Winter Weekend {So Cal Style}

Last weekend my sister and I went on a little road trip down south.  We stopped at Roger's Gardens in Newport Beach.  I have read a lot about it and seen blogposts, but never experienced it in person.  It did not disappoint.  The weather was beautiful and there were amazing flowers everywhere.

  What could be better?

We cruised around Balboa Island, did some shopping at Fashion Island and then spent the night at my favorite hotel down that way, the Hyatt Regency.  The next day, we woke up to cloudy skies, and after breakfast we stopped at the historic Crystal Cove. 

After a nice walk down the beach, we arrived at the cluster of old cottages where people have been camping for the summer since the early 1900s.  

 

The history of this place is pretty fascinating.  If you google, you can read more if you're interested.

As we continued south to San Clemente, the sun came out and it turned into a beautiful Southern California winter day.

I mean seriously, how lucky are we to live in So Cal?

I wouldn't trade it for anything.

And here is the view from my friend Judy's balcony, right by the San Clemente pier.  I don't think I'd ever leave the balcony.  Can you imagine the sunsets?

We continued on south stopping in Laguna Beach, Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe where I had a work meeting on Monday morning.  Unfortunately I did not play golf that day, but it was a beautiful course at the Santaluz Club.

  

We did a fair amount of shopping and I came home with a new pillow sham from Restoration Hardware, some cute black and white cocktail napkins, a couple of amber bottles and a cute little gold nut dish.

It was a pretty good weekend.   Let's hope this one can hold up as well.  It's three days long and going to be warm, so it's already got that goin' for it.

Wishing you a good one!

As always, thanks for visiting.

#sunnyskiesforall

xo

~Karen~



Staging Your Home To Sell

 

 

As I told you the other day, I'm packing up and moving from the suburbs back to my hometown...the Hollywood/Studio City area...not exactly sure where I will end up yet.   

 

So in order to get going with my big plan I need to sell my house.  Towards that end, I've been clearing out and purging stuff (even more than I usually do).  Another thing I've been doing is staging my home.  Staging your home for sale is all the rage...everyone is doing it.  Sometimes I think it looks kinda fake, like when the dining room table is set for a full meal.  No one really has their table set all the time (do they?).  
However, if it's done right, staging can be very effective. 
It's all about creating a feeling of a certain lifestyle.  The scene you set should show the potential buyers what a lovely life they will have if only they will buy
THIS home.

 

 

You want them to be able to picture themselves having breakfast or a cup of coffee in your kitchen.

 

 

Of course you love your family photos & memories but pack 'em up.  Don't remind the buyer that another family lives here, you want them to picture themselves living here.  A good replacement for photos is a stack of books. 

Looks clean and organized. 

 

You're going for uncluttered, so even if you have to pack up some of your clothes, it's worth it to show that your closets are spacious...plenty of room.  I didn't have to do that...I don't have that many clothes anyway!

 

 



I won't bore you with pictures of my  bathroom cabinets, but trust me, they are clean & tidy.  Buyers look everywhere.  Snoopymcsnoopersons!

It's all about creating a feeling...they think if they buy your house, they too will live a neat and tidy lifestyle.

Seriously, I even slightly staged my refrigerator. Don't laugh..they will look in there.  If your fridge is dirty or messy, it will help if it's cleaned up.

 

 

If possible, keep lots of fresh flowers around the house when you are selling.  If that's not practical, live plants are a good option but I happen to think fake plants are worse than no plants.  What do you think?

 

Staging is really about common sense.  Think about what you would like to see when looking at a home. 
Clean, uncluttered, well-maintained, neutral.
But if you need help, there are plenty of talented peeps out there who will do it for you.  Seems like it would be a fun job.

So come on over for a glass of wine in the backyard and picture yourself living here.

It's lovely I promise.

 

Thanks for visiting!

 

~Karen~