5 Standards in My Staging Toolkit

Carpenters have toolboxes, parents have diaper bags, ladies have purses, and home stagers have a bag full of items for making a home look its best.  My staging bag is filled with all kinds of tools and items that make my job easier and the homes I'm staging look even better.  Here are a few of the items that are staples in my staging toolkit...

Permanent markers, furniture sliders, cleaning supplies, light bulbs, and string.

Cleaning Supplies

When I'm staging a house my number one focus is making it look buyer-ready, and a house is not buyer-ready until it's spotless.  That means that I've been know to scrub out bathroom sinks and shine up the surfaces of a home before my job is done.  No, it's not glamorous, but I'm all about making a home look incredible, and if that means that I have to roll up my sleeves and use a little elbow grease, that's OK with me.

You bet that I was on my hands and knees shining up this floor before the Open House.

Light bulbs

I can't tell you how many light bulbs I go through when I'm staging a house.  It's so important to make sure every room is filled with bright light.  Think about it, it's pretty hard to buy a house if the rooms are dark and dull, right? That's why I carry a huge stash of light bulbs that I can swap out of existing lights (for a higher wattage), or new bulbs for lamps that I'm adding to a space.

Permanent Markers and Shoe Polish

There's not a single staging project that I don't use a permanent marker or some white shoe polish.  That's because they're both perfect for touching up paint on furniture pieces or accessories. It's amazing how quickly an item can be changed from drab to fab with a little permanent marker.

I used a black permanent marker to touch up worn edges of this leaning bookshelf.

String & Twist Ties

I include string and twist ties in my staging toolkit, as well.  They're both great for solving staging problems.  MacGyver had his duct tape and I have some string and twist ties for getting me out of any staging emergency.

Twist ties saved the day on this project when I needed to tie the window treatment's strings up and out of view.

Furniture Sliders

I'm constantly moving around furniture in the homes I'm staging. There's nothing that makes the job easier than furniture sliders.  I also love them because they protect my clients' floors when I'm moving furniture.

Every piece of furniture was moved (thanks to sliders) to showcase the fireplace, large living space, and view in this living room.

As a child, I always loved the way Mary Poppins pulled a coat rack, tape measure, mirror and lamp out of her carpet bag.  Actually, come to think of it, maybe home staging was her true calling.  Sometimes I feel a little like Mary Poppins with my bag full of tricks...if only I could get a mirror to fit inside my staging toolkit!