Peg Barcelo-Jackson the Flufftastic Stager from Edmonton, AB

From Vacant to Vavoom! The Flufftastic Fairy Has Transformed 724 Caine Boulevard, in Edmonton!

My friend David Wallace, from Harmony Redesign had asked me to help him with another staging consultation here at 724 Caine Blvd, in Edmonton.

A lovely home with an office right off the front door

and an open living dining plan.

The 3 bedrooms upstairs include a luxurious master suite and ensuite.

It has yet to go on the market, but that should be rectified shortly.

I had so much fun finding little touches to make this house stand out!

Thinking Outside the Box in Edmonton! Making a Wine Rack a Towel Rack!

You'll have to excuse my blurry pix, I don't know what's wrong with my camera...

Look at this great wine rack stool I found today at a thrift store for $10!

I was on my way to a vacant home Staging gig and thought I'd stop in and see what was there, since stock changes almost daily.

It's leather/soft vinyl with nice stitching, plus I needed something for my Master ensuite.

Rolling up a few towels so they are about the size of wine bottles hides the true nature of this stool.

What a great addition to my accessory stock!

Going Green Just Got Greener! Solazyme Makes Green Oil!

Just in time for St. Patricks Day!

As I was working out on my elliptical machine this morning I was watching the Discovery Channel. The Program Game Changers was featuring the company Solazyme that is making diesel oil from algae.

Yup, the green stuff Tom was sitting in one of his last posts! Betcha didn't know you were sitting in a gold mine Tom! Now you know what to do with the Green water!

What Solazyme does; is take algae, add natural sugars from cane, grass, garden waste etc and ferment it. (just like beer) Algae has a natural tendency to protect itself from the elements of sun and wind by producing oil.

This oil, Solazyme has found, can be used to make diesel fuel, olive type oil, and botanicals for skin care! Depending on the type of algae (there are thousands) and depending on the sugar they add, they can design the oil to suit the application.

They have spent years developing this technology and even found the cheapest way to do it is not to use the sun for photosynthesis to grow the algae, but adding sugar for photosynthesis and brewing it in the dark!

On the program Game Changers, they featured a drive test for petroleum based diesel and algae based diesel and the performance was exactly the same!

They showed a new skin care line, Algenist, made with the algae oil and also foods products, Solazyme-Roquette Nutritionals, that had been made (including ice cream) from the edible oil produced.

The oil from algae for foods has less calories than other food oils! MMmmm! Send in the cookies!

Not All Marketing Has to Involve Selling!

Saturday evening I got to market my business in a very unique way!

As most of you who read my blog know; I wear a few hats...

I decided, when I met Shannon Berry of Capital Concierge in Edmonton, at a Meet-Up, that I would wear one of my other hats to market Fluff My House!.

She was putting together an event and told me that a few of the attendees said they would love to have a Tarot card reader, because it would make the event a little more interesting.

Shannon told me in her experience, some people think it's fun and others dislike things like that.

So I told her one of my 'characters' that I provide for events from one of my companies: CPC (Concept Peg Co) Talent; is a Comedy Gypsy Fortune Teller.

I call myself Gypsy Diamond Lee and I read Old Maid cards! I first get the people holding my 'crystal Turtle' and warming it up. Then they have to shuffle the cards. (I always tell them I don't use a crystal ball anymore, because it always rolls away and then we spend half the time looking for it, but the crystal turtle moves very slowly...)

At any rate after I read their card (with only good news and some fun thrown in) I would offer them my Fluff My House! card, "that they wouldn't have to shuffle!"

There were always positive responses to my cards and brochures, so I'm sure they will remember me... and I didn't 'sell' anyone once!

Thanx to Shannon Berry for the Photo!

Why Can't You Let Me Stage in Peace!?!

Recently I staged 2 homes practically next door to each other over 4 days. 1059 & 1077

It was a little crazy and some things had to be carted back and forth to be used in one or the other house. Art lined the front hallway and bins and furniture were scattered about in different rooms waiting to be placed.

Amid this controlled chaos the front doors would open and Realtors would walk buyers through showing them what a lovely(?) home it was.

They always asked if it was okay to come in.

I'd always say 'the builder prefers you take your shoes off and if you don't mind the mess c'mon in!'

And of course we would have to stop while they were there, often the furniture movers couldn't move anything in because of the pile of shoes in the way.

Privately I'd be thinking the open house is 3 (or less) days away, and the house will be immaculate then, maybe you should come back... but I realize when a Realtor has a client in a neighbourhood, they will strike while the iron is hot.

This happened every day we staged, well into the evenings some of the days. In one instance a Realtor took a group of 5 people back and forth between the 2 houses being staged a total of 3 times...

Why can't I just stage in peace and you come and see it after?

It will look better, honest!

I can't really complain, the one house sold at the open house...