Building Block Home Decorating Accessories You Need!

Whether you live small or large, this accessory collection can seamless change from decorating to entertaining in an instant. Use my "Good Bone" accessories as your base template for styling your home. Each can be used in multiple ways, be changed out quickly space to space, for a season or the holidays. These accessories too can make you a bit more organized, and when entertaining - some, can be staples and service any of your hosting areas from bar to buffet. Win, win.

(** Heads-up, if you’d like to shop my collections, the links are in the item and the picture - I’m part of the Amazon Influencer program and receive a small commission of sold items.)** Link to entire collection - LINK

JULEA’S LIST OF BUILDING BLOCK HOME ACCESSORIES

TALL CANDLESTICKS: A set of tall candlesticks elevate your styling whether topped with candles or any scale friendly object you want to display. Their height is the key ingredient to great accessorizing - Always perfect for a mantle, but also should be considered on a coffee table, kitchen island, or even in a bookcase. For entertaining, add a plate (use poster tack putty) and your buffet or bar will be elevated to new heights.

DOUGH BOWL - The perfect decorating vessel. Rustic, organic, Farmhouse style, with just the right ‘opposites attract’ interior design element that any room needs. Fill it with whatever you please, from holiday greens for the season to faux succulents as a centerpiece. Line it with cloth napkins and for entertaining - it’s the best baguette holder for your dinner party.

LARGE BLANKET BASKET - A large blanket basket can service besides blankets, entry shoes, seasonal wear, kids/dog toys, a statement in-door plant, towels, laundry. Too, it brings texture to a space, and its lovely form offers a pretty visual for a storage piece.

LONG WICKER TRAY - A nice long wicker tray adds casualness and texture to a surface. Great topped on a granite island, your dining room table or to house personal items on a bathroom counter or nightstand. A tray too offers a template to decorate in. For entertaining, pop in a long platter or bowls with your favorite sides, or use for serve items such as napkins, silverware, plates, or more.

WIRED CLOCHE - Bring the outside in with a wire cloche. Casual, unbreakable, and easy to use and store. Anything under a dome becomes more important and adds an element of surprise to your accessorizing.

CAKE STAND - A cake stand can hold more than cakes - as a decorating element, it can be the needed centerpiece element to an arrangement. Alone, or with an added plate, the stand can make something simple stand out and up. Add to the cake stand with the above cloche and you have real WOW factor decorating accessory!

NATURAL ABOLONE SHELL - I know it sounds a bit weird that a shell would make my ‘must have’ list. But I stand by my shell. This pretty, small, vessel can be a lovely natural addition to a side table or a vignette on your coffee table. Perfect in a Powder Room with a bar of soap, wrapped candies, on your kitchen windowsill to hold your rings, or a spoon rest when entertaining or as a salt cellar. It too can sit alone on a bookcase or in a cubby. I found mine while walking on a beach in Half Moon Bay, CA, so besides being functional, it holds a special memory.

WINE/CHAMPAGNE BUCKET - Iconic shape, better than a bowl, Can house ice to a tabletop Christmas Tree. What’s not to love about an oversize wine bucket? On your dining room table as a centerpiece, in your foyer with floral arrangement, on your coffee table with magazines and books. You know what to do with it for entertaining…

SILVER TRAY - Anything silver adds panache, especially a tray. In baths to entry tables - this fancy tray makes anything on it, special and upscale.

FAUX BOOKS - Faux books are a favorite for any home stylist. An added element horizontally, or vertical, they add dimension to any display.

FOOTED HURRICANE VASE - A workhorse accessory. A footed hurricane vase can be your standard decorating element in one spot. It can change each month with fresh flowers, change seasonally or with a holiday. It can be flipped over and used as a candle stand, or as a lift for a buffet with an added plate, bowl or platter. In a bathroom with bath salts, washcloths or kid’s toys, in the kitchen as a terrarium or water garden, and in the laundry with laundry care products.

RECHARGEABLE ELECTRIC CANDLES - Oh happy day! No more batteries. Candles add that ambiance and the 5 sense element needed in a space. These offer a timer, and a remote for ease of use, and then when spent, you just recharge them. We all know where to use them, and if you need direction, see above list. One added idea, since they come in a trio, consider ribboning them together as 1 cluster.

I hope you were inspired to weed through your current accessories, perhaps shop for some new ones, and use these great building block accessories in creative ways. Please share if you use one of these accessories in an different way, we’d love to know!

Stay tuned for a new collection - HOME STYLING or STAGING TOOL KIT FAVORITES. Staples and tools that I have in my tool bag when I head to interior style and home stage a home. - JULEA.

Style your Holidays Foundations 2022

I’m super excited to announce that I am now an Amazon Influencer. With that, I am able to share with you my new page Reinventing Space with Julea on Amazon. I’ll be adding collections to my shopping and with a click, you can use my shopping lists to style and decorate your home.

Style your Holidays foundations 2022

With the holidays just around the corner, start with these great home styling foundation accessory, entertaining and styling pieces for your holiday decorating this year. They will elevate what you already have this year when decking the halls and entertaining and make everyone in your home - feel the holiday spirit!

FURNISHINGS FOUNDATIONS -

Hourglass Wicker Table: With entertaining and rearranging furniture to fit in the tree - this great, little, sexy table can hold host your guest’s drinks, and can even replace a larger side table for the season.

Clear Glass Based Lamp: With all the decking the halls, this simple statement lamp can calm your very busy space. If your room is lighting poor - it's the perfect lamp for any style all year round.

Big Ass Knit Throw: Toasty! Cozy, chunky, seasonal - flip the switch for your living spaces to cozy up your space for the chilly weather season with this great throw. HINT: Can also double as a tree skirt.

HOLIDAY DECORATING FOUNDATIONS -

Open Wood Lantern: An open lantern can house anything. Stacked it on a stand, perched on a set of books or on a lift. Add it on the foyer entry table, or the pair the floor next to the door, as a centerpiece for your holiday table with fresh floral - On the buffet as the napkin or plate holder.

Marble Edge Riser Set: Lifts offer unlimited options when styling for the holidays. Anything lifted becomes more important, and creates interest. This set is made of marble with edgy gold accents and hairpin legs making anything on them very chic.

Natural Fiber Tree Collar: Tree collars are the best - they hide the mess under the tree, balance its stature, and this one brings texture and a clean, modern style to a space.

SCENTS OF THE SEASON -

Fresh Bay Leaf Wreath: A fresh Bay leaf wreath (this one has rosemary too!) is the quintessential holiday wreath and my Mom’s favorite. Lovely, richly scented, and it serves double duty in the kitchen (all organic) when cooking your favorite dishes. Just snip off a leaf or two. After the holidays, it will dry out perfectly to be a mainstay on a wall in the kitchen or pantry or broken down into jars or sachets.

Douglas Fir Essential Oil: O Tannenbaum. The scent of the season. Add few drops in a sprayer with Witch Hazel to freshen your linens, in your diffuser, scent your pine cone display or candles. Heavenly.

Rosemary/Mint French Milled Soap: French milled soap is the perfect hand cleanser in a guest bath. A little touch of panache for your holiday visitors. Rosemary and mint scented, a perfect scent for winter.

ENTERTAINING & HOME STYLING FOUNDATIONS:

Holiday Special American Old Fashioned Hard Candy: Little bowls of old fashion wrapped candies remind me of my Grandparents. These old favorites make any day during the holidays a celebration.

Monogram Guest Hand Towels: Pamper your guests with high quality paper in the powder room or table. They’ll feel like they’re at Downton Abbey.

Footed Raised Tray: A raised surface is the perfect starting point to any vignette accessorizing. Also great for your holiday entertaining to raise what you are serving.

Three Tiered Tray: Vertical decorating saves space and creates interest. Treasured collections look lovely on a table or the island. For entertaining - a coffee/tea station, for cookies, or nibbles. This fancy tiered tray comes apart too for more decorating options.

Clear Ice Bucket: Wine, ice, water, flowers, holiday treats, chips or bread when entertaining.

Marble Board: This marble pastry/cutting board can be used as a platform for decorating on your kitchen island, bar area, or is perfect as an appetizer board. Too looks lovely with potted plants on display.

Cheese Markers: Perfect and clever ”fork” cheese markers for your holiday spread.

Black ‘Chalk’ Paper: Buffet saver! Roll out this black craft paper and write your dishes on it with a white chalk pen. Great for the kids table and stylish paper for wrapping gifts.

Parchment Leaves Sheets: Up your cheese board cred with these sassy parchment leaves. Placed beneath your cheeses or fruits, it makes your platter a bit more special. Also great for desserts.

Disclaimer: This website uses affiliate links, meaning: at no additional cost to you, we earn a small commission if you click-through and make a purchase. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. We only feature products that we believe in and use ourselves. Your support means the world to me . Thank you!

Everything Old is New Again - Home Styling Makeovers

From paint company trend forecasts, to our favorite home décor magazines - the new decorating tune is "Everything old is new again."  With décor buzz words such as coastal grandmother, maximalist, cottage core, heritage, artisan, and the ever present farmhouse style - It's time to take a new look at our old stuff!   

Heirloom Design Trend and Color Palette (Photo: Benjamin Moore)

It's so yesterday to announce that your home is filled with all brand new.  Open any home magazine today and there is feature after feature about repurposing furniture, shopping flea markets and decorating with vintage finds.  Wouldn't it be refreshing not to have to run to retail to solve your decorating dilemmas?

What if you could get a new room using the stuff you already have?  

You can!

Welcome to a new era of interior decorating and design for the times. 

“Gone are the days when a fancy suited designer would sweep into your home declaring, “Darling - Everything must go!”  All new is now a ‘No-No’. ”

— Julea Joseph

In these belt tightening, environmentally conscious times;  team Reinventing Space are home styling wunderkinds that sweep through your home and within a day, reposition, re-hang and redisplay your furniture, art and accessories. Stylishly arranging your space with a pizazz and a wow factor worthy of a magazine cover and hunting your home to see what treasures you've squirreled away that can be displayed.  Accessories, furniture and other finds that you just didn't know what to do with, may end up as the fabulous finishing touch to a perfect new room!    

One Day Home Styling - Living Room Makeover (Photo: Reinventing Space)

 And our talents aren't sequestered to arranging your stuff;  we are all about up cycling and reinventing your wares. We informatively suggest how your beloved, comfy, but tired sofa would be a wonder with a new fabric wardrobe and some upholsterer’s love, how to turn that unused old TV armoire into a bar, or with a new hue, that old chest of drawers from Aunt Milly would be showstopper for your foyer. We are pros, clever and creative.  After the room makeover we leave you a "let's chat list" with more ideas, items to further complete the space, or pieces that may have seen better days.

Loved sofa reinvention. Home reupholster (Photo: Reinventing Space)

Why a Home Styling Makeover  is a must for your space now. 

• Money - Since the concept of a home styling makeover is based on us­ing what you already own, there is an immediate savings.  Because there are so many variables, fees are based on your specific scope of work, but most makeovers cost less than what you would pay for a single piece of new furniture.

• Time - The makeover typically takes between three and seven hours, whereas conventional redecoration methods can take weeks of making selections, ordering and then waiting for delivery of your new furnishings. When you have a room makeover performed, plan on entertaining your friends and family the very same evening in your fabulous "new" home!

• Comfort-In addition to the pleasure of being surrounded by familiar objects that you know and love, gone is the anxiety that comes from purchasing "NEW" and wondering if it will "WORK" once you get it home (or ever get it delivered with COVID induced logistical issues)  Your past purchases have been validated, your collections beautifully displayed and your heirlooms celebrated. We artfully transform your belongings into a picture perfect setting, instantly.

• What if my furnishings don't match, can I still have a great looking home? -Absolutely! Whether it's a certain element of color or style, there is generally a com­mon thread that runs through every home. The advantage of a room makeover is having a trained and objective eye to pull it together. Once your furnishings have been properly placed and accessorized, you will once again fall in love with all your wonderful choices!

• Am I Ready for a room makeover day? - We begin with our complimentary virtual evaluation. .  We’ll discuss your goals, priorities and challenges for your rooms.  After a tour of your home,  we’ll quote you a per room price for the makeover and schedule a date for the Home Styling Makeover.

So, if you're ready to make your home your own, celebrate what you already have, finally pull together your rooms, and have a space that is a one-of-a-kind - Call/Text us today 708-543-8597 or pop us an email at Julea@Julea.com

Do this for your FALL Decorating 2022

This morning when walking down the driveway I crunched a dozen fallen acorns. Grounded yellow leaves are starting to fill the yard and the cool morning dew hovers on the grass like a spooky fog. Feels like FALL!

With these changes us Midwesterners head to Farmer’s Markets, home storage to retrieve ‘FALL’ marked bins, and favorite home decorating stores to adorn, drape, and celebrate the changing season.

With this I share some fresh, fun, FALL 2022 home decorating ideas to incorporate into your Autumnal home styling: Please note** Most of the gallery photos have a connecting link for either a project, purchase, or inspiration. Enjoy!

Dried Flowers - With the Vintage Repurposed and Granny Chic style being fully embraced, dried floral is an associated trend. From floral arrangements, wall art, to crafting -this 2022 trend we all can embrace. Dried floral’s soft, muted hues, texture and beautiful form have fancy wedding florists mixing dried into fresh for spectacular arrangements. This is why “dried floral” has over  2.5 million tags on Instagram.  Be inspired by these wedding florals, be a maker and craft your own, or head out to your favorite retailer to pickup a ready made.

Botanicals - Talking about flowers... All things botanical is trending. From hanging planters, terrariums, indoor plants and botanical prints -  Were MAD about the green!  Create a fall inspired terrariums or pots with live plants that have fall color cues, decoupage a pumpkin with floral, mushroom or leaf printed tissue or paper napkins. Swap out your everyday art with art with a botanical theme framed piece. Whether outside or in, botanicals are an easy trend to incorporate.

Preppy Prints - Menswear fabrics and patterns have been trending in fashion and high-end home design.  Plaids, flannels, Hounds tooth and tweeds, as well as old school velvets, paisleys and toiles embraced.   Interpret these Preppy Prints into your home environment with fabric covered pumpkins, runners for your tables, throws and pillow covers for your furnishing. And if you are a needlework aficionado, in the gallery is a crochet project for a menswear inspired throw. Whatever your style is, these classic prints and patterns work within your home environment.

Cloche Dome Décor - Anything under a dome becomes important and a statement maker.  Fall is a perfect time for a walk in the woods, or a neighborhood stroll.  Pickup fall finds and create a natural display, house a pumpkin, colorful dried corn, floral picks , or battery operated fall inspired candles under a cloche for a wonder fall statement.  Dome décor is perfect on an entry table, a sideboard, or as part of a dining table centerpiece. Use a cake stand, stack of books or wrapped boxes to create levels.

Corn Husks! - Being in the Midwest, corn is our crop and at every big box home improvement store you can find dried corn stalks this time of year.  Beyond the basic stalk is a 2022 trend of Corn Husk décor. From wreaths to garland, this very Farmhouse look is a great way of celebrating the season. 

Join me live! I’ll be at the Hinsdale Library next week

Need more inspiration, technique and ideas? Join me next week for a Seasonal Decorating workshop at the Hinsdale Public Library - September 14th, 7pm. For more information visit my calendar or register directly at the library.

Invite us into your home for the day! Hire us.

No time? No worries - Julea and company can get your space reinvented for fall. We’ll sweep in, and make your space spectacular using what you already have. Want to refresh your stash? We can even bring in fresh new fall finds. Pick a shopping budget and we’ll style in the fresh finds with what you already have. 3 hour Makeover package

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook as I FALL decorate my own home over the next week.

6 things you need to do to setup a successful Home Staging and Styling Business

Deliberate or by discovery, starting a new business requires essential steps to ensure success. I started my home staging and styling business in 1999, and shortly after, relocated to a new city.

Here are 6 business start-up pearls from my business start and restart from my early days as a business owner.

Success Step #1 - Even before you hang out your shingle, get a set of “calling cards”. A calling card is just basic information about you (no business name needed.) I got mine before I even had TAKEN my specialty training certification class. Start promoting yourself, tell people you’re excited for your new career journey, spread the word on what services you are going to offer, and start a buzz.

Calling Card

A no-hassle, promo start to a new business.

Relocating from S.F. to Chicago - Start, then Restart.

Before even moving back, my business had been featured on the front page of the Real Estate section of the Chicago Tribune about HOME STAGING. I was included in that article because I had a presence on the web and had updated my profile to read residency for both San Fran., and Chicago and importantly, on the trade association's website I was a member of. The reporter found me.

Months before arrival, I worked on setting up my business for the new location - any business forms, state, county or city that needed registration. Ordering marketing materials, updating my website with contact information for both my CA and IL locations. ( Just to put things in perspective, when I started my business in 1999: GOOGLE started in 1998, phone books were a go-to information source, and AOL or Prodigy were used for the Internet.)

Success Step #2- Make sure people can find you. Have a website, social media presence, phone, and email address - and make sure any business listings on the web, especially if you belong to a trade association(s) have all your updated and current contact information.

Those few lines in the article piqued the interest of a reporter at another newspaper, and a week later while sitting in my new home office with stacked boxes around me,  I was asked to do a full business feature with a photo shoot at my next HOME STAGING.  I had no home staging appointments of course, but told her to give me a day and I would. I called the closest Real Estate office, asked for the manager, and explained my quandary. Within hours I had a home to stage, and a few weeks later was on the front page of yet another paper.

Front Page News

Make it work.

Success Step #3 - Be tenacious. If an opportunity arises, grab it. No time to be unsure of yourself, your skill set, or abilities.  If you don’t know it, learn it. If you don’t have it, find it. If you are unsure, convince yourself you are sure. 

Those early Newspaper articles brought me clients. But I had a revelation about my business name., CASA JAMBALAYA when leaving a phone message for my 1st client with her husband -  “Can you tell her that Julea Joseph from Casa Jambalaya called?” and he replied with “WHO, WHO, WHAT?” 

The business name Casa Jambalaya had cleverly worked regionally in California, but wasn’t going to work in Illinois.  I remember my Webmaster telling me that name was too difficult to spell when creating my website in 1999 - I should have listened.   I then created 2 business identities - One for my home styling/re-design services, one for my home staging services. More lessons learned on that concept as well…. (that requires another blog post…)

Success Step #4 - K.I.S.S. (Keep it Simple Stupid) when it comes to your business name. Yes you want to be creative, but consider the public finding you, understanding what you do, and building a good brand. Make sure that the name is easy to spell, isn’t too long, and gives a glimmer on what you do. Don’t make your branding complicated.

When I first started my business, I asked a friend of a friend who was a PR Executive for a few words of wisdom, she gave me the best advice - to which I still use today. She told me to start marketing within arms length, not to think big ; that people just like me were my clients. So my 1st elevator pitch was :

“Call me when you are ready to get the Little Tykes Gym out of your Living Room and take back your home. ”

— My 1st Elevator Pitch

Success Step #5 - Marketing is easy when you can identify, relate and communicate with your ideal client. Mine was Moms with young kids that were ready to recapture their homes from them. I was there to solve a problem and was just like them. 

Talking about marketing, in 2006 I got a call from Entrepreneur Magazine about an article on Interior Re-designers and Home Stagers. Not only was I featured in the article, my picture was featured on the inside magazine cover! Why? I had a professional headshot. Professional photos matter. Whether it is your portfolio or your “About Me” page -invest in professional photos.

Success Step #6 - Look professional.  Whether it’s you or your portfolio, professionalism will get you on a magazine cover.

Want more of my pearls of wisdom? I’ve got a barrel of them. Stay tuned for my next post about being on HGTV, hosting a local Public-access TV cooking show, and many more business adventure pearls and a few perils of being a home stager/stylist for over 2 decades.

I am happy to chat with you about your new home staging and styling business. Even better, check out my upcoming in-person 2 day HOME STAGING technique workshop, HouseStager Pro. Check my calendar for home staging workshops, interior design seminars, and upcoming classes. Celebrate home! - Julea.

HouseStager™ Pro 2 Day Home Staging Training

Staging Training

HouseStager™ Pro: A two day home staging specialty workshop.

You asked for it, and I’m so excited to be able to teach this in-person workshop. Learn the ins and outs of staging and styling a resident occupied home.

Did you know that only 9.7% of homes going on the market are vacant? The majority on homes are occupied and staging homes to sell with people living in them can be tricky on so many levels.

This is a specialty technique workshop focuses on the resident occupied home. Whether you are launching a professional home staging business, a Realtor, Builder, or Home Design Enthusiast - HouseStager™ Pro is designed to advance your skill set in the home staging arena.

Using my 23 years as an Interior Stylist -Learn how to use and enhance what the homeowner already has by giving a home’s existing furnishings, accessories, art and surfaces a new perspective. Comprehensive instruction of the step by step methodology of building a beautiful room. Accessorizing lessons on how to style the perfect mantle, bookcase any surface to finish a space.

SUMMER July 16/18th FALL September 17/18 Workshop location: Frankfort, IL

Selling while Dwelling Stylist

HOUSESTAGER™ PRO - A two day in-person home staging workshop. This comprehensive home staging specialty class will focus on preparing a resident occupied property for the real estate market. This 2 day intensive is focused on technique, the 5 steps of room arrangement, and lifestyle design formulas.

Best practices to increase the marketability for the ideal buyer utilizing the seller’s current belongings, smart home design updates and curating styling accouterments to showcase the home to its fullest and attract the ideal buyer.

• Best practices to increase the marketability for the ideal buyer when styling an occupied residence.

• Making best use of the home’s furnishing contents - what stays, goes and how to curate a space with supplement shopped and/or rental furnishing/accessory props.

• Psychology component advocacy techniques and procedures to help the home’s resident(s) not only live in a staged home, but move on from a place that holds personal identity to a real estate marketed property.

Learn core updates both inside and out for maximum return on investment, ideal color palettes that can bring the home up to par for today’s savvy buyer and hands-on styling lessons in our Styling Lab on room layouts, creating focal points, accessorizing, and the importance of color when styling a home to sell.

“Statistics show that only 9.7% of homes going on the market are vacant, which means that over 90% of homes listed have residents living in them. ”

— NY Times

Details

Hands on, on-site Styling Lab sessions for real time learning.

Lifestyle design and interior styling methods to create optimal emotional appeal for the buyer.

Curated HouseStager™ Pro paint palettes and selection sheets for both paint and improvements.

TELL ME MORE! -FILL OUT FORM FOR A DISCOVERY CALL visit my education site: Interior Stylist Network