yellow. It is a sophisticated world of different shades that create a unique personality for every room. Wall colors and patterns influence the mood, style and appearance of your house.

In my opinion choosing the right colors, shades, or patterns is very important as it will give the whole place a special tone that is in harmony with your own character.

When we decide painting the interiors, we either rush to the paint shop and look for the latest shades, or paint the room with our favorite colors. There is hardly any thought whether this choice will suit the place or not. Usually we end up wasting money without getting the desired result. This can be very frustrating.
To spare you this, there are few aspects to consider; the utility of the room, the light it receives during the day, the style and colors of furniture, the size of the room, and finally the color strategy.

Which Room....
For each room there is a mood, and for each mood there is an appropriate color group. For living rooms, or any place to relax in it is preferred to use cool colors. These colors reflect a restful and relaxing environment.

While for a formal sophisticated space with a dramatic touch, use dark, rich colors such as deep taupe, or sapphire blue. In dining rooms deep reds will arouse appetite. Using warm colors in office spaces can be stimulating and energizing. But it is important to be careful as too much warm colors can be agitating for the work environment.

Primary colors like white, yellow, blue and red usually create playful environment for kids.

For kitchens, yellow is a very good choice as it gives a cheery mood, which makes cooking fun.

Finally, for bedrooms, the pastel colors are always a great choice. Pastes mainly promote romantic and dreamy surrounding for a peaceful sleep.

Furniture Style and Colors....
If your furniture, carpets, and floorings are colorful using Neutrals colors like taupe, beige, or grey can elegantly blend all the other colors. Otherwise playing with wall colors and scheme can emphasize the furniture beauty.

Lighting...
Rooms that receive direct sunlight are preferred to be painted with natural colors to give a fresh mood. Using bright colors for rooms with no direct sun light brighten up the room cheerfully.

Color and Size...
Pale colors tend to recede visually while deep and dark colors appear to visually advance. If your want your space to appear larger, use light the colors for walls and floor. Meanwhile to reduce the sense of space in one, or all directions, dark colors are very effective.

Color Strategy....
These strategies can be very tricky, yet if effectively applied, the outcome will be stunning.

1. Complementary colors; this is two colors that are in total contrast, for example, red and green, purple and yellow, and blue and orange, etc. The effect is always stimulating and dramatic. This is the scheme of choice for many schools as it induces an energetic and uplifting mood.

2. Monochromatic colors; these are basically one color with different shades ranging from light to dark. The effect of this scheme is very soothing and easy on the eye, especially with green and blue hues. Actually it creates harmonious flow which is very suitable for living rooms.

3. Analogous color scheme; which is using three adjacent colors on the color wheel. Usually one color is predominant and the other two are used to enhance the overall color scheme. This color scheme is used for dramatic highlights

Once you have considered these factors all together, you will be able to form a distinct look for every room and for the entire house all together. It is amazing how many things you can do with just a touch of color. All this power in a can of paint!

Preparing a Property for Selling

If you have a property for sale, you will want your house to look as appealing as possible to potential new buyers. There are some simple and cost-effective steps you can follow to ensure your house looks at its best.

The first place potential buyers will see is the exterior of your property; first impressions count so make sure your garden and the area leading to your front door are neat and tidy. Make sure you mow the lawn and keep the garden looking easily maintainable as buyers often look for an easy-to-manage garden. If you don't have time to do the gardening work yourself, you could hire a gardener to tidy things up for you. Adding a few new hanging baskets or plants near to the entrance of your home will definitely catch the eye of your viewers. Once you have your garden sorted, take a look at your neighbour's garden(s) - are they tidy? Buyers will look at neighbouring properties and if your neighbour's garden is filled with clutter it will put people off investing in your property. It might be worth having a quick word with your neighbour if their garden is a little messy and offering to help them tidy it (without offending them, of course). It's also a good idea to give your window frames a lick of paint if they need it and to give the gutters a clean. Quick, easy and cost-effective jobs like these can make a huge difference to the aesthetics your property.

A few hours before you know people are coming to view, you should open the windows to air out your house and eradicate any odours. Any little extra touches you can add are a bonus - fluffy towels in the bathroom, fresh flowers on the windowsill or an air freshener in the bathroom - all of these take minimal effort but are very effective in winning over potential buyers.

Make sure your kitchen is clean and sparkling, no one wants to look at a grease-laden oven or dirty fridge so make sure you thoroughly scrub all kitchen appliances. It is a good idea to de-clutter your kitchen, especially if small, to keep it looking spacious and orderly. It's always a bonus if buyers can imagine their things in space of yours so leave them the opportunity to do so.

Think about what you'd like to see in a potential home, if you were looking for a property to buy that was covered in dust and unclean, it would be a serious turn-off. Give your house a good spring clean, dust everything, give all carpets a thorough hoover, polish mirrors and wipe down windows and doors to get rid of any grubby finger-prints.

Finally, take a critical look at your home and fix any DIY jobs you've put off doing - fill in any cracks in walls, replace broken light bulbs and give the spare bedroom a paint. If you have any outlandish colours in your house it's best to replace them with neutral shades; not everyone will have the same taste as you so keeping everything neutral is the safest option. This will allow to the buyers to imagine their own colour schemes.

It's useful to get a friend to look at your house and give their honest opinion on what could do with changing, being replaced or being removed. Take their suggestions into consideration along with the above tips and you should find a prospective buyer in no time.

Ian Grainger is writing on behalf of Shepherd Gilmour, estate agents Manchester.

Features Buyers Are Looking for in Homes

Every home buyer has a pre-selected list of requirements for a home they're going to buy. That includes desired location, price range, number of bedrooms, preferably outdoor patio area, etc. But what else captures buyers' attention when they are shopping for a new place to live? Here is the list of things buyers will look at, that will influence their decision on purchasing the property.

1. Homes that are in move-in condition. Let's face it: not a lot of people want to invest their time and money into renovations. Messy rooms, inability to use the space, material and labour challenges - this all does not look attractive to anybody at all. Buyers think: "I'd rather pay a little extra for the house that's in a move-in condition upon purchase, rather than take money out of my pocket after I move in." Plus doing a renovation can be a real challenge to one's family relationship. So if you want to sell yr home fast and for top dollar you should at least make all those smaller repairs throughout the house that you neglected to do before and finish all the renovation projects before putting your home on the market.

2. Open concept homes. For the last couple of years we've seen a rising demand for smaller but more functional homes. Big houses with single purpose rooms and huge square footage are being replaced by well-organized multi-purpose open concept homes. This new approach dictates a new philosophy in organizing and decorating living spaces, which many interior designers, decorators and home stagers are successfully implementing in their work.

3. Updated fresh decor. Freshly painted walls, updated floors and tiles, modern backsplash - this all adds value into your home. Buyers want to feel that they are getting a new home, despite that it was built over 40 years ago. But if you don't plan to loosen yours purse strings on major renovations in this case new updated home accessories can do the trick. Modernize your home with new wall art, light fixtures, vases, decorative pillows and different knick-knacks. It will help you create a younger "spirit" of your home. A professional home stager will help you get the desired look with minimal investment.

4. Outdoor living spaces. A new trend of expanding the living space outdoors has been gaining its popularity more and more. People are looking for spaces where they can eat, relax or entertain their guests alfresco. Backyards are being transformed into fully fledged living and dining areas, beautifully decorated and multi-functional. This is why those who are planning to put their homes on the market need to pay extra attention to the outdoor space and show it at its best or at least show the potential hidden in the space.

5. Luxurious bathrooms and remodelled kitchens. Whether you want it or not buyers expect to see modern updated kitchen with high end stainless steel appliances, granite or solid surface man-made countertops and marble or glass tile backsplash. Coveted bathroom features include: double sinks, whirlpool tubs, separate shower stands with multiple showerheads, new vanities. You can get a spa-like feeling by displaying new white fluffy towels, candles, glass vases with sea shells and flowers.

6. Well organized storage system. With an increasing demand of smaller homes there's been an absolute need for a good storage. Either for a small or large walk-in closets, invest in a good built-in organization system. There are a several companies offering quite affordable and stylish systems, allowing you to customize it according to your needs.

Of course there are a lot of additional features that can be included in this list, but we wanted to highlight only those that make the most dramatic effect on the appearance of a home and, if improved, make the highest return on investment.

For more information and advise on staging a home for sale please contact Studio 74, Toronto area Home Staging and Redesign company.

Eve Rusakova is the owner and primary stager at Studio 74, a certified home staging company located in Toronto. Studio 74 offers occupied and vacant home staging, redesign, color consulting, space planning, interior decorating services. Please visit us online: http://www.stagingstudio74.com.

Home Staging Design Information

Home staging has now become vital for anyone selling a residential property today, your home is a valuable asset and a major investment. Sellers must understand the important role that home staging plays in the selling process. By having your home staged it will be presented competitively and at its best. Prepare your home in a way that maximizes your sale or rental potential by making your home appealing and attractive to your target audience, impressing your prospective buyers. Home staging involves the procurement and placement of furniture and accessories in order to illustrate the size, opportunity, functionality and livability of a home. Professional decorators are an integral and important part of the process allowing the vision of the agent and the seller to be illustrated to the potential buyers directly without the need to rely upon abstract or imagination. Home Staging is now generally recognized as an important and necessary step toward the successful sales strategy of any home.

While do-it-yourself home staging has become popular in recent years, competitive market forces have caused the cost of talented home staging professionals to come well within the reasonable reach of the average home seller. Sellers generally believe that the cost of a professional home staging artist is far more than covered by the increased price obtained as the result of the increased interest in the home that results from proper staging.

Interior design reflects our love of design, natural surroundings, quality, value, function and comfort. Whether traditional or contemporary, rustic or urban chic, it must be enjoyed, the visual importance of great furniture, accessories, art, and those must have finishing touches. Every client has unique needs and objectives. The success is built on taking time to understand these needs and delivering a personalized solution to enhance your environment. The focus of any interior redesign service is to make the space more beautiful and functional for the people who use it.

Depending on your needs and wants, we'll either use the furniture and accessories you already own or purchase additional new furniture and accessories to breathe new life and energy into your home. Whether you need one room done or your whole home, interior redesign will create a space that will be beautiful, functional, and more balanced for you and your family.

Every project undertaken, from full service interior design for residential or commercial premises for one-day decorating consultations and event design, each underlines the belief that a well designed room starts with a solid foundation, but only becomes livable when it embraces function and the unique personality of the people who will inhabit it within every element of style.

Buyers are responding more than ever to update homes they can move right into. Staging a home creates "perceived value", generates buzz and helps your home stand out from the competition.

While appealing design is always in style, Marketing directly to your buyer demographic is achieved by knowing what not to add to the decor. When staging a home for sale, less is more. The more space we show, the more value your home has to buyers.

Jonathan Tajo is a home staging expert. For more great information on home staging design, visit http://www.tipsonhomestaging.com