As a realtor with an interior design background and a keen eye for staging homes, I have known for years now that the biggest obstacle to making a home look great is that everybody has too much stuff. Knowing this, Jesse and I have made a concerted effort to be highly organized and regularly get rid of things that we haven't used recently, but a funny thing happened to me a few weeks ago. I took a critical look at my own home and realized that I, too, had too much stuff and it was making our house look like furniture store instead of a home.
Our clutter was not in the form of knickknacks, too many family photos, or just plain old junk. It was simply too much furniture. Several years ago, we downsized to a smaller home and I thought that I could use everything we were bringing with us - and I did, despite all design principles. The house didn't look bad, but it looked full and that made it look cramped and small. It somewhat irked me when I walked through or sat in these rooms with too much stuff, but since it didn't look that bad, I let it be - until two weeks ago.
I don't know what inspired it, but I woke up one morning with the urge to purge. I gathered up everything that didn't fit in this home, made arrangements with local consignment shops to sell the furniture, and hired a mover to get the stuff out of here.
Now that those things are gone, I am happier because our house looks much nicer and feels more spacious. I don't know why I held onto these things for so long. Maybe it was because the items were well-made or because I had inadvertently attached memories to them - I really can't say - but the one thing that I know is that I'm glad that I took my own advice and decluttered my home.
If you are getting ready to do some spring cleaning or are thinking about selling you home and have too much stuff, you might want to consider selling it at a local consignment shop. We've done this from time-to-time over the years and it has worked out well for us. I've never done the CraigsList thing because I don't want strangers coming into my home to look at what I'm selling since I don't know who is really looking at buying or who might be looking to rob me later.
Living in the Lutherville-Timonium area makes it easy to consign home furnishings and decor because we have several nice shops available to us that I've listed below for your convenience.
Belle Cose, 410-308-4885, http://www.bellecosellc.com/
Clearing House, 410-561-4546, http://www.clearinghouseltd.com/
Cornerstone Antiques & Consignment, 410-561-3767, http://www.onlycornerstone.com/
Great Finds & Design, 410-561-9413, http://www.greatfindsanddesign.com/
If you're thinking about selling and would like some staging ideas, CLICK HERE or call us at 410-215-4201 to receive a copy of our FREE brochure, Home Staging: Tips & Tricks to Help Your Home Sell Quickly.
Wishing you sunshine everyday and the home of your dreams,
Jeri
