The staged home, part I
… back when I was looking at houses to buy, I didn’t realize that there even was a term for the art of decorating a house for sale so that it looked inviting. I do remember looking at some houses with the owners still living in them that were off-putting as they were dingy, crowded, and run-down. Fifteen years later, I still remember one home in Mililani with an awesomly crammed closet, one that made the whole bedroom seemed crowded and a little sad. It was only the new homes in Mililani that had the “staging” - furniture and decoration brought in to give people an idea of what it would be like to live in that house. In the early days, these staged homes looked somewhat contrived, but as we continued to look over the months and years, the new model that came on line became stunning. In fact, these Mililani homes looked so good that they launched the career of Shari Saiki, who decorated many of them, and became a professional stager and opened her own furniture store, mesh.
You’d think that staged homes might come across as sterile or fake, but aside from an unnerving lack of books (if there aren’t any books, can it truly be called a home?), they actually looked gorgeous and inviting. Oh, yeah, maybe not always to my taste - I like my art to reflect who I am, not just be a six-foot gilded Maori warrior carving used to fill a space — but Shari had a knack for making you see the negative space in the room - not just her well-selected furnishings, but the space surrounding them, so her homes looked elegant, fun, serene, and peaceful.
Now that I’m toying with the idea of moving - several years down the road, to be sure - and though that, the idea of caring for my house, and treating it like a prized possession to be passed on, not a shell I’m going to carry on my back forever. I’m starting to think of things to do now, which I would also enjoy, but that would improve its value down the road. Like wood floors - I’ve yearned to have a real wood floor for quite some time, and have even spent way too long mooning over and finally selecting the flooring of my dreams (now, alas, to be discontinued). Instead of thinking (and saving) for it as a luxury for myself, far down the road, now I’m thinking of it as an investment to be made, sooner rather than later, that I can enjoy and that will cause potential buyers to croon.
Hmm. I’m liking this idea, even though it strikes me as slightly paradoxical.