Monday, March 31, 2008

Aye, what a messy closet you have

Let me set the mood: I am with a buyer, we walk into a multi-million $ house up in the hills, admire the stunning views from the living room, imagine cooking dinner on the gleaming Viking Range, walk on the refinished hardwood floors through the hallway, open up a closet in one of the bedrooms and *BOOM* its time to duck and cover for fear of being hit by one of the many boxes or shoes stuffed into the closet- stuffed in there, probably, that morning.

Unbelievable.

They can't be serious.

How many times has this happened to you? Perhaps in your own home? You open those closets, and immediately shut them for fear of what you might find.

Bring in Dana Arkinzadeh, owner of DMA Organizing. I met with her last month and she had these great tips on how to maximize your closet space, AND keep it organized.



I think I should pass on her info to the owners and agent of the home in the hills.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Cool Quote

I really like this quote:

"We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives...not looking for flaws, but for potential." ~Ellen Goodman

Thursday, March 13, 2008

The house that someone built

Have you ever walked into a house, be it a friends house or a house you wandered into during a Sunday open house, only to think: Whut???

Yes, it happened to me today. Only this was during a broker's tour.

The outside is a typical home for the neighborhood: 1940's ranch style, surrounded by beautiful Oak trees and nice views of the Bay. But the inside, well that is a different story.

The front door was lean and tall and looked like it was off the pages of a Dungeons & Dragons board game, complete with ornate decorations. Walk straight ahead and you are in this crazy atrium compound complete with bright flowers, a fireplace, and little light. How can these beautiful Gerbera daisy's grow without any sunlight? Unless they were fake. Then you walk around the corner and it is like an entirely different house, but again, very low on light. Care for breakfast? You can eat it from the kitchen nook and look out onto the atrium where a fire crackles in the fireplace.

I don't quite understand what is happening in the house. A fellow colleague and I were discussing it, trying to figure it all out. We can only surmise that it was off the set of a movie and it was all a facade. It is unique with a capitol "U."

This is one of those times where I wish there were a website that would discuss the history of a particular home.

I imagine this house will fancy someone. To that someone out there, I'd love to buy you a cup of coffee and have a conversation.