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Pangaea Interior Design Home Stager - Redesign - Model Homes

First Impressions Count: Just Two Changes Make a Big Difference

I just wanted to share a before and after of a client's home to show how much just two changes - a fresh coat of paint and a new door - can make. Although this client is fixing up their home to live in - not sell - the point is still the same. They took a house which looked outdated and a little tired and made an enormous improvement just changing those two things.

They really had their heart set on gray, but wanted me to help them choose the right one. I thought you would enjoy seeing how helpful some of the free online color choosing software is. This happens to be Personal Color Viewer from Benjamin Moore, but there are many of them out there by different paint companies. Here is the before photo of the house with three of the many shades of gray they were considering. We opted for a pale shade and selected one that was very warm in tone. You can also see that they tried out the door being painted the same cream color as the trim or being painted in a darker iron gray.

Portland House Exterior Before Painting Color software example 1

Color software example 2 Color software example 3

So here are the final Before and after photos of the house and also the close ups of the front door.

Portland House Exterior Before Painting

Portland House Exterior After Painting & With New Door

Front door detail before painting New front door close up

The front door makes a huge difference giving the house an immediate lift to an upscale and more substantial feel. I hope you enjoyed seeing the difference that just two changes made!

Pangaea is a Portland, Oregon based Interior Designer and Professional Home Stager. If you would like help determining what changes you can make for the biggest impact, give here a call at 503.816.4394, or visit her website at Pangaea Interior Design.

If you enjoyed this idea for improving the look of your home, sign up for my FREE MONTHLY DESIGN IDEAS.


Sensational Sustainable Surface: Part #1 - Kerlite Ultra Thin Porcelain Tile Sheets

Actually I am talking about two sensational surfaces here. One is the store: Surface, located at 1235 SE Grand Ave., Portland, OR 97214. The other is Kerlite Porcelain Tile. I'm always on the lookout for cool looking, new and innovative materials to inspire great design ideas for interiors, so I was delighted to be invited to a new product party held at Surface last week. They have some amazing new products for flooring, backsplashes, countertops & walls, and also an intriguing material that can be used in place of glass in cabinet doors, interior sliding doors as well as other unique applications. Rather than cram all this great stuff into one long post, I'm splitting it up, so keep your eye open for "part 2" and so on.


First I'd like to tell you a little about my experience with the store. Surface is a truly unique finish materials boutique. I recently worked with them to help one of my clients select flooring, countertop and backsplash materials. My sales person was David Horn. His professionalism, helpfulness with my client and expert product knowledge was all first rate. The staff members are all very respectful of the designer/client relationship and will help you as much or as little as you want. The showroom has a warm and comfortable ambiance with nice big work tables to lay out and compare all your possible choices. Enormous windows give you great natural light so you can really see the colors and textures. If you like a little privacy, they also have a separate conference room where designer and client can really brainstorm uninterrupted.


For my last client, I went in alone to preview their selections, then when I knew I was coming in with my client, I phoned ahead and David had all the selections pulled out and arranged on a work table for us when we arrived. Their vast selection is encased in big rolling carts so not everything is on view at once. Initially, I thought this would make it harder to view products, but after being in there with a client, I really appreciated that this display system kept us from going into overwhelm or being distracted with too many choices.


Kerlite:

Kerlite Ultra Thin Porcelain Tile side view

This product is an ultra-thin - just 3 mm - super strong, porcelain tile that comes in seven sizes, including huge sheets. You can use it on floors or walls, but here is the very cool thing --- you can put it right over existing materials including old tile or even linoleum without having to take out the old material. This is true even going over textured floor tiles.

Available in 26 colors and 3 finishes, my favorite is the tone-on-tone floral pattern. The photos of the bathrooms and living room are from the manufacturer's website and they show the use of the huge sheet sizes to minimize grout lines. It's also perfect for great kitchen design applications such as backsplash walls. Kerlite is even frost proof so it can be installed outdoors. I'm told that this product has even been installed as siding on a home exterior. I'd love to see that.


In keeping with my desire to find sustainably made options for my clients, according to Coto d'Este, Kerlite ceramic tiling material is “obtained from natural and carefully selected raw materials, such as light clays and pure feldspars,” and “firing is carried out in electric kilns without any release of polluting fumes.” With seemingly endless uses in both interior decor and exterior design applications, it is a product worth checking out. As porcelain tile goes, this is rather high-end, retailing around $12 per square foot. But for the amazing flexibility and lack of demo work, it could be a great idea for your next design project.

Kerlite Porcelain Tile in Living Room and Fireplace design application

kerlite Porcelain tile bathroom walls & floor application

Pangaea is an Interior Designer serving the Portland, Oregon greater metropolitan area. She specializes in modern interiors with an eye toward sustainable design.

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Pangaea Interior Design

email: design@pangaea-id.com

Baby It's Cold Outside! Portland Interior Designer, "Pangaea's Picks" - Top Ten Fireplaces

As the rain has started to come down in sheets and the nights have turned COLD, my fireplace has been put into use in a big way. Many years ago, urban living in lofts, condos and apartments meant living without a fireplace. But technology has changed all of that. One client who recently contacted me said his one concession in buying a condo in the John Ross Condomiums in the South Waterfront district was to forego a fireplace - but we have a solution for him. Another client in The Wyatt high rise apartments in the Pearl District had a fireplace listed as one of her first items to add to her decor. I was also in the 937 Condominiums in the Pearl District last week and felt sad that for almost half a million dollars, you end up with no fireplace! So, this post is for you!

Whether you have a condo in the Pearl or South Waterfront, or a house where there is no built-in fireplace, with today's technology, there is now a fireplace for everyone, every room, and just about every budget! Read on to see several modern fireplaces that would be at home in any contemporary home where no built-in fireplace exists. There are free-standing models, wood burning models, environmentally friendly models, suspended ones and wall hung types. Links on where to shop for these are at the end of the article. So, make yourself a nice cup of cocoa and imagine sitting next to one of these!

Pangaea's Picks: Top Ten Modern Fireplaces

1. Harry Leenders - Hands down, my fave for a suspended, rotating fireplace. Love the sleek lines.

Suspended Fireplace by Harry LeendersSuspended Fireplace by Harry Leenders - close-up

2. EcoSmart's Denatured Ethanol burning fireplaces can be set into a built in display or they have many free-standing styles. Environmentally friendly and renewable fuel is a plus.

Ecosmart fireplace

3. This Eurofocus has nice clean lines and is angled to look great in a corner.

Eurofocus angled corner fireplace

4. Rais is just a simple and lovely, minimal design.

Rais basic fireplace

5. What top ten list would be complete without the modern classic Fireorb suspended fireplace?

Fireorb modern classic suspended fireplace

continue reading ...

Information & Entertainment: Home Stager & Interior Designer Uses Her Blog to Benefit Past Clients & Business Contacts

slapping my foreheadIt took me a long time to get started blogging. I kept thinking I didn't have anything to say! But my mentors kept telling me I needed to get started, so I asked my husband what I should talk about. He said "what do your clients want to know? Okay, so I'm slapping my forehead. It all seems so simple now! Can't imagine why it took me over a year to figure that out!

My blog posts cement my connection with existing clients, prospects, business contacts, friends and family in two ways:

Information: What people want to know. By writing informative blog posts on topics my clients and prospects have asked me about, I continue to be a source of information to past clients and I demonstrate to prospects that I know my stuff and can help them with their needs.

Entertainment: What we have in common and enjoy. People like to do business with people they know and with whom they have things in common. It makes for a more enjoyable experience when you and your clients can talk about things that are of interest to both of you. By writing posts that are entertaining and about fun and cool things we both like, my clients and prospects get to know me better, and from their feedback and comments, I get to know them better too.

Below, please follow the links to see specific posts that have been informational or entertaining to my clients and prospects.

I'm an Interior Designer and Home Stager. My clients want to know how to make their places look great, to live in or to sell. They love color, but are terrified to try it out and don't know what colors to put together. If they are getting ready to sell, they want to know "is white the color they should paint their walls?" I specialize in contemporary design, and my clients want to be sure their home feels warm and looks cool! They want to know how to decorate their house when they have soaring ceilings, or when they have a loft or open floor plan.

My clients are interested in sustainability ... so I share cool products I find that are environmentally friendly. Because many of my clients love animals, I even post about things for their PETS that are sustainable & cool!

I am totally passionate about art and most of my clients are too! So with my blog, I show how art improves their decor. Sometimes I just post art finds that will entertain them! If you didn't click on any of the other links ... you really should click on that last one ... you won't believe your eyes!!! Waaaay Cool!!

My methods of Delivery:

I post on ActiveRain, my own website, Pangaea Interior Design Blog Page, the Interior Design Society, to name a few blogs. I Tweet, I'm LinkedIn, and I'm on Facebook ... so I make it easy for people to find my information and to find out more about me.

I incorporate two articles per month into an e-newsletter that goes to all my past clients, past business connections, family & friends. It reminds my former clients that I am a source of information for them because the questions are ones they have asked. Because it is information my clients want, they even feel good about forwarding it to their friends when they see an article about something they want to pass on. That gives clients and business contacts the opportunity to be a source of information to their own contacts.

My e-newsletter is pretty short. I think that shows I respect people's time. There are just 4 parts every month.

1. Feature Article: This is my design tip of the month. The ideas come directly from interior design or home staging challenges my clients have had. I also include informtion about local resources and vendors I use. If the article is more than a couple paragraphs, I post a short version that has about half of the tips, then link back to the full post on my website. This keeps them from having to scroll too far to see the rest of the newsletter. The ones who are interested in that specific topic can see the rest with a single click.

2. Color of the Month: I choose a color and talk about where it looks good in the home, how that color affects energy or mood, and what other colors look good with it.

3. A short paragraph about ME & my photo! That's in there, so that if they forward it to someone else, the new recipient has a little introduction to who I am.

4. I include a coupon each month for some aspect of my design or staging services. This helps my clients save money on services they want.

What you won't find in my e-newsletter is any big sales pitch.

Thanks for asking how I use my blog to cement and enhance my relationships with current, past and prospective clients and contacts.

Pangaea



Portland Home Staging Success: Sold in One Day in THIS MARKET!! See How ...

Portland Home Stager, Pangaea, shares how the broker, the seller, and the home stager teamed up to get this Portland, Oregon Home SOLD in ONE DAY to the first person who saw it!

I would just love to take all of the credit for this, but as I have said before, it takes a team to successfully sell a home. With properties languishing on the market for months and months at a time, it seems like a miracle that a home could sell so fast. So, here is what each person did.

The Broker:

  • Counseled the seller regarding the importance of condition and presentation of the home.
  • Expertly assessed the right pricing for the property
  • Referred the seller to the Home Stager
  • Hired a professional photographer to take great photos for the listing

The Home Stager:

  • Started by asking the broker for any special concerns or negatives about the property - master bedroom not on the main floor was an issue.The bedroom on the main floor looked very crowded & wall color was dark.
  • Scheduled and performed a thorough "Walk & Talk" consultation for the seller with specifics about what needed to be done and why.
  • Empowered the seller to know that she couid accomplish everything by prioritizing and showing specific examples to take out any guesswork.
  • Provided additional furnishings / art / accessories and returned to do the final staging.

The Seller:

  • Trusted her professionals and committed to doing everything recommended by her broker and home stager.
  • Rolled up her sleeves and worked hard!

Now here's the success story that shows that all three pieces are what sold this home ---

Two weeks prior to going on the market, the broker put out a "pre-listing" notice so people would know it was coming up. She connected with another broker who had a buyer ready to buy! They went to see the house, contract in hand ready to write an offer, before the painting and staging work had been done. As soon as the buyer saw that the "master" bedroom was downstairs, they changed their mind and passed on the house.

So, to prepare the home, I had the seller remove clutter & older, unattractive furniture. Also had her paint the kitchen in a warm sand color and paint the cabinets white, plus update the hardware. The main floor bedroom had a futon in it. Because of the arms on the futon, when it was folded down to be a bed, the arms protruded into the space enough to make it very tight and to "scream" that it was a guest room. Although I had recommeded painting a lighter color in the bedroom, time & money made us decide to go with the existing color. The seller's white bedding made the dark walls seem even darker. So I used darker bedding more befitting of a "master" bedroom, and added art & throw pillows that tied in with the green but in lighter shades.

So, after the property was staged, professional photos were taken that day and put online asap! An open house was held the next day. According to the broker, the very first person who walked in bought the home. Happy Ending!!

Here are before & after photos for you to enjoy. "After Photos" courtesy of Rachel Weinstein rachelweinstein@comcast.net

Portland based, Pangaea Interior Design, offers home staging, interior design, and redesign services in the greater metropolitan area. If you value professionalism, a collaborative approach and results, then please call or email for an appointment to get your listing ready for the market! 503.816.4394 design@pangaea-id.com Pangaea Interior Design

Portland living room before home staging

portland stairwell before stagingPortland living room before home staging

Portland living room after staging

portland dining area after staging

Portland living room after staging, second view

portland kitchen before painting and home staging

portland kitchen after painting and home staging

portland guest bedroom before staging as master bedroom

Portland guest bedroom staged as the master bedroom