Home staging props are essential to add touches of detail throughout a room.
Staging amplifies a room’s potential and sets a mood, allowing potential buyers to imagine themselves living there. Agents stage homes to create a connection between a potential buyer and the house from the moment they pull into the driveway.
Knowing which props to use and how to arrange them is a skill that improves with experience and training. A home staging certification can teach you these techniques, along with the broader design principles that underpin them.
Home staging doesn’t have to be an incredibly costly endeavor. A lot of the work actually comes from removing items such as collectibles, personal objects, photos, and bulky or excess furniture from the home.
However, you don’t want to end up with rooms that look bare or cheap.
Read on to learn about eight great home staging props that you can use to elevate the look of your home without breaking the bank.
Staging with Books
Books can make excellent space fillers that incorporate pops of color into a living space. They can also be used to prop up other decorative items, adding dimension to the room. If you’re specifically looking for home staging books, we’ve rounded up the best of the best here.
However, if not used correctly in a home staging setting, they can ruin a space’s look.
Here are some tips to ensure you use this home staging prop correctly.
Don’t Stock the Shelves
While bookshelves or bookcases are wonderful for storing books, when staging a room, the goal is to keep every space looking airy and light.
A bookcase that’s fully stocked with books can add a heavy, bulky feeling to a room. It’s recommended to pack most of your books and keep only a few of your nicest ones out to display.
For more details on getting the balance right, read our dedicated guide to staging bookshelves.
Use Sets of Hardcover Books (Correctly)
Sets of hardcover books in good condition can be stacked on tables – they’re especially effective when staging a coffee table – or used to complete the look of a bookshelf.
When choosing hardcover sets for home staging, it’s important to check the condition of the spine, steer clear of controversial titles and topics, and be sure they don’t smell musty.
If you don’t already have some books to use as props, they can be found easily and inexpensively at used bookstores, thrift shops, and garage sales.
Fruit bowls
Staging a kitchen table with a fruit bowl in Staging 101.
Setting out a big bowl of bright, fresh fruit is a natural, easy way to add color and freshness to the kitchen or dining room. A bowl of fruit makes a perfect countertop accent or table centerpiece. Here are some tips for using fruit bowls when staging a home.
Choose the Right Bowl
First, choose a bowl that works with your theme or décor style. If you have a rustic country home, use a wooden, clay, or pottery bowl. If your home has a contemporary style, look for a long, lean glass bowl. Use a traditional glass bowl in a traditional setting.
Use Lemons
Consider using lemons and other fruits that people wouldn’t be tempted to bite into. Some people might think the fruit is out for them to help themselves to, and you don’t want to end up with bite marks on decorative fruit if that’s what you’re using.
Decorative Fruit is Okay
Speaking of decorative fruit, it’s fine to use it as long as it’s of decent quality and you keep it clean. Nothing is appealing about a bowl full of dusty old fake fruit with paint chipping off.
Plush Towels
Bathrooms can be one of the most challenging rooms in a home to stage. For a complete walkthrough, check out our full guide on staging a bathroom.
Without the right lighting, space, and decorative touches, a bathroom can come across as cold and unwelcoming. One of the best ways to enhance the bathroom’s level of luxury is to display plush towels. The following tips will help you choose the best towels and display them perfectly.
Keep the Color Scheme Neutral
Clean, plush, brand-new towels can give your bathroom a high-end boutique feel. Use white towels unless your bathroom is already white. If that’s the case, choose a brown or gray tone that will contrast the color scheme while remaining neutral.
Fold Like a Hotel
Fold the towels the same way a hotel would. Roll a few washcloths, fold a couple of hand towels, and a few large towels in thirds.
Create a Spa-Like Feel
It’s essential to add some softness from plush towels to a room that’s full of hard surfaces. The right colors, folding, and placement are guaranteed to give your bathroom a spa-like feel.
Large Paintings
Large paintings are perfect for adding dimension to a big living room wall, filling the plain space above a fireplace, or adding personality to a dining room.
Paintings must be chosen wisely, and a few main elements must be considered. Look for artwork that features a soft color palette, a simple landscape, or an abstract painting with smooth, blended brush strokes. The aim is to make an impact while maintaining a peaceful, soothing overall feeling.
Throw Pillows and Cushions
An effortless way to elevate a room’s look and feel and create a warm, inviting atmosphere is to use cushions and throw pillows.
Here are some tips to keep in mind when using throw pillows and cushions when home staging.
Choose Colors and Textures Wisely
These props are perfect for adding some extra dimension to a room. Choose pillows with texture, color, or print.
Bold colors can add a dramatic pop to a living room or bedroom, while textures can help create a relaxing atmosphere.
If you choose a bold color, make sure you use it in other rooms as well to maintain a flow and cohesive theme throughout the house.
Focus on Volume
While cushions and throw pillows are excellent space enhancers, avoid flat or stiff pillows. Volume adds a sense of comfort and luxury, while stiff, flat pillows just look sad.
Don’t Go Overboard
Also, be careful not to go overboard by using too many pillows. A couple of décor pillows on a sofa or bed, an accent cushion on a chair, or a few on a bench are all you need to enhance a room’s look.
Plants and Flower Arrangements
Greenery, indoor plants, and flower arrangements can add life, color, and personality to any room in the home. From the bathroom to the kitchen, a thoughtful arrangement of greenery and flowers is like a breath of fresh air for potential buyers.
Greenery
Adding greenery to a room is one of the simplest and most classic ways to liven it up. Small succulents are great for bathroom shelves, while plants like spiders and ferns make good mantle ends over a fireplace. Small potted plants can fill in spaces on bookshelves and end tables and be placed thoughtfully throughout the dining room and kitchen.
Orchids
Orchids are one of the most sensuous and elegant flowers in the world, which is why they make an incredibly versatile home staging prop. Place some in a bathroom for a luxurious spa-like feel, make them a dining room highlight, or group a few containers together for an entryway centerpiece.
Flower Arrangements
High-quality flower arrangements are perfect props for any space. There are so many varieties of flower types and arrangements out there that it’s easy to find something cohesive to blend into the color scheme of the room you’re staging.
Focus on the containers or vases as well to ensure the arrangement accents the room nicely and stays on theme. It’s wise to use high-quality artificial arrangements so that you don’t have to worry about maintaining live flowers or paying to replace them.
Floor Lamps
A floor lamp is a large home staging prop that can make a big statement in a room without taking up much space or detracting from the ambiance. They’re also helpful in creating the perfect amount of light for walkthroughs and photos.
When you’re selling your home, chances are it’s listed online too. In such cases, posting staged photos is an eye-catching way to attract potential buyers. Floor lamps can be used to enhance the room’s lighting while remaining ideal decorative fixtures on their own.
Mirrors
Mirrors are one of the most versatile home staging props because they serve a dual purpose: they add visual interest while also making a room feel larger, brighter, and more open.
Hang a large decorative mirror above a fireplace or console table to create a focal point in a living or dining room. In bedrooms, a full-length standing mirror can make the space feel more generous while showing buyers the room has been thoughtfully styled. In darker hallways or rooms with limited natural light, a well-placed mirror can reflect light from a window or lamp and instantly lift the atmosphere.
The key is to use mirrors intentionally – choose frames that complement the room’s style, and position them where they’ll reflect something worth looking at, like a window view or a well-staged vignette, rather than a blank wall.
Prop TVs for Staging
Yes, you can buy a fake TV for staging! It sounds tacky at first, but with the price of TVs, do you really want to own a dozen flat-screen TVs to stage all the properties you’re staging? Probably not.
You can buy prop TVs for staging for as low as $25, but you’ll need to pay closer to $250 for a modern smart TV.
While you’re ordering your fake TV, take a look at the laptop props too! They start at around $30 each and can help stage a home office.
