Nothing else exudes cozy and warmth than a radiant fireplace during winter. And if you’re putting your property on the market, you can turn it into your home’s hottest feature and even one of its main selling points. The secret? The right fireplace staging that will attract potential buyers.
For this post, we’ll discuss how staging a fireplace can make a difference on your home selling plus expert tips straight from our professional stagers. Keep reading to see how you can make your fireplace an asset to your listing!
Why you should stage a fireplace
Although not all properties in Los Angeles have fireplaces, those who have them don’t realize how instrumental it can be when they put their homes on the market. Here’s why your fireplace should be part of your house staging efforts:
- It can serve as your living room’s focal point. Whether it’s a center or corner fireplace room, you can make it the focal point of your living room. This will help direct potential buyers’ eyes away from less flattering parts of the house.
- It creates a welcoming ambiance. A well-staged fireplace can strike an emotional connection with potential buyers, especially those looking for family homes. Your staged fireplace can help them picture cozy nights with their own families.
- It adds an aesthetic appeal to your home. Staging your fireplace is a great way to add an aesthetic appeal to your home. In turn, it will boost the perceived value of your home, which means you can sell faster and potentially above the asking price.
- It will look good on photos. If you’re sprucing up your old online listing, a staged fireplace can stand out on your professional photos. This will help attract buyers’ attention and even land you more requests for showings.
- It’s perfect for seasonal appeal. If you’re selling your home around Christmas time, staging your fireplace might be the missing touch that will seal the deal. This is a great way to appeal to potential buyers’ emotions and make the most out of the holiday spirit.
10 tips when staging a fireplace
If you’re looking for ways to ‘fire up’ your home selling process, you can start by staging your fireplace. Here are 10 tips that our home staging experts swear by:
1. Depersonalize your mantel
First, you should remove all photos and other personal items on your fireplace. Your goal should be to stage this area, so buyers will see their own photos being place on the mantel once they purchase your home.
Next, you should clean your fireplace, including the chimney and firebox. Make sure you remove any debris so the spot won’t look dirty or ‘used’. Overall, a clean fireplace will be more appealing to buyers since they won’t worry about the cost of having it cleaned after purchasing the house.
If you notice any damage to your fireplace, we suggest having it repaired before staging. For your convenience, we also offer handyman services, so you no longer have to look for another provider.
2. Give it a fresh paint job
You can also give your fireplace a fresh new look by painting it with a new color. If you’re unsure what color suits your interior well, you can reach out to us, and our interior designers can schedule you for a color consultation.
Overall, we prefer whitewashed bricks to make the fireplace attractive. It’s also a good choice if you want to make a living room corner fireplace the focal point.
However, if you want to stick to the traditional style, you can opt for classic red, earthy tones, or even the natural brick color. But if you prefer a modern touch, you can explore bold accent colors like mustard or matte black for a contemporary style.
3. Complement with warm colors
Since fireplaces are often associated with warmth, we recommend adding some warm tones, too. For example, you can place some earth-colored candles, candle holders, and seasonal ornaments.
Aside from that, we often bring in fireplace tools to complete the part and make the spot look fully functional for potential buyers.
Near the fireplace, you can also add warm-toned throw pillows on the couch or accent chair. Also, don’t forget about area rugs to create a more cohesive and warm appearance throughout your living room.
4. Add natural elements
Whether you have a center or corner fireplace room layout, natural elements will definitely make it stand out even more. For example, you can incorporate a stack of firewood, indoor plants on terracotta pots, or a flower arrangement of blooms with yellow and orange hues.
All these will give your fireplace and living room more color and welcoming atmosphere. Still, don’t overdo the plants too much or your living room will look too cramped.
If you like, you can also get a new wood mantel with a natural grain to add a rustic feel. You can also add some dried flowers in vases if you want low-maintenance décor.
5. Arrange your furniture strategically
Next, you should also mind how you place the furniture around your fireplace. For instance, when it comes to corner fireplace furniture placement, an L-shaped sectional sofa would be a great choice.
Although arranging furniture with a corner fireplace can be tricky, there are many workarounds you can do. Another thing we recommend is directing the furniture toward the fireplace and placing accent chairs to direct buyers’ eyes into the corner.
However you want to arrange your furniture, just make sure you’re not blocking the fireplace. Also, you should mind foot traffic and how it should flow properly. Most importantly, always match the scale of your furniture to the size of your living room so it won’t look overwhelming.
6. Consider seasonal decorations
Fireplaces are often decorated with seasonal ornaments throughout the year. So, aside from knowing how to arrange furniture with a corner fireplace, you should also maximize seasonal themes.
For example, during spring, you can stage with tulips and daffodils. Meanwhile, sand-filled jars and textured fabrics might be very attractive during summer showings.
Overall, you can be creative when it comes to seasonal décor. However, you should also tread lightly if it’s tied to specific holidays as some of your potential buyers may not be celebrating them.
7. Don’t forget about lighting
Knowing how to decorate a living room with a corner fireplace is nothing if you don’t pair with proper lighting. You can use accent lighting to direct the attention to the fireplace and you can also use tea lights on the mantel for a warm vibe.
We also recommend using layered lighting that complements your entire living room. For example, you an place table lamps near reading areas and dimmers, so you can adjust the light as you like.
Overall, don’t rely on one light source only and make sure that your furniture isn’t blocking the light. If you need help in arranging the lighting around your fireplace, you can reach out to our house staging company anytime. Our stagers will help you choose the best lighting options and placements that suit your living room.
8. Incorporate art pieces
Lastly, don’t forget to incorporate some art pieces into your fireplace staging. If you want to make a bold statement, you can go for large pieces hung above your fireplace. But if you want a more intimate or subtle touch, smaller pieces would do the trick.
Overall, don’t overdo the art pieces because it will make your fireplace look crowded. In our experience 2 to 3 pieces are often enough to give a welcoming atmosphere.
Still, every property is unique, so if you need help choosing the best art pieces to complement your fireplace, we’re just a call away! Our interior designers love transforming spaces with well-curated work, and we’d love to do the same for your home.
Let HolmeStage spruce up your fireplace and more!
If you don’t have the time and resources to stage your fireplace, our experts can do it for you! We provide professional home staging in Los Angeles for every part of your home, be it the fireplace, the entire living room, or your whole house. Our specialists can also stage vacant or occupied properties for your convenience.
At HolmeStage, we are a team of interior designers, stagers, project managers, and more who will transform your property into a buyers’ magnet. We’ve been staging properties for more than 11 years, with many being sold in as fast as 10, 7, and even 5 days!
Aside from custom staging, we also provide luxury furniture rental, basic home repair, painting service, wallpaper installation, and more. This way, your home will make the best first impression during showings and open houses.
So, if you need help staging your fireplace or any part of your home, call us today, and our team will make it happen. We’ll also give you a free, no-obligation quote for any type of property in LA and surrounding areas!
