Staging your home for an open house can be a very daunting concept. Should you paint? Should you hire a company to replace all your furniture until you move out? SHOULD YOU KNOCK DOWN A WALL? Take a deep breath, home seller. While all the previously listed staging tips are great ideas - especially painting neutral walls - the fact is that you can quickly and easily give your home a “pop” of freshness with just a quick trip to Target or Walmart. These five staging essentials will appeal to any buyer, will quickly and effectively jazz up your space, and win hearts during that all-important open house. Read on to make up your shopping list. 

Round Accent Mirrors

Round accent mirrors can be found at any big-box stores, they go with any decorating scheme, and they are just trendy enough to make your living space look attractive without a total makeover. Mirrors in general make your space look bigger, and they don’t require much innate design sense to throw up on the wall and quickly add pizzazz to an otherwise dull room. These stylish accents will give your living room, dining room, den, etc. a speedy makeover. 

LED Candles

Especially at this time of year, flameless candles are cheap and easy to find. For obvious reasons, it is not the best idea to leave burning candles going during a showing - one clumsy kid or misplaced elbow later, and you have a homeowners’ insurance claim. Scatter glowy, welcoming LED candle in groups of three (varying heights) in your kitchen, your bathroom, your living areas… these look great anywhere in the house and add instant ambience. 

Nice, White Hand Towels

Fluffy, brand-new white hand towels are the quickest, least-expensive way to add freshness to your bathroom, which is becoming an increasingly important selling point for buyers. Stack ‘em in a basket, drape them over your towel rod, and lay a few by the sink. Assuming your bathroom is spotlessly clean - which it should be before any showing - these towels will make your bathroom look bright and inviting. 

Accent Pillows

You’ve always heard about the benefits of a pop of color - well, here is your opportunity to make it happen in your own home. Colorful, patterned, cool-looking pillows will not only breathe vibrance into a lifeless couch, but they will add cheeriness and visual interest to the whole room. If you are afraid to step too far “out there” on bright decor, pillows and cushions are a low-commitment way to add spice to your life. 

Artificial Greenery

Fake plants are your friend. Effortlessly chic, you can toss them in a cute pot and instantly give your space the equivalent of a Photoshop makeover. Add as few or as many as you feel comfortable with, mixing bigger plants like ferns with smaller specimens like those adorable succulents in quirky vases. Unlike the real thing, they won’t die and need no maintenance except periodic dusting. Yet artificial plants pack a big punch in the way of decor.