Need a reliable moving company?

Your Local Movers BC

As a Home Staging company in Vancouver, we are constantly moving inventory around the city prepping properties for sale.  Because we cannot do all the work ourselves, employing good quality movers makes all the difference to us!

Your Local Movers is a Vancouver based company owned and operated by two fabulous individuals who work hard and employ equally hard working guys.  They get the job done quickly and efficiently, always providing great service.

Check out their website and, the next time you need a mover, give them a call!

www.yourlocalmoversbc.com

Houzz- if you don’t know the website please go check it out now!

“(Houzz is) a collaborative platform for home remodeling and design, bringing homeowners and home professionals together in a uniquely visual community.”

In early 2012, Flow Home Staging & Design joined this online network to showcase our own work as well as well find inspiration in that which others have posted.  As an online resource for design, this site not only allows you to connect with other individuals but also helps to promote your business as a professional within the field.  We welcome our connections – homeowners, trades, realtors, to visit our Houzz page and comment on our work and review.  As we enter the final stretch of 2012 it is time to prep for 2013 and what better way than to have those who mean the most to us, help promote us!

http://www.houzz.com/pro/isaguay/flow-home-staging-design

Eastside Culture Crawl

The Eastside Culture Crawl began in 1997 spanning only three studios and welcoming a few hundred guest to view the work of some highly talented local artists.  Now, 16 years later, this event showcases over 300 artists, craftspeople and designers and runs for three days, over a weekend in November.

“(It) provides opportunities for member artists to engage with the public through the creation of events, programming and partnerships that foster awareness, encourage visibility and promote artists and their work.”

We suggest the weekend of November 16,17 and 18 ^th , you take the time to check out this event!  Whether it be finding a treasure for your own home or picking up early Christmas gifts for friends and family, this is the perfect event to head to for locally crafted goods!

http://www.eastsideculturecrawl.com/crawl

Homespun Art

Last fall we posted an article about do it yourself art.  Exchanging family photos for pretty paper, newspaper, wall paper or homespun art is a great way to make quick changes to your home when preparing to sell, however, this idea is also a great way to decorate the home you live in currently.

Art that we choose to display in our homes should hold some sort of meaning.  It often jumps out at us before we purchase, it calls to us from the window of an art gallery, or we find inspiration in an artist’s talent and wish to display it.  Rather than splurging on large scale pieces, search out beautiful frames and fill them with bright colours, mini canvases or words to create an inspirational wall collage.  Not only will the art stand out but will be a constant reminder of your very own handy work!

Flow Home Staging & Design Turns 5!

Flow Home Staging & Design was started five years ago this month by Isabelle Guay!!

A start-up with minimal experience yet loads of ambition, Isabelle spent her first year with Flow establishing herself and building a reputation.  A year into the process, with successes piling up behind her, Isabelle brought Tina Presley on board.  With a background in visual merchandising and design, Tina was a perfect fit to help grow the business.  Her eye for style allowed her to introduce a unique attention to detail that helped take Flow Home Staging to the next level.  As the business continued to take off, Nicole Varga, an Interior Design grad from BCIT, was added to the mix.  Seeing design from a more contemporary angle, Nicole introduced a fresh perspective to Flow.  In April of 2011, it was time to expand again.  I (Shelley Chalmers) joined the team a year and a half ago.  Having recently completed my Interior Design certificate at BCIT, I write, take care of social media, stage and consult on design projects; a different point of view that compliments the already established Flow Team.

Today, we are constantly busy!  Whether it is staging homes for sale or providing design work for clients looking to renovate or change up their look, the Flow team is always on the go.  We have a vast inventory that is always being updated and expanded allowing us to stage homes suitably and in the most appealing way.

As we take this chance to let everyone know who we are and celebrate five years in business, we also want to thank our client base, from homeowners to realtors, who have helped us to reach and surpass our goals.  It is the relationships we have built that have not only made us successful but also will allow us continued success in the future.

To everybody we have touched, we thank you for trusting us with your homes and we look forward to working with you again in the future!

~ The Flow Home Staging Team

Contemporary Baby Boy

When designing for the addition of a baby boy, traditionally, as pink is for baby girls, we tend towards soft blues.  Although this is makes for a very cute space, we like to venture away from the norm and spice things up a little bit.

Create a space where your baby boy can flourish; strong statement colours, playful accent pieces and soft textures.  Just like nurseries for baby girls, wallpaper is always a great choice.  Visual texture and patterns, whether they be bold or soft and simple, add depth to a space that can often fall flat if painted one colour.

People are often afraid of colour, of making the wrong choice or going too light or dark, but, if you accessorize your space effectively, virtually any colour can work.  As boys need a little drama and are less apt to appreciate the prettier things in life, why not be bold with a navy blue wall complimented by green accent colours and softened by a neutral area rug and white furniture?  Alternately choose a slate gray back drop with pops of orange, blue (of varying shades), yellow and soft green; all colours round out the space without being overwhelming.

As boys can be easy to design for and options seem unlimited, try varying shades of blues and turquoises with soft grays.  Work with green as your main colour and accent with yellow and orange, softening with deep blues.  Be bold with an orange feature wall neutralized with white furniture and deep blue and white accents.  Wall decals add interest with a variety of playful scenes if bold colours are not in your comfort zone.

Designing for the arrival of a baby boy is always fun.  If you know a boy is in your future, be bold, take risks and create a space that will become a haven for your little munchkin.  We read somewhere that boys are noise with dirt on them, so, create a space that will let them be just that!

Designing a Baby Room

Designing for baby can be one of the most exciting or most daunting tasks.  Although some parents choose to find out the sex of their child before the birth, there are still a number of people who wait for the surprise.  Isabelle Guay, owner of Flow Home Staging & Design, was one such person.

Preparing for the arrival of her first child two years ago, Isabelle, along with her husband Sheldon, began the process of preparing their nursery.  Their initial inspiration came in the form of a fabulous wallpaper; circles of teal blue and silver.  Not only could it work for either gender but it would also provide visual stimulation (important in early childhood development) when baby was in the room.

Wanting to stay gender neutral in their base pieces, they opted for a white bed and dresser combo and added a soft grey carpet and grey rocking chair to compliment.  The final ensemble was contemporary chic; exactly what they wanted without catering to either sex.  With the arrival of their beautiful baby girl, they set about accessorizing the space with touches of pink.  Having left window treatments and artwork until after her arrival, it was easy to add that “touch of girl.”

Building your Baby Room

In terms of design, preparing for the arrival of a newborn is about more than the colour chosen for the nursery walls.  It is the large pieces brought in to the space that make it cohesive and allow baby to move forward from infant to child with functional, age appropriate furniture.

To allow your child to grow with the pieces you purchase, we suggest buying furniture that can transition with your baby.  Choose a crib that can eventually become a double bed and a dresser with a removable topper that will serve as your baby change table.  Both will, in the long run, save you money as they change their functionality as your child grows.   We also suggest adding a comfortable (and fashionable of course) rocking chair or glider that can be used with each of your children as you expand your family, a quiet place for cuddles and comfort.

Finding timeless pieces of furniture is key as purchasing for the transitional years can be costly.  Choose items that you really love and let your design flourish from there!

Whether you choose to find out the sex of your child before birth or not, your big purchases should be gender neutral with a clear design aesthetic.  Allowing your child to grow with your foundation pieces will make it easier to add additional items later on; pieces that provide the child with a striking sense of self are easily replaceable.

Online kids store we love!

With summer already here (or it is?) and the number of new born babies in the city on the rise, we wanted to pass along some information on decorating for a new arrival, places to shop and fun accessories to liven up your new additions room.

Recently we came across this great online shopping store for all things kids!  A Canadian company located here in Vancouver, they aim to bring the best products they can find from around the world to you, the consumer.  With a tagline of “fresh, healthy and fun,” the products they choose must meet these criteria in order to “make the cut.”

Catering to moms on the go, you can shop from the comfort of your home with confidence in the product you are purchasing.

As Sue Sinclair, owner and operator of Raspberry Kids says, “we are pleased to feature many products that are made in Canada, the USA and Australia, several items that are made by a Mom (and) for a Mom as well as many award winning products and products that are environmentally friendly and/or socially responsible.”

We suggest you check them out and see what treasures you can find for your new arrival! http://www.raspberrykids.com/

Idea Boards for Baby

Recently, here at Flow Home Staging and Design, we decided to focus on designing for the arrival of a new baby.  As we are now into summer, the number of Vancouverites ready to welcome a newborn into their lives seems overwhelming.  When designing for baby, whether we know the sex of the child or not, we all want to create a space that will soothe and stimulate our new additions.  As ideas and inspiration can be hard to come by and are often found while flipping through magazines or wandering the aisles of whichever baby store has the latest fashionable baby goods, we want to help you find the perfect inspiration for your little ones new space.

As we head into July we suggest Pinterest; an online pinboard community.

The idea of creating idea boards for inspiration is not a new one.  We often write out our goals, post photos of places we want to visit and layout activities we want to take part in.  Pinterest allows you to do all of these things and more all in one place while simultaneously sharing with others.   This site allows you to see what inspires the online community instead of searching the internet for hours trying to find that one thing that jumps out at you.  When you find an idea that inspires you, re-pin it to your own baby room ideas and come back to it when you are ready to design and decorate.  You can also pin ideas directly from websites so that they are also there to come back to at a later date.

As a starting point for design, this really is an innovative way of compiling ideas and coming up with the best solution for you.  As baby approaches, and while you still can, take the time to create your online pinboard and start pinning for baby!