Tip For Tuesday: Use Model Homes For Decorating Ideas

Source: Toll Brothers in Cinco Ranch, Katy TX

It seems a new construction community goes up everyday here in the area where I live. of course, with new communities, come the lovely model homes.

Source: Highland Homes Cinco Ranch Katy TX

Model homes are a great marketing tool for home builders. Just like a seller staging a home for sale, a model home is meant to connect with the emotions of the potential buyers and get them to imagine themselves living there.

Home builders conduct market research to pin point the needs and wants of the demographic that they are trying to attract to their homes, and then hire Interior Designers to merchandise the models in a way that will connect with potential buyers.

Source: Highland Homes Cinco Ranch Katy TX

Model homes communicate a strong message of a better value to prospects by the way they are decorated.

Furniture layouts play a huge role in maximizing space. Designers spend a great deal of time presenting model homes as being as spacious as possible. Every square foot counts
Creating the right atmosphere allows the home to be more memorable. Homebuilders and designers are well aware that the prospective buyer is also looking at their competitors.
Interior architectural detailing creates the perception of heightened value and uniqueness.
Creating memory points connects with the prospective buyer on an emotional level
Visual appeal, color coordination, trends, timelessness and classic details help prospective buyers imagine themselves living in the home
Upgraded features allows the home builders to sell more of those upgrades. Prospective buyers tend to buy what they see.

Source: Toll Brothers Cinco Ranch, Katy TX

So you can see that a lot goes into merchandising a model home.

As a homeowner looking to decorate your home, there is a great opportunity of getting great ideas from visiting model homes. After all, they represent the vision and ideas of talented Interior Designers, with well thought out designs. Use their ideas to your advantage, for free.

Source: Toll Brothers Cinco Ranch, Katy TX

I have worked for enough homebuilders to see that with the weekend comes the lookers and the neighbors who are curious to see what the model homes look like. Some are just checking them out to compare value, while others are actually looking for decorating ideas.

Source: Toll Brothers Cinco Ranch, Katy TX

If you are one of those people looking for decorating ideas by visiting model homes, there are some tips I can provide to help you stay focused and actually get some useful ideas that you can implement in your own home, for less.

Visit a community with home values similar to or higher than your home’s value
Look for a floorplan and size that is similar to your home.
Bring a camera and make sure that it is ok to take pictures. Some builders weirdly enough are opposed to people “stealing” their decorating ideas and will not allow you to take pictures.
Bring a notepad to make notes and even sketch the room and furniture layout. After looking at several model homes all day, they will start running together in your mind
Make a list of special features that you like and possibly want to duplicate in your home
Bring a tape measure. This is helpful to measure interesting architectural details that you can scale to fit your home.
Don’t be afraid to ask the Sales person about some of the features, especially names of paint colors. They will often have this information and don’t mind sharing. Usually they are not educated on the source of furnishings or even the Designer of the model home.
Look for a home that has a similar color scheme to what you have in mind for your home. The color schemes the Designers use are usually in line with current trends.
If you see a piece of furniture that you absolutely love and have to have, open the top drawer or look underneath a cushion, and there you can usually find the name of the manufacturer.
If you plan to hire a Designer to decorate your home, have him/her visit one or two of the model homes that you like. That will help communicate your vision to your Designer. Point out the features that you love and most importantly some of the things you don’t.
Notice the scale of the furnishings compared to the size of the room
Notice that model homes are always full of natural light. This is mainly because they don’t use window coverings except for decorative drapery panels or valances that don’t cover the windows. If you want to have the same feel of as much natural light as possible in your home, it’s important to choose window coverings that can easily be pulled up and out of the way.
Notice that even though the Designer w ants to bring in natural night and preserve views, window treatments are still used. That’s a clue that window treatments play a major role in adding softness and pulling a room together
Notice how the accessories are arranged in each vignette. Usually in odd numbers, with varying heights, texture and scale
Notice how art is hung at an eye level comfortable to anyone regardless of their height
Notice that the look starts from the exterior of model homes. Creating a great curb appeal can give the visitors to your home the same welcoming feel. Create a couple of beautiful beds of annuals in your front yard. Create a stone walkway using inexpensive stepping stones. Add a nice seating area on a front porch with beautiful potted plants
Notice the decorating styles and see if that fits in with your lifestyle.
Notice the use of textiles – Notice how patterns and textures are successfully mixed to add warmth and personality
Narrow down your list of favorite homes, and return a couple more times to really sink your teeth into the designs.
Visit on a weekday if possible. Less traffic usually, and you have the opportunity to speak to the Sales person without much interruption

Source: Partners in Building Cinco Ranch Katy TX

Source: Highland Homes Cinco Ranch Katy TX

Hopefully you found some great tips to help you stay focused when you visit model homes for decorating ideas. Sure they are fun to look at, so you want to take your time to browse and take it all in, but don’t forget the purpose of your visit.

The goal is to leave there feeling inspired to tackle your own decorating project. Do you have new home communities in your area? Do you enjoy looking at the model homes? Have you ever gotten decorating ideas from model homes? Leave me a comment below

Have a terrific Tuesday!

Be Inspired!