I was introduced to home staging in 1998 by a frustrated Realtor. I was trying to sell an urban townhouse in a trendy neighborhood in Chicago that was decorated like a suburban house for a young family. It was a house for a young family, and it worked for us but we weren't going to be living there any more. Learning that the house you live in isn’t always the house you want to sell – or more importantly, the house someone else will want to buy - was a hard lesson.

That Realtor gave me some harsh advice (including "take the house off the market until you are really ready to sell") and a book on staging. "Dress Your House for Success" became my bible. I read every page and took every step. That townhouse went back on the market and sold before I even finished all the updates I’d been planning. I was hooked.

As a corporate nomad I had lots of opportunities to practice my new craft – the Chicago townhouse, a bungalow in LA that received an "as is" offer (they even wanted my furniture and accessories!), a suburban Colonial that listed and sold far above my expectations, and four more - and then my sister called for help maximizing the selling price of her home. Since then I've been helping friends and family make the transformations that make them quicker sales and higher profits.

Before taking up home staging full time my "real job" was in marketing and strategic planning. Turns out that lots of things that make a difference in those fields - understanding the current market and your target audience, knowing where to spend your time and budget to make the greatest impact, finding ways to stand out and be memorable, having a never ending supply of ideas - are just the sorts of things that make a difference in staging.

I guess that makes my approach to staging a little different than some others. I start with a clear understanding of your most likely buyer and bring you ideas to make your home's best features match up with their wish list. And like that Realtor did for me all that time ago, I help you see your house the way buyers will so that we can make the changes that will matter most to get you to your goal - the quickest sale at the highest price possible.