It's an #OlioHop : Home Staging Concepting using Olioboard

To contact us Click HERE
I am participating in this month's #Oliohop presented by Olioboard. Olioboard, if you're unfamiliar, is a website which allows users to create either 2D or 3D "mood" or "inspiration" boards for fun and profit. It's fun to play around with spaces and move furniture around with the click of the mouse and it's a great tool in the designer's tool box for fleshing out design ideas. I wrote an in-depth article on Olioboard on Williams-Sonoma Designer Marketplace last year which you can read here.

Meanwhile, the folks at Olioboard host many contests and various fun outreach programs to engage new and existing users and the #Oliohop is one of their more popular events. Each month, ten design bloggers are invited to create a space using Olioboard based on a specific theme. This month's theme is home staging.
We were asked to create a 2D or 3D inspiration board depicting the before and after of a home staging project. Unlike interior design or decorating, home staging is done for the specific purpose of marketing a home for sale. As with any marketing plan, the seller must know who their most likely buyer will be and how to package their product (in this case a house) to speak to the needs and desires of their target buyer. For this project, I decided to depict a space in a home that is being sold by a builder or developer. In other words, a new (or newly rehabbed) house that is empty. One of the goals of home staging is to help potential buyers "see" how they might live in a space. Most people cannot easily envision floor plans, scale and size or colors and so how the room is staged is meant to show the space in its best light, how functional the space can be and still be broadly appealing. If I were hired to design this space for a homeowner, I would likely be adding built-ins to reduce the awkward height of the knee walls.  As a staging project, it's all about creating a comfortable feeling space that makes potential buyers feel "at home". Using Olioboard, I created such a space and exported the image to a JPG file.


I regularly create similar inspiration boards for clients, so I simply incorporated my Olioboard onto my regular board form and highlight the major design elements for the client. This board can be printed or emailed as a PDF with live links to product pages.

To join the large and ever-growing Olioboard community, you can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and access their video tutorials on their YouTube channel.

And, now it's time for the "hop" part of the #Oliohop. Check out my fellow design blogger's boards and see what they are up to:

Lisa Mende Design: Blog * Olioboard  Frances Newman - As You Like It Redesign: Blog * Olioboard Stephanie Weeks - Interior Design HQ: Blog * Olioboard   Marilyn Russell - Design Magnifique: Blog * Olioboard   Lynda Quintero-Davids, NYCLQ Focal Point: Blog * Olioboard Ronique Gibson - Stagetecture: Blog Kristie Barnett - The Decorologist: Blog * Olioboard Roslyn Ashford - Ra ReDoes Rooms: Blog * Olioboard Williams-Sonoma Design Marketplace: Blog * Olioboard Linda Merrill - Decorative Surroundings: Blog * Olioboard

If you would like my help on your design or Home Staging project, I would love to chat with you! Please email me. Thanks! Subscribe to ::Surroundings::

A Wicked Stahm is Brewin' and "Yankee Milk Fever" sets in

To contact us Click HERE

So, 35 years after the Blizzard of '78 hit New England, we're hunkering down for another Nor'Easter/Blizzard/Snowmaggedon.


If you were in New England at that time, you likely remember how you spent the blizzard.



Perhaps you were stuck in your car on Rte. 128 for days. Or in the Boston Garden after attending the Beanpot tournament.
 
Perhaps you were looking for your car, wondering if you'd be waiting for Spring before you'd see it again.

Or your street was under freezing water due to unprecedented tides. 


Or maybe you took advantage of traffic-less streets to get in a little skiing.



One thing is for sure, we'll never go hungry again! The onset of "Yankee Milk Fever" stems from this storm. When we hear bad weather is coming, we stock up on the basics, because you never know how many days you'll be living on bread and milk!





I was in high school and spent the days without electricity and heat at home with my parents, grandmother, our dog Tiny (a shorthair dachshund who did NOT like the cold) and the neighbor lady. We had an open floorplan house so my Dad had to tack blankets and plastic sheeting on all the door openings into the kitchen/family room to keep the heat from the fireplace in. Thankfully, we had a big fireplace and a gas stove which could be lit with a match. And the telephones still worked (ah, landlines!) so when I went stir-crazy I could hide out upstairs (it was 40) to call friends and check in. We also spent a lot of time gathering sticks and kindling from the woods - it all felt so very "Little House on the Prairie".

So, we're all preparing for the coming storm - apparently upwards of two feet. I'm trying to get a bunch of design work done in the event of an extended power failure, plus battening down the hatches. And buying my bread and milk. The fireplace is a little smaller than the one that got my family through the Blizzard of '78, but it will have to do!


Thinking warm thoughts!

 all credits and image information here

If you are in the path of the storm, I wish you warmth of hearth and home!


If you would like my help on your design project, I would love to chat with you! Please email me. Thanks! Subscribe to ::Surroundings::

Lovely day for a drive

To contact us Click HERE
Dear Family and Friends,

Chuck and I drove from Dunedin to Invercargill via the scenic route along the coast.

The weather was grand and the scenery was fantastic.






 We stopped again for a chance to see another waterfall.


 
Now this is more like a waterfall.

Before we finished our day's journey we even spotted a yellow eyed penguin in the wild.

We are having a wonderful time.  Chuck is doing a fantastic job of driving on the opposite side of the road.

Love,
Nancy

Singapore advertising in the 50's and 60's

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Took a picture from a friend's magazine of the 50s just the other day. It was an old jewellery ad from one of  the many Chinatown goldsmiths in Singapore. I remember some of the jewellery styles from my mum's old collection especially that of the insignia ring. Singapore 's advertising scene at that time was probably very influenced by that of the British with just drawings and words. The era of models and artiste endorsements came much later. I would love to look out for more of these vintage Singapore advertisements as it shows the trends of fashion and style of the different eras.

Lin Dai - Asia's screen goddess

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I love going to Cathay Restaurant for dim sum and amidst the pictures of Cathay's movie stars of yesteryears on the walls is that of Lin Dai, the screen goddess of Asian cinema in the 60's. My mum was a big fan of hers and she used to mention to me that Lin Dai was a true beauty with the tiniest waist ever . Seeing this picture made me realise that she wasn't exaggerating at all. Love her hair cut and her dress with the musical notes. It certainly wouldn't look out of place today with the popularity of vintage designs.

If the table just next to the picture wasn't occupied, I would usually insist on sitting there for lunch, close enough to admire the picture.

It's an #OlioHop : Home Staging Concepting using Olioboard

To contact us Click HERE
I am participating in this month's #Oliohop presented by Olioboard. Olioboard, if you're unfamiliar, is a website which allows users to create either 2D or 3D "mood" or "inspiration" boards for fun and profit. It's fun to play around with spaces and move furniture around with the click of the mouse and it's a great tool in the designer's tool box for fleshing out design ideas. I wrote an in-depth article on Olioboard on Williams-Sonoma Designer Marketplace last year which you can read here.

Meanwhile, the folks at Olioboard host many contests and various fun outreach programs to engage new and existing users and the #Oliohop is one of their more popular events. Each month, ten design bloggers are invited to create a space using Olioboard based on a specific theme. This month's theme is home staging.
We were asked to create a 2D or 3D inspiration board depicting the before and after of a home staging project. Unlike interior design or decorating, home staging is done for the specific purpose of marketing a home for sale. As with any marketing plan, the seller must know who their most likely buyer will be and how to package their product (in this case a house) to speak to the needs and desires of their target buyer. For this project, I decided to depict a space in a home that is being sold by a builder or developer. In other words, a new (or newly rehabbed) house that is empty. One of the goals of home staging is to help potential buyers "see" how they might live in a space. Most people cannot easily envision floor plans, scale and size or colors and so how the room is staged is meant to show the space in its best light, how functional the space can be and still be broadly appealing. If I were hired to design this space for a homeowner, I would likely be adding built-ins to reduce the awkward height of the knee walls.  As a staging project, it's all about creating a comfortable feeling space that makes potential buyers feel "at home". Using Olioboard, I created such a space and exported the image to a JPG file.


I regularly create similar inspiration boards for clients, so I simply incorporated my Olioboard onto my regular board form and highlight the major design elements for the client. This board can be printed or emailed as a PDF with live links to product pages.

To join the large and ever-growing Olioboard community, you can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and access their video tutorials on their YouTube channel.

And, now it's time for the "hop" part of the #Oliohop. Check out my fellow design blogger's boards and see what they are up to:

Lisa Mende Design: Blog * Olioboard  Frances Newman - As You Like It Redesign: Blog * Olioboard Stephanie Weeks - Interior Design HQ: Blog * Olioboard   Marilyn Russell - Design Magnifique: Blog * Olioboard   Lynda Quintero-Davids, NYCLQ Focal Point: Blog * Olioboard Ronique Gibson - Stagetecture: Blog Kristie Barnett - The Decorologist: Blog * Olioboard Roslyn Ashford - Ra ReDoes Rooms: Blog * Olioboard Williams-Sonoma Design Marketplace: Blog * Olioboard Linda Merrill - Decorative Surroundings: Blog * Olioboard

If you would like my help on your design or Home Staging project, I would love to chat with you! Please email me. Thanks! Subscribe to ::Surroundings::

A Wicked Stahm is Brewin' and "Yankee Milk Fever" sets in

To contact us Click HERE

So, 35 years after the Blizzard of '78 hit New England, we're hunkering down for another Nor'Easter/Blizzard/Snowmaggedon.


If you were in New England at that time, you likely remember how you spent the blizzard.



Perhaps you were stuck in your car on Rte. 128 for days. Or in the Boston Garden after attending the Beanpot tournament.
 
Perhaps you were looking for your car, wondering if you'd be waiting for Spring before you'd see it again.

Or your street was under freezing water due to unprecedented tides. 


Or maybe you took advantage of traffic-less streets to get in a little skiing.



One thing is for sure, we'll never go hungry again! The onset of "Yankee Milk Fever" stems from this storm. When we hear bad weather is coming, we stock up on the basics, because you never know how many days you'll be living on bread and milk!





I was in high school and spent the days without electricity and heat at home with my parents, grandmother, our dog Tiny (a shorthair dachshund who did NOT like the cold) and the neighbor lady. We had an open floorplan house so my Dad had to tack blankets and plastic sheeting on all the door openings into the kitchen/family room to keep the heat from the fireplace in. Thankfully, we had a big fireplace and a gas stove which could be lit with a match. And the telephones still worked (ah, landlines!) so when I went stir-crazy I could hide out upstairs (it was 40) to call friends and check in. We also spent a lot of time gathering sticks and kindling from the woods - it all felt so very "Little House on the Prairie".

So, we're all preparing for the coming storm - apparently upwards of two feet. I'm trying to get a bunch of design work done in the event of an extended power failure, plus battening down the hatches. And buying my bread and milk. The fireplace is a little smaller than the one that got my family through the Blizzard of '78, but it will have to do!


Thinking warm thoughts!

 all credits and image information here

If you are in the path of the storm, I wish you warmth of hearth and home!


If you would like my help on your design project, I would love to chat with you! Please email me. Thanks! Subscribe to ::Surroundings::