This is our annual Style issue, and style, of course, isn’t just about clothes: it can translate into the kind of car you drive, the way you wear your hair, and how you choose to decorate your home. Personal style in interior design is a crucial way of making a space feel like yours. But what about when you’re ready for the house to belong to someone else? What kind of style should a house getting ready to hit the market have?
To answer this question, Westport Lifestyle turned to Jodi Rae Ryan and Lindsay Kate Bilchik, the sisters behind LJI Design, a boutique interior design firm partially based in Westport (Lindsay lives here; Jodi is based in Needham, Mass.). “There’s a balance between wanting the house not to feel blank, and for it not to feel too personal,” says Lindsay. “I find that people who walk into homes that have been staged by builders often get a sense that it feels cold, and they can’t picture themselves living there.” Here, Lindsay and Jodi gave us tips on how to achieve that delicate balance, and get your house aesthetically ready for sale.
Brace That You’ll Spend a Little
First, a disclaimer: getting your house ready can be done simply and for very little money, but it does still require some spend. “If you want to make as much as you can on the house, you do need to invest a little bit,” says Lindsay. Talk to your real estate agent to figure out what the right amount to spend is: “They’re really good at guiding you about what [improvements are] worth it, and what it will do to the value of your home,” says Lindsay.
If you know your budget is limited, focus on the highest-value areas: the kitchen, the family room, and the primary bedroom. There should also be sufficient time in your budget: Lindsay and Jodi recommend six to eight weeks of prep to get your house ready for showings, including not just redecorating touches but thorough cleaning, removing unwanted items, and reducing clutter. (“Make sure your closets don’t look completely full—you don’t want your buyer thinking there’s not enough storage!” Lindsay says.)
Look At Your House Objectively
This can be hard, but trying to take inventory of pieces that you may have that are out of date, or don’t quite work in a room, can be a really useful exercise to know where to direct your staging efforts, so to speak. Don’t be afraid to bring in a professional to help: “Sometimes you may want to ask someone who doesn’t have an emotional connection to your house and ask their opinion,” says Jodi. Once you identify the spots you want to improve, “you can take an eyesore in your house, and instead of trashing or demoing it, a coat of paint and new hardware can give it new life,” says Lindsay. (See leftTK for an example of a heavy bar that Lindsay and Jodi redid.) “That can really transform a room.” Another example: an easy, inexpensive way to update a space is by changing basic "builder-grade" light fixtures to something with more style, Linsday and Jodi explain, to add personality to the home.
Use Accessories to Create a Lived-In Feeling
“Buyers don’t want to walk into a big white box. They want to see that life happens there,” says Jodi. Things like artwork, pottery, candles, pillows, and throws can add texture, color, and visual interest. “The accents bring the color and the life without being too personal,” says Lindsay.
When In Doubt, Paint
Lindsay and Jodi point to a project where an office with custom, hand-crafted built-ins was left in a raw oak, giving the whole room a cabin-like feeling that wasn’t necessarily universally appealing. “All we did was paint it, change the hardware, and put some wallpaper in the cabinets,” Lindsay says. “It was nothing special, but it completely transformed the room.”
Imagine Your Future Buyer
“We try and think about who is going to be moving into the house: a young family? An older couple who is downsizing?” explains Lindsay. If you can imagine the kind of buyer that makes the most sense for your space, it can inform whether you put a few colorful toys or a yoga mat in a bonus room. “Thinking about what they would be looking for or feeding off of [and incorporating those elements] makes someone pay attention to the space a little more,” says Jodi.
LJI Design is a sister-run boutique interior design firm. They focus on trends in material and design, taking inspiration from the fashion and interiors world in new and unexpected ways—prior to joining Lindsay in the interior design world, Jodi worked in fashion and product design. The two teamed up in 2020. Lindsay lives with her husband, two sons, and her dog in Westport, Connecticut. Jodi lives in Needham, Massachusetts, with her husband and two daughters. For more information about LJI Design or to book a consult, visit ljidesign.com.