By Jessica Pack
There are different facets to the work that staging companies perform. The property on Livingston Avenue was one that fell outside the norm. This was not a home that was for sale, but rather a home that was going to be used as an AirBnb. This means that we work closely with the homeowners on budget, overall aesthetic, inventory lists, you name it.
The home was a duplex right below downtown Columbus, and a hop, skip and a jump away from one of our favorite German Village restaurants, Katzinger’s Deli.
We had to approach staging this differently than we would for homes that we stage for sale. Knowing that items going into the AirBnb would need to be decorative as well as functional… It really made us put on our thinking caps.
Thankfully, we at Sanctuary Staging have experience with styling AirBnbs in the past. With staging, it’s purely aesthetic. We need to WOW the customer as quickly as possible. Although we do look at functionality, it’s not necessarily as important as it would be where guests are actually staying in the space, like at this AirBnb.
I watched a design competition awhile back where the contestants had weekly challenges that were judged. Losers of the challenges were eliminated. One challenge was a hotel that was updating its rooms. The hotel had something to do with chocolate. Each contestant was given a room and a type of chocolate to design around. The designers used that as their inspiration while at the same time, still had to consider the function: it was a hotel.
I remember the results and the judges comments because… well… I enjoy those kinds of programs *smile.* I didn’t know it at the time, but it turned out to be useful brain candy when we were brought in to work at Livingston. Feedback from the judges on that show that applied to our task included how easy or difficult it was to clean between guests. That meant giving consideration to the materials used and the amount of decorations (knickknacks and all things pretty). The color of towels and bedding. Using fewer fragile or breakable things. Having that information tucked away in my memory bank actually paid off!
I never really noticed how often we DO use items that look fantastic in MLS pictures but are actually something my grandma would probably have smacked my hand and said, “Do not touch!” Those were kinds of things we specifically tried to not use for this project. It required a different mindset than normal but that is also the same twist of the creative flow that makes things interesting.
Sanctuary prides itself on being efficient. We allot a time frame with our customers and do a darn good job of meeting or beating those deadlines. After all, customers want their properties listed so they can sell them.
Livingston offered us a different scenario, and what a great idea they had! The owners decided they wanted to stay the night (in their own property) and see how things felt and how it all worked. This way they could feel like a guest and see the space through a different lens.
They came into it with a different perspective as a “guest.” They uncovered some functional issues with the house that they didn’t know were problematic and were able to repair or replace some of those things before they went live.
Onto the décor itself (admittedly our favorite part): The dining room was open to the front door, and we went with a baker’s rack – a little sad for it to leave our inventory, but it was just perfect in this space and coordinated so perfectly with the centerpiece and chandelier.
The living room close by had tall shelves that we brought in some historic Columbus and German Village books and more vintage décor. The kitchen had open shelving throughout, so we had fun with a few bowls and accessories. Upstairs were three spacious bedrooms, and we weren’t sure which one we would have chosen if we were guests.
If you are ever in the German Village area, check out this AirBnb called Hannah’s Haus right on Livingston Avenue. They are live and thriving!
