3 Ways to Define a Hinsdale Living Room When Staging a Property for Sale

A living room is a place to entertain, relax and spend time with loved ones inside your home—so of course, it’s one of the main areas that should be staged when it comes time to put your home on the market. This room can be formal or informal depending on if the property also has a family room to gather in.

As a home stager, it’s important to clearly define a design style inside this room, especially if it’s the first or second room buyers may see upon walking into the property. This room needs to connect with a Hinsdale homebuyer by creating a few positive emotions such as warmth and elegance in order to get them to make an offer.

Chicagoland Home Staging knows the importance of sectioning off these large spaces to create intimate functional zones that can stand-alone, yet provide a cohesive feel across the entire floor plan if inside an open layout. Here are three ways to help define these popular spaces:

Define a Seating Area That Sparks Conversation

Start by defining the focal point of the room, in this case, the fireplace pictured above is what our staging team wants to highlight in the room. A rug not only can create a statement in a room, but it anchors all of the furniture together, defining the area around the fireplace. But, it’s important to make sure you get the right size. Measure the room before purchasing an area rug, it should allow for at least the furniture’s front feet to rest on the rug. An area rug should mimic the style of the room. In this room, we chose a textured rug that mimics the marble around the fireplace.

Shape Variations Enhance a Room

Another way to define an open floor plan is to use a variety of furniture and accessories to add depth and interest in the space. Rather than use a matching furniture set to define the space opt for unique pieces or break up the set, as we did in this room. Notice we also used different shapes in each area too. We used a rounded back neutral furniture set to create a modern feel that appears to maximize the square footage in the space. The tables and accessories in this living area are a series of spheres and rectangles which help highlight the shape of the room.

Our Favorite Accessories to Add Personality

Using accessories is what subconsciously connects a buyer to a property.  These are just some of the items that can help make a “house” feel like “home” when it comes time to stage the property. Think about displaying items you’d usually find in living rooms:

Wall Art – The types of wall art are endless it just depends on how creative you can be. You can use photographs, canvas artwork, mirrors, ironwork, tapestry, baskets, lettering or decals on your wall to make a statement. Try display a unique piece on your wall, but make sure to keep the buyers in mind.

Books – When displaying books, pack away any paperback books, along with any book covers from hardbound spines. This way your books will provide a cleaner appearance on a surface or shelf.

Lamps – Table lamps come in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes so choose something the matches your home’s design style. The lamp’s size should also be proportionate to the other items being displayed in the room. Having at least three light sources strategically placed around the room will provide ample light come nightfall.

Throw pillows – Choose to display pillows that can compliment your couch or accent chair. A throw pillow can accentuate a color highlighted in another accessory. Mix and match different sizes, patterns and textures to create a complex look with ease.

Vases – When finding the right vase choose one that you love with or without flowers. Think of a vase, like jewelry it can help highlight a feature of your home and create a statement all on it’s own. Just check out the vase duo in varying heights displayed on the table above. Not much else is needed to catch a homebuyer’s eye.

Sculptures – This accessory can be found in metal, wood or even ceramic to help define the story you’re trying to show off in a room to highlight a lifestyle. Who knew a sculpture could do all that? Consider researching your potential buyer before purchasing sculptured accessories to subliminally appeal to the buyer ultimately attracting an enticing offer.

Need help staging your Hinsdale living room? Contact us today we’d be more than happy to assist you with all your home staging needs.