1. Virtual Tours
Even before COVID-19, virtual tours were trending. But today, this is more in-demand than ever. It’s also an amazing inbound marketing opportunity to not only find new residents but hook them with properties that exceed their expectations.
How to make a room seem more spacious
It’s not how much space you have, but rather how you use it that matters! If you’re limited on space, re-consider your decor and furniture choices, you’d be surprised by how big of a difference small tweaks can make! Try these tips to make the most out of a few square feet of space…
Use Colour Wisely.
A monochromatic colour scheme can work wonders in a small space. Bright colours and patterns feel chaotic and cluttered, and while dark colours can feel cosier, they can create a cramped living space.
For smaller rooms, choose light and neutral colours. These shades will produce the illusion of a larger room. Try creating a backdrop of whites and creams and add visual interest with tapestries or wall art in soft sea salt greys or add an accent wall in a neutral-but-contrasting shade.
Lighten up the linens.
Chunky blankets and throws are great in an expansive, open-concept space, but they can make a tiny room feel cluttered! Instead of heavy linens and curtains, opt for light and breezy materials like linen, silk, or cotton gauze, which create a sense of airiness in a room.
Dark and heavy fabrics like velvet, satin, polyester, or densely woven cotton absorb light and weigh down the room. Neutral, light-coloured fabrics are preferable to dark or patterned fabrics.
Get the right rugs.
The key to creating space with a rug is getting the right size — nothing will shrink a room like a rug that’s much too small. As a rule of thumb, choose a rug wide enough to “cover” the floor’s surface — spanning the front legs of your sofa and chairs (or the front edge of all the large furniture pieces in a room). Leave about eight to 18 inches of open floor space between the rug and the wall to frame the room and create a walkway. Like everything else, choose a lighter colour to enlarge the space even more.
Let there be (plenty of) light.
Light always makes a room bigger and brighter — especially natural light. Avoid blocking the windows to maximize outdoor lighting. Hanging sconces or prints on either side of your bed allows more open space on your nightstands and draws the eye upward. When choosing a lamp, look for one with a slim, clear, or open stand that has a light-coloured lampshade or no shade at all.
Make space with mirrors.
Mirrors are one of the easiest ways to trick the eye into thinking a room is more spacious than it really is. Hang mirrors on the walls (put one across from a window to reflect the light!) and consider glass or light-coloured furniture in the living room or nightstands in the bedroom.
Declutter your décor.
Simplicity is the best policy. While you don’t need to become a full-blown minimalist, you should borrow a few guidelines. Too many things in a room, whether that’s furniture, pillows, small decorative objects, or furniture, will only make a room feel more cluttered.
Pare down unused items and excess knickknacks to create more open space on the shelves, walls, and surfaces.
Stow messes away with shelves and storage.
If you’re lucky enough to have built-in shelves, take full advantage. Floor-to-ceiling shelves offer plenty of storage but don’t take up precious space — plus, they draw the eye up, giving the illusion of a larger room.
If you don’t have built-in shelves, you can create a similar effect by installing floating shelves or tall bookcases. Painting them the same colour as the walls will help, too. Maximize double-duty and hidden-storage hacks: file cabinets under a desk for more space in your home office, an ottoman or coffee table that can store and conceal your workout equipment, off-season clothing in bins under the bed, etc.
For over 20 years Pantone’s colour of the year has influenced design trends and colour schemes for our interiors. This year, Pantone has released two colours, ‘Ultimate Grey’, a mid-tone grey, and ‘Illumination’, a warm yellow. They explain these two colours as a “marriage of colour conveying a message of strength and hopefulness that is both enduring and uplifting.”
Eliminating waste is becoming a necessity like never before. According to National Geographic, 91% of the world’s plastic never gets recycled, and it takes roughly 400 years to degrade — about 14 generations. With one incremental change at a time, you can reduce your carbon footprint, prevent thousands of pounds of waste, and shrink the demand for wasteful products. Ready to do your part? Learn how to create a zero-waste lifestyle with these tips.
Whether your position has become remote for an unspecified period of time, you’re performing your job on a hybrid basis, or you’re permanently working from home, how you set up your office space in your house is an important matter. Ideally, your home workspace should feel separate from the other parts of the house. It should be outfitted with work-from-home furniture and work-from-home accessories that allow you to concentrate on work, hopefully relatively free from distraction.
Furniture Rental Myths Not to Trust
As a furniture rental company operang for over 35 years, we've heard it all when it comes to myths about rental furniture over the years. But the truth is furniture rental is now more popular than ever, and offering an easy move-in ready solution to your residents is more important than ever. In fact, around 30% of all renters are looking for furnished options. By opening up to the prospect of furniture rental, you can open up more possibilities to connect and avoid the voids.
We’ve all heard the saying, “leave work at work” — a cautionary reminder to maintain a healthy work-life balance. But what happens when your home becomes your workspace?
Increasingly, workers around the world are going and possibly staying, remote. And although it’s great to avoid that often infuriating commute and swapping your office clothes for tracksuits, there can be some unintentional consequences associated with blending home life and work.
Over the past ten years, established furniture rental business Roomservice by CORT has witnessed a huge rise in business from private renters. Prior to that the company received most of its business from the corporate relocation sector, furnishing properties for those working in the UK on temporary contracts.
You may be asking yourself, “is renting furniture worth it?” The honest answer is it depends! For many people, the value of renting furniture goes far beyond what the furniture looks like and whether it’ll fit in their space. Renting furniture provides peace of mind that your home will be life-ready when you arrive, without having to lift a finger, or pay a moving company.
Jo Rashbrook, a Customer Service Consultant at Roomservice by CORT for over 10 years (pictured below left) volunteered to provide fabric masks to the NHS who were running out of PPE as the COVID situation worsened in the Spring. Jo sewed masks, scrubs, and even provided laundry bags so NHS staff could take dirty uniforms home safely. As the need for masks increased, Jo found herself making PPE for care homes, fire stations and even bus drivers.
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