Preparing your Spare Room for House Guests

Having house guests is a reality for almost everyone. Whether it’s family or friends, at some point everyone has been and will be a host to a guest in their home. Having people stay in your home can sometimes be challenging and in this blog, we will help you prepare your home to make your guests (and you!) as comfortable as possible.

When hosting family or friends, you want to make sure that they feel welcome and comfortable. Remember they are in an unfamiliar territory and are not necessarily relaxed living in someone else’s routine, rules and spaces. Do your best to make your home warm and welcoming.

Choose a convenient room.
Your guests don’t want to have to cross the whole house to get to the bathroom in the middle of the night. They also aren’t going to want to wake anyone else in the house by getting up. The most ideal situation would be a guest room with an attached bath, or at least next door. Convenience is key, and bringing people more out of their comfort zone is not what they want.

Create a warm retreat for your guests to sleep in.
A comfortable bed is a top priority. You want your guests to sleep well and feel refreshed. This may be a vacation for them! Make your guest room beautiful, comfortable and an experience they will remember. Outfit the bed with high quality sheets, a comfortable duvet or fluffy comforter, and lots of extra blankets. Having a variety of pillows is also a nice touch. Not everyone likes a soft pillow, so having a few to choose from will make the guest most comfortable.
Be sure to decorate in subtle prints and soothing colours. For many people, an abundance of bold colour in the bedroom is a distraction. It may be to your personal taste, but remember, you are not sleeping in here. For guest rooms, less is more. Of course, beautiful prints are lovely, but try and keep the colours more muted. It’s important to have a tranquil space. Your 80 year old grandma may have a heart attack if she walks into a lime green bedroom, and that doesn’t go over well with anyone.

Closets and drawers.
Have some closet space available in the guest room. Depending on the duration of their stay, this is something that will make them feel at home. A dresser is also a nice touch, living out of a suitcase for more than a few days is never fun. A full length mirror is a nice feature as well.

The extras.
If you have the space, a reading chair and side table is a nice addition to a guest space. It gives them a little retreat throughout the day to have quiet time to themselves. Have a few book and magazine options available for your guests, it will be nice for them and they will appreciate that you went out of your way to cater to them.
Having a clock in the room, as well as fresh flowers are nice touches that don’t clutter up the space.

Mandatory Bathroom Items.
Sometimes people forget things. Have extras available of all the necessities. Extra toothbrushes, toothpaste, feminine paper, deodorant, shampoo, soaps etc. Make sure there are adequate towels available. Plush, luxurious towels are a nice extra and will add to the guest experience.
If it is a shared bathroom, leave some space for your guest to leave their toiletries so they don’t have to bring their bathroom stuff back and forth for the duration of their stay.

Of course not everyone has the luxury of extra space. Do your best to find a private space for your guests and make it comfortable, using the suggestions above. Be thoughtful and be welcoming, and enjoy the company!

5 Easy Fixes to Make your Home 'Buyer-Ready'

5 Easy Fixes to make Your home More Appealing to Buyers

When it comes to selling your home you always want to have your best foot forward. and if it is a tough market you really cannot afford to be anything less than showcase perfect!

One of the secrets in catching the eye of potential buyers is to highlight the features of a home that are important to them. Showing buyers that you have what they need will help sell your home fast and get the best price.

But of course, not every home is perfect. You might not have the best location, neighborhood, space and other factors that are important in choosing a home. But those imperfections, especially the ones you have control over, should not hinder you from having a great showing.

We listed 5 tips that will make your home appeal to home shoppers:

#1 Style according to location advantages

There is little you can do about your property’s location. Instead of masking location disadvantages with adjectives in your listing, you can factor the location to your marketing plan. Is your address in a hip, urban location? You might want to stage your house in a way that it will appear attractive to young professionals. If your home is located near a high school, designing your home in a way that it will reflect the style that would appeal to a growing family is important. In short, visualize the needs and characteristics of a buyer and set up the property accordingly.

#2 Fix and repair before the showing

Before your first showing, make sure that everything is in working condition. Do you have leaking faucets or clogged pipes? Fix anything and everything that is broken because those become a major turn off. Prospective buyers wouldn’t want to figure out those repair needs themselves and they will just look at the listing down the road instead. If you are working with a realtor, ask them if they have a list of preferred professionals that they could recommend to fix those repairs around the home, or you can check out a recommendation website like Angie's List

#3 Make scents!

First of all, if there’s unpleasant odor in the property, get to the root of the problem and fix it! No one wants to live in a smelly house. Secondly, don’t overdo it with air fresheners. Most people like lemons so a bowl of lemons pierced with a fork will do the trick. Lightly scented candles are good as well, scents like fresh linen or clean laundry are usually safe bets. For cooler months, try bakes cookies or even just a bowl of water with cinnamon and sugar in the oven at a low temperature

#4 Sufficient lighting for every room

Buyers find bright rooms really attractive. Draw back the curtains, open the shades, and make use of artificial lighting if you need to.
A tried-and-tested technique to achieve the most balanced room lighting is to place three lighting sources in a triangular configuration. For example: a floor lamp, table lamp and ceiling light fixture are three sources of light in a room. Another tip is to replace dated lighting fixtures; an inexpensive and quick upgrade that can have significant impact on the look of a property. Remember when you are preparing for an open house have all of your lights turned on - the house will look and feel bigger and brighter!

#5 Declutter

When home buyers tour your house, you don’t want them to focus on the clutter. If you have personal belongings on display, like family pictures or collection, or just anything that will distract potential buyers, tuck these away. Think of it as a 'pre-pack', you will want to have those items with you at your next home, won't you?A second benefit to a properly decluttered space is that is makes the place look larger. Bigger is always better for buyers. A bigger space encourages them to imagine how they will add their own personal touch to the property and without your personal belongings, they can start to mentally move in with their things.

Best Fabrics for Re-Upholstering Furniture

Re-upholstering is a great way to re-fresh your furniture without the price tag of buying brand new. Many people will have this professionally done, while others will make this a DIY. Either way, it is a fabulous money saver and it’s a great way to recycle furniture. Reupholstering a piece of furniture yourself can save you hundreds of dollars, but the process can be a little tricky. We suggest finding a step by step guide in order to help you with your first time.

 

Many people wonder, “what is the best fabric for upholstering?” Well, there is many options, but they depend on your specific needs. Some aspects of choosing your upholstery fabric may seem obvious such as what colour do I want? What pattern do I like? Do I like the feel of this fabric? These are all things that need to be taken into account, but there are other factors to consider. When choosing upholstery, you should be aware of its durability, how to clean it and how resistant it is to dirt and whether it will fade in the sun or not.

Here are some fabrics frequently used for upholstery and their pros/cons.

 

Natural Fabrics

Linen:
-great for formal living rooms or adult areas because wrinkles easily and can become dirty fast.
-it won't withstand heavy wear.
-linen does resist pilling and fading.
-linen upholstery must be professionally cleaned to any avoid shrinkage.

Cotton Blend:
-depending on the weave, cotton blends can be sturdy, family-friendly fabrics.
-stain-resistant finish should be applied for everyday use.

Silk:
-a very delicate fabric and is only suitable for adult areas, such as formal living rooms.
-It must be professionally cleaned if becomes dirty.

Leather:
-can be gently vacuumed, damp-wiped as needed, and cleaned with leather conditioner or saddle soap.
-has great durability.
-higher price point than other fabrics but will last a long time if properly cared for.

Cotton:
-good resistance to wear, fading, and pilling.
-less resistant to soil, wrinkling, and fire.
-blending with other fibers often compensate for these weaknesses.
-durability and use depend on the weave and finish.
-damask weaves are formal.

Wool:
-sturdy and durable.
-wool is a 100 % sustainable material and will be recycled post use.
-wool and wool blends offer good resistance to pilling, fading, wrinkling, and dirt. -generally, wool is blended with a synthetic fiber to make it easier to clean and to reduce the possibility of felting the fibers, but wool can be used on its own.
-blends can be spot-cleaned when necessary.

Synthetic Fabrics

Acrylic:
- a synthetic fiber was created as imitation wool.
- acrylic is sold at a much lower price point than wool.
-it resists wear, wrinkling, dirt, and fading.
-low quality acrylic may pill in areas that receive high degrees of abrasion.
-higher quality acrylics are manufactured to pill considerably less.

Olefin:
- a fantastic choice for furniture that will receive heavy wear.
-there is no con to olefin, it has no weakness.

Polyester:
-rarely used alone in upholstery.
polyester is blended with other fibers to add wrinkle resistance, and reduce fading.

Rayon:
-developed as an imitation silk, linen, and cotton.
-rayon is durable.
-it will wrinkle.
-made high-quality rayon very practical and a great choice for upholstery.

 

Celebrity Style : Meg Ryan

Take a tour of Hollywood sweetheart Meg Ryan's 1889 San Francisco, California, home and delight in this Queen Anne-style abode, complete with six bedrooms, six and a half baths, a three car garage and views of the bay. Whether or not you can afford the $8,995,000 USD price tag, this is some real estate eye candy you can indulge in, guilt-free!

And for those who are interested to go from looking to buying, check out the real estate listing with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage.



 I love the mix of traditional and contemporary elements and the colour choices - soft cream tones with pops of blue, yellow and orange and pattern too. A chic and stylish home that maximizes on the fabulous view and still offers a warm and comfortable space.

We Answer Wednesdays - How to Hang Artwork

We Answer Wednesdays!

“I always have trouble hanging artwork and photos properly. What is the correct height to hang these items on your walls? And are there rules to hanging art?”

Hanging artwork and photo’s seems like it should be a simple task.. nail, hammer and go! But, not so fast. Hanging items on your walls at the incorrect height is one of the most common decorating mistakes people can make. Hanging artwork too high can negatively affect the proportions of the room and makes the room feel off. Hanging art too low can make the room look smaller and also proportionately just doesn’t make the room feel as spacious as it likely could. Also, use the correct hardware for the weight of the piece. Hanging a photo without the correct hardware can seriously damage the wall, so be sure to have a secure nail/screw/picture hook etc. before hanging anything.

There are a few things to consider when hanging art work and items on your wall.

1) Height:  The perfect height is between 5’2” and 5’-6” from the floor. This should be to the centre of the picture or grouping. This is the measurement that Museums and Art galleries typically use.
When hanging pictures above a sofa, leave approximately 6” to 8” space between the top of the sofa and the bottom of the picture.
Over a tabletop we recommend you allow 10” to 12” between the table surface and bottom of the picture. This space can be adjusted if you have lamps or other items on the table, which will add height visually, as well as interest.

 

2) The size of the art vs the size of the wall: Proportion is key. Hanging an oversize piece of art on a small wall may look off. Similarly, hanging a small piece of art on a very large wall will look not proportioned. There is no specific rule on which size art should go on which size wall, but we suggest holding the piece up before making a bunch of holes in your walls. Having someone hold the piece up and looking from a few feet back will give most people a sense of how the
piece looks in that specific location. Oversized art can also look great, and at the end of the day, it is your home. So do what you love.

 

3) Gallery Walls: Groupings are most effective if they are hung with some symmetry in mind. Ideally, creating a square or rectangular shaped display is most visually pleasing but frame sizes will likely vary, and you won’t have a perfectly shaped outline. Try to space the frames 4” apart for maximum effect. When creating Gallery Walls, we recommend some sort of cohesive effect between the photos. Frames all in the same colour, the mats inside the frame being the same, maybe all the photo’s being black and white. Something should tie the photos together, unless of course you are trying to achieve a very eclectic look. 

 

4)UV Rays: Try to protect your artwork from UV light, as the sun fades artwork. Depending on how treasured your art piece is, be mindful of heat and humidity as well. Avoid hanging pieces in a humid bathroom or over a heat register as this could potentially damage valued artwork.