Aug. 22, 2006 - Staging a Kitchen

When you stage a kitchen, you want it to look clean and bright and pleasant.  Think of it like you are creating an "aura" or a happy glow.  A pleasant place to whip up some cocktails and snacks for guests, while drinking a glass of Julia Child sherry.

I use some "foodstuffs" like a bottle of olives or herb filled oils.  I found some great colored metal old ice cream shop pieces at Sur Le Table which are currently on sale at half price.  Always try to put something bright and colorful as high up as you can over the cabinets.  It raises the eye up and gives the feeling of spaciousness and height.

Sometimes I take the curtain off, as in the window you see here where the tree out front adds to the ambiance of the space.  The window you can't see on the left has an open lace curtain I used as a backdrop for some candles. 

Always walk through the house when you are finished staging.  Walk out of the room and back into the room from every doorway.  Look into the room from other places in the home, from which it is visible.  Nudge and tweak and fine tune until you see only pleasant things and no negatives from every angle.  Don't stare at the room from within it.  Walk quickly through it from every angle.  Staring at it from inside the room is *decorating*, walking through it quickly from every angle is *staging*.