Quote of the week

                                    
                                             Inspiration

Christmas quote

Countdown to Christmas

First of December and Christmas is knocking on the door... I thought I would focus this month on how to set your property up for sale during the Christmas period. How to celebrate the same way as you always do but not interfere on the sales campaign of your property. I often get questions on how to schedule open homes over this period and if it is appropriate to have Christmas decorations up or not. So for the next few weeks we can countdown to Christmas together and have a look at how best to prepare your property for sale during the festive season.

Colour accents

Accessory's can really make a room. Change your accessory colour with the seasons. It's easy and inexpensive. Bring warm colours in for the winter eg a thick red throw rug and a vase. Why not pick some flowers that match. I love the freshness of the summer soft pale blues and limes look delightful.

                                                                 Pretty flowers

                                                                 Great colours

Awesome lanterns

                                                         What a chandelier

Presentation plus

More summer loving decorating ideas !! Don't forget when presenting your home for an inspection turn the lights on. Presentation will help you achieve a great sales price.

Summer styling

Create the relaxed summer feeling! Blue and white always gives a sense of summer. Love it....

Cool indeed

How awesome does this bed linen look. I  love the colour combination against the iron bed. Brighten up your bedroom this Summer with some of these great colours! Sure to impress your buyers.

What do buyers all want this Summer?

When it comes to searching for a property it seems that the majority of Aussies are after a swimming pool. Swimming pools are the most searched key words according to realestate.com.au. Closely followed by waterfront property, property with a granny flat and duplexes. However Tasmanian's still prefer properties on the waterfront as their top search criteria.


Click here for more information on what the other States are looking for when it comes to real estate must haves!

Sold under the hammer!

Great results for my vendors, 4 registered bidders. Sold under the hammer! Congratulations to my vendors and the lucky buyers... 

Bespoke Vanities

Vanities are looking more like living room furniture than traditional sinks these days. “Timber front vanities are still popular and help create warmth in a bathroom,” says Duffy, adding “wall-hung vanities are a more modern choice than a floor standing alternative and they create the illusion of space.”

Source: Royal Roulotte 

Framless showers

Thank goodness as we wave goodbye shower curtains! Beautiful frameless showers may have once signalled ‘high end’, but are becoming far more commonplace. These sleek wonders can fit into any design scheme and will stand the test of time. Even if you don’t have a separate shower, a single pane of glass is a more functional, cleaner option than the clutter of a sliding door or shower curtain.

Source: Pinterest via Domain

Downsizing. Watch this great video

Considerations for downsizers:

1. The costs involved with buying and selling

2. what are you trying to achieve?

3. The physical move- get help if needed.

Realestate.com and financial advisor Bruce Brammall share his top tips on downsizing property. Check out this video link.

Awards- feeling blessed

Ray White Kiama won 2 very prestigious awards at the Ray White State awards night. Thanks so much to all of our clients for your support. 

Free standing tub

There is something so magical about a freestanding tub. It is more than an aesthetic; it’s a thing of luxury, even romance. Finding the right shape tub is important for what is usually a small space. A soft curved tub can bring softness to an angular room, where as a more boxy or sleek tub can complement pastels or a bathroom with striking features.

Source: Pinterest via Domain

Where to look when you've run out of inspiration

There are thousands of design ideas available, but choosing the one that will suit your home can be daunting indeed! As renovators we are always looking for new ideas and designs. The internet offers an abundance of websites and design ideas.

Pinterest- allows you to browse and bookmark ideas, saving them to your own virtual noticeboard! Pinterest is one of my favourites It gives you the opportunity to gather and organise all the things you like from bedroom ideas, cooking exercise ideas through to holiday destinations. Check out my Pinterest boards click here and why not follow me.

Apartment Therapy is an international website with hundreds of renovating and design tips and tricks.

Also check out design blogs. You can get lost for hours!

For more design inspiration check out Domain 

Selling first impressions! - Video

Make a good first impression on buyers.

Interiors expert Julia Green from Channel 10's The home team shows you how to get top dollar for your home with a few finishing touches.

 Click on the link from realestate.com and watch the video.

                  I so love an organised pantry. Check out pinterest for more great ideas.

Preparing your yard for sale

Are you selling your home this Spring and worried that you've let your yard go a bit wild and unattended this winter? The yard is usually the first thing that the prospective buyers will see when the arrive at an open for inspection or private viewing. An over grown garden is not a great first  impression.

Click on the link below
for some tips on preparing your yard for sale

I am back!

Hello there,
I am back, we had a ball and are thankful for the experience! I'm now ready to get back to the real world, refreshed and energized!  We experienced some amazing adventures as we immersed ourselves into the different cultures. We ate some great food and seen some spectacular sites.

I'm looking forward to getting back into real estate and  sharing my blog with you.

 See below some holiday snaps!

                      Paris

                                                      Monterosso

Mykonos

                                                           Positano

Moving Tip

                            What a great idea, try this next time you are moving house.
                             Check out pinterest for more great ideas.

Selling tips

 Clean, clean, clean, clean, clean. Everything else is secondary. Forget baking cookies, vanilla scented candles or cinnamon potpourri. You know what a prospective buyer wants to smell? Nothing. That’s right, no animal smells, cigarette smoke, burned dinners or anything else associated with lack of cleanliness, or animal smells. So do yourself a favour, and clean your house from top to bottom, and keep it clean during the selling process. That includes making the beds daily, having the dishes done, the coats hung up, and paper and clutter put away.

Addio!

Hello fellow bloggers, clients and friends

I just wanted to let you know that my blog will be taking a short break, I am going on annual leave and I am headed to Europe for 6 weeks. Excited you bet I am. I'm looking forward to a rest and very excited about the adventure ahead.

I return to the office on 15/9/15.

Addio!
Sharon

Interior styling

See below what Dave Nemeth has to say
 Interior styling will be focused on personal interest and experiences, where a combination of styles and pieces will be the direction for many homes. Our daily lives are driven by technology and we cannot fight this, it is part and parcel of work and life. In our personal space however, namely our homes, we strive for a little more carte blanche, individuality and freedom. The trend is towards mixed styles and pieces, from classical pieces to ultra modern, the story that the pieces have for us on a personal level override any style trends. As an individual we strive to be different and unique within our living spaces. This is somewhat of an anti-trend although many key attributes such as walls and floors will follow the tactile aesthetic of being true to materials.

New colour trend?

Co-leidoscope loves the spice of life, luxury of global travel and taste of the exotic. Complex patterns, ornate detailing, and fine materials captivate these customers. Embellished, eccentric mosaics, dazzling, laser-cut leathers, and colorful metallics and metals offer new, glamorous twists on classics. The color palette features our color of the year, Blue Paisley, paired with faded mid-tones inspired by the time-worn hues from once-brightly colored mosaics. Check out the The voice of color for more inspirational ideas.

Architectural and design trends 2015- 2016

Recent years have seen an integration of external space with internal space, especially here in South Africa with our fantastic climate says Dave Nemeth. Continuing in this direction, the bathroom will become a far more important space and in many cases, where possibly even open up onto private areas of the garden. Outdoor showers have already gained popularity and we will now see indoor baths and showers with large windows and doors that almost open up completely to the outside elements. In a similar fashion, bedrooms will have more open plan bathrooms where the bath or shower is an actual feature rather than a purely functional element that needs to be hidden away. The bedroom / bathroom becomes an integrated area with the focus on relaxation and well being, almost like a health spa. Check out the website for more great ideas.

Flowers: The easy way to freshen up your home.

We’re always looking for simple ways to freshen up homes. Plants are fail safe in making your home feel light and bright. They bring a natural beauty into the home. They create texture, a focal point, and have been proven to lower blood pressure and heart rate related to stress.
But not everyone has a green thumb.

Flowers are the answer! A simple bunch can lift the spirits and bring a fresh feeling into a room. While we love an incredible arrangement, we’re also big fans of picking up a bunch of dahlias at the local fruit and veg store and enjoying them in all their glory.

Holly Hipwell of The Flower Drum collaborated with Freedom recently to share her know-how on which vase to use for which flower. We always fumble when it comes to arranging them ourselves, and put the wrong flowers in the wrong vases and wonder why it’s not visually working.

Happy interior blog

If you like blogs, check out "happy interior blog"  

Who knew - in two years the 80s will be back, in full force! This trend refers to the so-called 'Memphis Design', an Italian design and architecture group from 1981. It is a non-conformist approach and leverages our creative drive.

 Vivid colors, geometric shapes, modular concepts - it is a sort of cut & past style with lots of optimism and dynamics. It is all about customization and a modular understanding of design.Think of painterly effects, brush strokes, black & white with blush and peach hues, light blues,greys.
Playful is a keyword here!

Great result!

Sold under the hammer at auction last night! A big congratulations to my vendor and buyer! A a big "thank you" to you Dave for trusting me with the sale of your property, we only met an hour before auction! Feeling privileged.

Sold- record price at auction!

Sold under the hammer for a record price! Huge congratulations to my vendor and our buyer! 

Quote of the week!

Trends 2016

Check out the trends predicted for 2016

Front up

It may sound strange but first impressions for a house really do last. Buyers will drive past without you even knowing

Its imparative that

• Your garden is well groomed
• The front door is in good working order
• Cobwebs are no where to be seen

I am sure that you have said that first impressions count!

Check this out

Simple makeover idea 1- Fresh paint

A new paint colour or a fresh coat of paint will brighten up any room in the house.

                                                         Great colour


Expert tip: Paint the walls white to brighten up your home. Remember neutral is best when you're selling so that potential buyers can customise the property to suit their tastes.

                                              So fresh

Quote of the week!

First open home

Your first open home will probably be a little daunting so much to do to get organised. Make a list of what needs to be done and try and start working on that list asap. When the day finally arrives I suggest some fresh flowers, perhaps brew some coffee and burn some candles. Now you are all set for your first open home. Good luck and remember first impressions really do count.

Relax!

How cool is this? Sure to create the perfect wow factor!

Tips for moving

Make certain your beds are the last pieces of furniture packed on the removalist truck. They will be the first off, and immediately you can set them up. Put on bed linens and pillows as soon as possible after set-up. At the end of a long moving day, it is nice to have the beds ready and waiting!

Prior to moving day put all the things you will for the first night in your new home in a box. That way you will not be searching through a maze of boxes for cups, tea etc.....

 As soon as you walk into your new house, unpack your towels, toilet paper and bathroom toiletries, and deposit those suitcases full of clothing in each room.

Quote of the week!

Dirty sink

Don't worry about the dirty dishes and pots in the sink. People will understand you were in a rush to get out the door to get the kids to school  and get to the office on time.

WRONG: Buyers will see you as the lazy type. They start to think what else doesn't get looked after and taken care of around the property.

Kitchens are are real selling point. Often the focal point of a home.