Janice Sutton - Temecula Murrieta Home Stager - Home Staging

So today started out like any other normal day UNTIL I decided to take the trash out. Yup....someone has to do it!

As I opened the side garage door I nearly jumped out of my skin when I almost stepped on a RATTLE SNAKE!!! Yup....you read correctly...a "RATTLA" as my husband would call them! Let's back up a little....no coffee yet and after this no coffee needed!

Oh my gosh...what am I going to do? Hubby is out of town......so he can't come to my rescue. My Yorkshire Terror, I mean Terrier, is begging to go outside to my rescue and I am feeling trapped in my own home. So what do I do.....I decide to GRAB MY CAMERA! OK I called a neighbor first but I am always thinking about AR and Blogging! Can you say ADDICTED!

I find my camera and head around to the front of the garage only to see he MOVED!!!

HE IS NOW HEADING INTO MY OPEN GARAGE!!!

Yes, I am yelling.....how many times has my husband told me not to leave the garage door open.

So I take a wide running loop around the snake into the garage and hit the garage button and I watch what seemed like an eternity for the door to close. Hoping it landed on the snake like a guillotine....but no such luck! <----------Look at the SIZE of the RATTLE!!!!

Now I come out the front door to witness this intruder heading back towards my BACKYARD! Where is my neighbor...my HERO???

Living in Murrieta CA near the Santa Rosa Plateau we have witnessed lots of wild life....besides snakes, coyotes, owls, red-tailed hawks, bobcats etc.... So you would think I would be use to this. Nope!

Here is my Hero Mark. The first thing he said was "Wow...that's a Big One!"

After poking it a couple of times with a shovel (Kids....Don't do this at home!) the snake decided to hide and crawled up under my beautiful italian cyprus tree.

Mark decided he needed a better tool/weapon so he asked me to keep an eye on it and he would be right back!

No problem I can handle that! Me and the snake weren't going anywhere!

Mark returned promptly with a pvc pipe with tape wrapped around it and a rope down the middle of the pipe. "That's a cool tool" I said. "I just made it" he said.

Ok this guy means business!!!! :)

Believe it or not....Mark didn't kill the snake. Actually I think he was trying to but the darn guy wouldn't give up! So he told me he was going to throw it into the back of his truck and take it to HIS HOUSE to show it to his boys! Fine by me! Who am I to say not to take "my" snake!!!

Here are some more action shots for your viewing pleasure.

"Ok I know he's in there somewhere!!!!"

Now he's got em'! I know he may look small but he is really really huge! :)

And if you've never heard a Rattle Snake RATTLE....I have to tell you it is really LOUD and sounds really really SCARY!!!

Good Bye Rattla...Don't come back soon!!!!

The moral of this story......you tell me?

Recently my husband Mark and I had the opportunity to enjoy two wine tasting events hosted by Miramonte Winery. Talk about fun! If you love wine and good food and who doesn't...then run don't walk to sign up for another one of these great local wine tasting events.

The next event is on September 17, 2008 at Miramonte. We will be blindly tasting Chardonnays with a special cheese tasting by Temecula Cheese Company.

As a home stager I had to get a Before & After shot while at the Cabernet Sauvingon Tasting!

Here are some more pictures from the 2nd Tasting held at Allies Tapas au Vin a newer restuarant located in Temecula. The food was fabulous and complimented many of the wines well.

Don't ask me what we ate.....but it was all soooooo yummy!

As we tasted our cabernet sauvignon flights and devoured this fab food Cane the owner of Miramonte would personally ask us what we thought of each wine. What did we think about the Nose? Was it Acidic? A wine with a noticeable sense of acidity, Closed? A wine that is not very aromatic, etc.........

What did we taste? Was it Round? (A wine that has a good sense of body that is not overly tannic). Firm? A stronger sense of tannins....blah...blah..blah...you get the picture!

There are no right or wrong answers Cane pointed out. He asked us to vote by a showing of hands which was our favorite in each of the 3 flights of wine. We then created a fourth flight of the top 3 winners! Believe it of not "2 Buck Chuck" a famous Trader Joe's vino almost came in first in one of the 3 flights!!!

So it just goes to show you that whether it is a $3.00 bottle or a $159.00 bottle (and there was one!) it all comes down to personal taste. As the saying goes "To each his own"!

I look forward to seeing you at the next event!

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Blog posted by Janice Sutton, Murrieta Temecula Home Stager . We stage home for the Inland Empire Riverside County. Are you looking for a Home Staging Professional? We service Murrieta, Temecula, Fallbrook, Lake Elsinore, Perris, Corona, Banning and other surrounding Riverside County cities.

Call us today at (951)704-0597 for a home staging consultation! Don't delay....Home stage today!

Yup! That's right....I got paid in wine!!! Here's the uncorked tale........

Susan & Marshall Stuart owner's of Stuart Cellars Winery were looking for a quick inexpensive change to their winery. So when Susan called to ask me to help choose paint colors and redesign using their current accessories I was thrilled! Trust me...if you know me....you know I will look for any excuse to visit the Temecula Wine Country in Southern California!! Plus Stuart Cellar's is one of my favorite wineries and if I could help the winery to look its best it's a win-win for all!

Susan and I met at one of her favorite Italian restaurants Francesca's Italian Kitchen so that I could see the paint colors and atmosphere she was trying to achieve at the winery. The colors were very Tuscan and I loved them as much as her!

These pictures to the right and left are some of the rooms we were working with.....lots of white walls except for one area that was painted a dated green color with an adjacent wall sponged tan. Susan also wanted to figure out a more attractive way to store the wine boxes that need to be easily available by the cashier. Her goal was to have the Tasting Room to look more like a Tasting Room and not a warehouse.

We spent only a couple of hours choosing colors for each wall and area, deciding how to best store inventory and planning out the best way to rearranging furniture, accessories and items for sale.

Here are a few examples of what was accomplished after two days of painting and redesigning............

A warm and inviting Wine Tasting Room with plenty of open spaces to wander awhile, taste awhile and shop a lot! No more cafeteria look to this hot spot.

Susan and Marshall along with the Tasting Room Staff .......which at first were skeptical watching Susan and I plan our "attack"....... were pleasantly surprised! Local wine club member's were also surprised and happy to visit their new and improved home away from home!

If you are interested in seeing the rest of the transformation and taste some excellant vino.....visit this fabulous award winning winery! It would be my pleasure to show you around the wonderful Wine Country of Temecula. You will not be disappointed! Cheers!

Don't forget to Stop and Smell the Vineyards......

Blog posted by Janice Sutton, Murrieta Temecula Home Stager . We stage home for the Inland Empire Riverside County. Are you looking for a Home Staging Professional? We service Murrieta, Temecula, Fallbrook, Lake Elsinore, Perris, Corona, Banning and other surrounding Riverside County cities.

Call us today at (951)704-0597 for a home staging consultation! Don't delay....Home stage today!

I have always been a Wine Lover and like to think of myself as an Amateur Wine Connoisseur (aren't we all?). Not a bad thing when you live in California. Always great wineries to visit...relax in and enjoy a wine tasting, glass or bottle! :)

I am lucky enough to live in Murrieta which is about 15 minutes away from Temecula Wine Country which I have nicknamed "a little slice of heaven." I shared my weekend favorite My Weekend Best Kept Secret and now I am ready to share with you my favorite thing to do on Monday!

On Monday's (My day off...kind of!) my best friend Laura and I venture out to a winery and (this is the fun part!) pretend we are in another city, state or country! :) Sometimes its Napa, sometimes France and sometimes its Tuscany! Depending on our mood! We mingle among the tourists and chat with the wine pourer's or if they're not busy the wine maker!

Everyone is happy, no one is in a hurry, the scenery is beautiful, the employees are friendly, the wine(and food...if available) is delicious and if your lucky you can meet and make a new friend! I have met Realtor's and Home Seller's which became my clients at a couple of the wineries!! Wine & Networking gotta love it!

I NEVER take my Monday's off for granted. I am blessed to have a wonderful area to visit and enjoy with my BFF! If you are planning on visiting Temecula give me a call! I would be happy to show you around!

What's your Slice of Heaven??

Do you see why I call the Temecula Wine Country "A little Slice of Heaven?"

Don't forget to Stop and Smell the Vineyards......

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Blog posted by Janice Sutton, Murrieta Temecula Home Stager . We Stage Homes for the Inland Empire Riverside County. Are you looking for a Home Staging Professional? We Home Stage Murrieta, Temecula, Fallbrook, Lake Elsinore, Perris, Corona, Banning and other surrounding Riverside County cities.

Call us today at (951)704-0597 for a Home Staging Consultation! Don't delay....Home Stage today!

I received a call from one of my clients a week before Christmas. He told me that he just received an offer on his Murrieta, CA property after being listed on the market for only 3 WEEKS!!! He said "Thank you so much for helping me get the house looking it's best. That's why it SOLD so quickly!" What a wonderful Christmas present!

This was a mobile home property staged by 1st Stage Property Transformation which I blogged about back in October Do you Stage Mobile Home's? wondering if Mobile Homes should be staged. I received some great comments and was looking forward to the challenge.

I am soooo excited and happy for the home seller, REA. and lil ole me! :) A Win-Win-Win!

Some favorite shots... :)

We did a whole house consultation for this client, brought in a few accessories and staged the family room and spare bedroom with furniture.

I did suggest painting the panelling and removing or painting the wallpaper but the seller had a limited budget. The seller spent most of the budget on the driveway repair which I recommended and he agreed needed to be done. Let's face it...it's the first thing you see and considering this is a 55 and better community we don't need any potential buyer's falling on the way in!

Here are some Before & After's......

To see more Home Staging pictures - Murrieta Temecula Home Stager