Becky Neale

Alternative ways to create a gallery wall

28 September, 2016 by Becky Neale

Incorporating a gallery wall in your space is a great way to make a stylish statement. Forget normative home-decor “rules,” and try one of these alternative methods to display your favorite art.

1. Asymmetrical

Gather your favorite pieces and place them at random, eyeballing their placement instead of measuring out precisely where to put each piece.

Image via Coco Lapine Design

2. Minimalist

Who says a gallery wall has to include loads of pictures? Break the rules by having a grouping of only 2-3 pieces for a minimalist inspired gallery wall.

Images via Coco Lapine Design

3. Suspended

Have some extra string lying around? This option is great for when you want to limit the amount of holes you put in your wall.

Image Found via My Scandinavian Home

4. 3-D

A gallery wall can include so much more than posters and canvases! Mix in other elements such as masks, mirrors, flora & fauna (and anything else that inspires you) to create depth.

Image via Design Milk

5. Leaning

Another alternative way to create a gallery wall is by not hanging your pictures at all! Just gather a few of your favorite pieces and lean them against any wall for a (stylish) less-put-together look.

Image via Coco Lapine Design

Source:cocolapinedesign.com

Give your home the WOW factor

27 September, 2016 by Becky Neale

GET READY FOR SALE

The busy real estate season has arrived and buyers are out in force. With warmer weather and a better chance of blue skies, it’s a great time to sell your home. But there is a lot more competition around at this time of the year. Which is why you need to make sure your home stands head and shoulders above the rest.

If your property doesn’t grab buyers from the first moment, then it is easily forgotten and therefore less saleable. The more demand you create from keen buyers who fall in love with your home, the higher the price you can achieve. Presentation is key.

The Living Edge sales team can help you put your buyer’s hat on, by walking through your home with you and pointing out things as if it were the first time you have seen it.

Living Edge designer Lucy Miles says, “With enhancement staging, we can advise on simple changes that can be made to freshen spaces or disguise faults.

“It can be as basic as a couple of artworks, some smart cushions and contemporary accessories that create a cohesive theme. But we can also take your home to the next level by totally transforming it with a complete fit-out of fresh furnishings for a whole new look.

“Full staging involves completely removing the owner’s furniture to give a blank canvas ready to create almost any look or feel the owners want to portray, depending on the buyer group their agent wants to target in the marketing campaign.

“For example, a character villa style of home that is partly furnished may have a traditional look. But if we removed the existing pieces we could start over ensuring a stronger impact with a fresh new look specially tailored to a more focused audience for that particular area. This involves styling the home to create the x-factor. It could be a refined glamour look using antiques and metallic. It might be cool Scandi chic or perhaps an eclectic contemporary look that juxtaposes new and old.

“If the home was built in the 50, 60s, 70s or any specific time period, we could have some fun by dressing it up for a contemporary retro look. It depends on who we believe the potential buyers are likely to be.”

The aim is to choose one or two key pieces for each room to anchor the scheme. Then Living Edge stylists build up the layers, pulling together a well-coordinated look throughout every area of the home, from living areas, to bedrooms and bathrooms to highlight your home’s best features.

Bedrooms suddenly look more inviting with crisp linen, luscious throws, elegant bedside lamps and cushions. Likewise, in bathrooms – gorgeous mirrors, fresh towels, lightly scented soaps, flowers, aromatic candles – all lend a welcoming ambience to seduce potential buyers. By creating the ‘wow factor’ with unexpected surprises and buyers will register in a very positive way.

Living Edge also pays attention to outdoor spaces, helping to extend the living into your garden. Beautiful contemporary and traditional furniture creates a look that lends a seamless flow from interiors to exteriors. Thought goes into arranging the furniture to focus on a stunning view or detract a buyer’s gaze from the neighbour’s ugly shed.

“If we decide enhancement staging is all that is required, then we look at things like the scale of your furniture,” says Lucy. “Bulky items inhibit the traffic flow and make rooms feel smaller. You may need to lose an occasional chair to open up a room during open homes. If there are 40 people going through the space at one time, the traffic flow in your spacious living area suddenly seems very cramped. Those are things many homeowners often don’t consider.”

Just by rearranging items of furniture to bring as much natural light inside as possible can make a huge difference. “As we walk through your home, we take note of whether specific areas might look more appealing with the addition a table or floor lamp, so they feel lighter, warmer and more welcoming.”

The Living Edge team discuss all areas that need attention, indoors and out. This may involve advice on tackling your ‘to do list’, fixing leaky taps and squeaky doors, cleaning, painting, tidying, reorganising and decluttering.

If you’ve lived in your home for years, you may no longer notice if clutter has crept in. With our fresh eyes, we instantly see spaces more clearly and can advise on paring back so that you allow buyers to soak up the beautiful feeling of space your home offers. Our team can suggest what to take away and what to leave to ensure personal items don’t detract from a buyer’s ability to envisage themselves living in your home.

Once our sales team has visited (with the sales agent) and we’ve identified who the buyers might be, we prepare a comprehensive plan for our interior specialists to work with. Then we decide which furnishings could be used to update and enhance your home through home staging.

When it comes to selling a home, preparation is key. It takes time and skill. But home staging through Living Edge makes getting your home ready for sale easy, especially for people who might live overseas. Everything is taken care of, right down to the finer details, so preparing your home for the market is neither stressful nor overwhelming.

We can get you on track to ensure you maximize the value of your home with a quick and easy sale and a great price at the end of the process. Call us now. 09 630 0066.

How to Create Dream-time Bliss in the Bedroom

27 June, 2016 by Becky Neale

Nights are getting chillier as the dreaded winter sets in. Chances are, you’ll be spending longer between the sheets over the next few months. So if your bedroom is looking drab, it might be time to give it a boost by introducing some soothing romantic appeal. Here’s how to create your own little sanctuary of dream-time indulgence.

Lucy Miles, head interior stylist at Living Edge is an expert at upping the ante in the bedroom stakes. She has a fantastic eye and loads of experience in styling beautiful bedrooms every day. Lucy knows exactly what’s on trend.

Texture is always big in bedrooms, she says. “As we come into winter, start pulling in cosy layers that add depth – throws, Mongolian now sheepskins, voluptuous double sided duvets with contrasting textures and patterns, an ottoman at the end of the bed.” It’s a sumptuous look that wouldn’t be right in summer.

Colours that add romance include soft beige, greys and biscuits. “We’re also using a lot of soft golds, lilacs and rose – a really soft almost ballet pink. If you want to create a feeling of drama then bring in heavier colour accents of black, deep inky blue or metallic charcoal.”

Soft lighting is also key – whether it’s suspended on lamps, on bedsides or wall-mounted. “Anything in fabric will soften the room and at Living Edge, we can custom-make shades to suit the room’s decor. You can always have some fun trying a bit of DIY, perhaps adding beautiful antique fringing or delicate pom poms around the bottom of the shade.”

Candles of course add mood lighting, but they also give off a beautiful aroma. “It’s good to have a natural life element. A small vase of some kind of floral gives a breath of life to a room and there’s nothing nicer than a Mor candle or a diffuser.”

For each room she is staging, Lucy tries to give it its own personality with a colour theme and a layered look. She starts with a valance, sheets, duvet and a second duvet, which she rolls or drapes over the end of the bed for height. She adds a headboard in cane, velvet or linen to frame the bed. “Upholstered headboards are big. We’re broadening our range and getting them custom-made in gorgeous velvets.”

Next, Lucy brings in Euros – at least a single – then a cluster of standard pillows in contrasting colours and textures. After that she adds bedside tables and a set of lamps. To get the stunning look for which Living Edge is renowned, every room is beautifully coordinated to tell a cohesive story. Nothing is random.

If you’re not comfortable putting a bedroom look together, Living Edge has stylists who can help you make your room look divine.

“They come in, look at the room and what else is in the home, talk to the client about what they like and whether they’ve seen an image that are inspired by – and go from there. We can source all product from scratch, providing interior design and furniture packages. Often though, we work with a client’s existing furniture, pieces they already have in their home. If we see something we can utilise in a new way, we’re not afraid to use it.

“A few months ago, we were in a home and found these incredible dressing screens with beautiful tapestry insets. We used three as headboards and they completely set the scene, adding fantastic drama. It’s really fun to utilise something the client already owns in a different way or working with their drapery and building a story around it. When you live with something you often get used to it. It takes a new eye to see it.”

Though a few accessories personalise bedroom spaces, less is definitely more in the bedroom. Lucy says, it needs to be cosy, but she prefers the intimate bedroom space to be less cluttered. Paring back ensures a calm, serene ambience that’s not as busy as the rest of our lives.

And what could be more delicious than slipping between crisp white bedlinen and surrounding ourselves in layers of feel-good luxe without everyday distractions to help us dream better at night.

Get Market Ready…

19 June, 2016 by Becky Neale

When it comes to preparing your property for market, Market Ready provides the expertise you need.

Our preferred property preparation company, Market Ready offers a variety of services from interior and exterior painting, through to water blasting, landscaping, and exterior cleaning.

Owner/Operator, Ian Morrow has more than twenty years of experience in property management and maintenance to his name, including a seven-year career in real estate. Property preparation is Ian’s passion, and he and his team have an impressive understanding of the property market, knowing just what it takes to leave a lasting impression.

For more information, head to the Market Ready website. And while you’re there, check out the gallery too. We promise you won’t be left unimpressed…

10 Reasons to use Living Edge First

3 May, 2016 by Becky Neale

Experience Counts – with 16 years in the industry, we have an impeccable reputation for a high quality service, so you can trust us. We have built relationships with plenty of happy clients whose testimonials offer many reasons why you should use Living Edge. Check out our real estate gallery listings to see some of the incredible transformations we have made to help sell clients’ homes.

Trained Designers – our interior design team are creative stylists with impressive qualifications and credentials. They bring together a now diverse array of international and domestic experience in both residential and commercial design. Having such a strong team allows Living Edge Interiors to provide a truly tailor-made experience for every client.

Understand Buyer Mentality – preparing and selling your home can be a stressful and overwhelming process. We know that well-prepared homes sell faster and for a better price, and our creative stylists know what needs to be done to get your home ready for sale. In order to sell quickly, your home must be well presented. A positive first impression is critical. Our stagers focus on highlighting your home’s best features and making sure your home stands apart from the competition.

Import Our Own Furnishings – Living Edge owner/director Sharon Laffan spends considerable time travelling overseas to personally select just the right, high quality furnishings that are right on-trend.

Vast Range of Furnishings – stocked with one of the most comprehensive collections of furnishings available to any home stager, Living Edge can always complete a project so that it looks amazing.

Own Our Own Trucks – staffed by Living Edge, our trucks are reliable, offering consistent delivery times. They arrive to schedule and because the drivers are staff, they care about you. They’re accountable – giving clients a sense of security and peace of mind.

In-house Interior Design Service – from curtains and blinds to custom-made furniture, we can tailor a design scheme to suit your individual needs. That can involve anything from a short three hour consultancy service to a full-on spatial plan to create a look for an entire home with all furnishings provided.

Abreast of Trends – interior design trends are constantly changing. We are always looking ahead for new style directions that make our clients look smart, sophisticated and better than the competition.

In Your Neighbourhood – we work in Auckland and the wider area. While our warehouse is based in Penrose, we travel throughout Auckland. We have recently updated our website and launched a Home Staging locator map. This Google Map technology plots current real estate listings in a suburb near you, so you can visit and see homes staged by us, close to your home or business.

Flexibility – there are a number of ways you can work with us. We are happy to fit in with what works best for you. We can furnish your home from scratch. Or we can complement your own pieces from our extensive range. The main thing is, we listen and we are responsive to your needs.

Furnishing from Scratch

17 February, 2016 by Becky Neale

Those of us who’ve bought or sold a home or just visited an open home lately have seen how clever home staging can transform spaces from bland and boring to inspiring. Not quite so well-known is the ability Living Edge has to take a brand new home and give it the glam designer look from start to finish – even before new homeowners move in.

With their vast library of images, they can even produce a comprehensive design scheme prior to the home or apartment being built.

Sharon Laffan Managing Director of Living Edge explains, her interior designers aim to make it easy for clients.

“Living Edge is a one stop shop and a real time-saver for those who are after a cohesive designer look. Most people just don’t know where to go. It’s difficult hunting around and trying to make something from one store match with another. You can end up with such a mis-match. But you don’t have to. We are the problem solver. We can do it all for them.”

And the results are incredible. Living Edge’s many happy clients attest to that.

Every Area Covered

“We purchase from a wide range overseas and we have the ability to make it all work together from coffee tables, to chairs, sofas, accessories – anything you like.”

Living Edge can furnish the entire house from top to bottom, inside and out, including accessories like art, vases, rugs and mirrors. In fact, there’s no area they don’t cater for. Yet you can choose to furnish just a few rooms as well.

There’s no one look. The starting point involves meeting Living Edge’s head interior designer Shanly Simpson to discuss a brief and which personal possessions can be used in the design. With 18 years experience as an interior designer, Shanly is an expert; and she’s fantastic with clients. Having worked on many high-end projects in Las Vegas with designer to the stars, Faye Resnick, her repertoire is impressive. She has even worked with Faye on Paris and Nicky Hilton’s homes in Los Angeles.

Shanly says: “A lot of clients show me their plans and get me to visit their property or the newly built home to give them ideas about spatial planning. In these cases, I check the light and how it will come inside to work out colours and fabric choices that work with the sun.”Together, they develop a brief, considering the owners’ personal lifestyle and how they live in the home. “I find out what they love to do – whether they’re keen on the indoor outdoor thing. I can even plan the plumbing and electrical work and I like to discuss insulation options as well.”

Shanly learned from her mentor Faye to always remain open to style requirements. “A lot of clients have no idea what they want,” she says. So she asks questions to gather a feeling for a preferred style to showcase the home at its best. From contemporary to classic, antique, French, rustic – whatever the client wants, the client can have. She can also work with the client’s existing special pieces – perhaps something they have inherited – and how it can best be brought back to life and integrated with the rest of the interior scheme.

Design Adapts to Suit

Says Sharon: “It’s great to have a bit of a client’s own personality in there. We can still give it that sophisticated glamorous look but if they have sentimental pieces, we can definitely accommodate them in the design.”

Living Edge has an expansive range readily available. But if specific pieces need to be custom-made to measure with specially selected fabrics or if the client wants to replicate something they’ve seen, that’s entirely possible too.

Most new properties don’t have curtains or flooring so Shanly devises a plan for the areas required and works to a budget that suits.

A lot of the time, it’s the living areas only as many people have their own bedroom furniture and bed-linen moving from one home to the next.

Living Edge can work to any specific requirement to suit any budget large and small.

Alternative ways to create a gallery wall

1. Asymmetrical

2. Minimalist

3. Suspended

4. 3-D

5. Leaning

Give your home the WOW factor

How to Create Dream-time Bliss in the Bedroom

Get Market Ready…

When it comes to preparing your property for market, Market Ready provides the expertise you need.

10 Reasons to use Living Edge First

Furnishing from Scratch

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About Us

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Becky Neale

1. Asymmetrical

2. Minimalist

3. Suspended

4. 3-D

5. Leaning

When it comes to preparing your property for market, Market Ready provides the expertise you need.

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