Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Model home- your opinions please


I grew up going through model homes to get decorating ideas. The last one I went in this summer featured every single room in a version of red and brown, which got old kinda quick! As a decorator I seem to have more opinions than I used to and now I'd like to know yours!

Today I went to two Ryland Homes townhouse models priced in the $300's.  Model # 1 had the colors navy, teal, gray and white. (Please excuse the iphone pictures!)

 First floor entry and family room:


2nd floor Kitchen/Living room/Dining Room combination:





Third floor Master Bedroom, bath and boy's room:




The trends I'm spotting are:

  • dark floors, layered with area rugs and bold flat weaves
  • dark painted ceilings
  • 2 tone kitchens; white island, black cabinets with quartzite counters
  • contemporary art
  • striped wall treatments,rugs,drapes and bedding.
  • wood plank wall feature
  • themed bedrooms for kids
  • chrome and silver accents

Tell me what pros and cons you see in this model?  Tomorrow I'll feature a 2nd townhouse. 



26 comments:

  1. I think it's too dark, trying to be dramatic! When I was selling new construction we tried to stage the homes to appear larger by using less than more. This model had a lot going on! They did use mirrors which help make the rooms appear larger.

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  2. I think it is beautiful . Navy and white look so crisp together. In my opinion it needs more patterns, I would throw in another color like chartreuse. So so pretty though, love the dark floors and I like dark colors in moderation, more cozy and inviting.

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  3. I think it looks great; I'm ready to move on in!

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  4. PROS: beautiful and appealing if your style is contemporary, love the built-ins with the mirrors
    CONS: Too many dark going in the house I think, not universally appealing to everyone I think

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  5. Why not take the point of view that the colors are neutral enough to appeal to most. As a former real estate broker, I thought the property showed well.

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  6. I like the Master Suite. The dark color palatte and abundance of unique contemporary accessories (living room lamps, fuzzy pillow, deer sculpture) would have only limited appeal in my market. Personally, I'm not a fan of contrived staging:the plate on the ottoman, the bar set with fake food/wine and table settings in the dining room--yawn. Very interesting model Nancy. Thanks for sharing. It is always interesting to see what is being used in the 'real world' in other areas!

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  7. I think the trend for plank walls will be quickly dated. They seem to be all over the place right now. I just imagine the royal pain in the a** it will be to pry the wood off and fill all the nail holes when people tire of them! I'll stick to trends easier to implement and then remove when I'm done with them such as my inexpensive chevron rug in the living room.

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  8. I don't see many cons if that is your style. Nothing is out of style if you love it. I think they need to love those walls for a really long time, though, if they are going to plank them. I think there are plenty of people in the real world that would love and live with them for a long time.

    I love the preppy boys room. I've seen the tennis racquets as well as ores and the like arranged above the bed like that in other homes.

    I'm all for painting the ceiling a darker color. I've thought of using navy on
    my bedroom ceiling.

    The only cons I saw was they were too matchy for their dining room chair, I wasn't crazy about the mirrored walls (I'm not a fan of making a trend a permanent fixture), and the pendants were too run of the mill cookie cutter.

    I can't wait to see the next one.

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  9. I think themed decor gets old fast. I am not a fan. I realize that its a model home and not somewhere that real people live but its a bit cold and I really dislike the artwork above the beds.

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  10. I feel it is on the masculine side. And a bit dark..

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  11. Not a fan of themed rooms, at all. And I didn't like the navy and teal color combo.

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  12. I don't think it's bad if that's your style, I prefer more of an eclectic mix of styles to add interest to a room. The majority of buyers probably aren't design obsessed like bloggers and would love it!

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  13. I think its fine for a model home..but its a little predictable. Ive been seeing gold as a trend and lighter floors...

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  14. very dark..yet cozy...it's been so long since I've had kid's rooms which were all kind of "themey" back then...it makes me think..not sophisticated. But..we all go through phases in our homes right? I love the plank floors

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  15. I am loving the dark mixed with pops of turquoise white and grey! I think the plank wall is awesome, and I am always a sucker for some stripes!

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  16. I think it's fine for a model. It will be memorable to the house hunter.

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  17. Models always lean too modern for me. This one did have a little more personality with the wood wall but otherwise nothing I loved.

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  18. It's too "decorated" for me. Did you know you're at My Notting Hill today?

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  19. I found them to be to busy, go much going on in each room. no place for the eye to rest. I guess it is marketing.. they want you to keep moving.

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  20. I love navy, gray and teal. I use those colors in my wardrobe in the fall.

    I don't want to be overly harsh, but this house seems very cave-like to me. I would absolutely hate living there. Dark walls and dark wood overpower the pops of light fabric...putting dark pillows on the white chairs is like saying "I didn't really mean to use light fabric." The whole this is depressing.

    Keeping in mind that it is a model home, I still think it's overly generic. Sports pillow and tennis rackets on the wall.... really? How unimaginative. Subtlety is not the decorators strong suit. Even to the point of fake wine in the glasses on the counter. Perhaps the decorator should put signs up.

    One further note: The light fixtures look like they all came from a "builder pack".

    The cons: Everything above.

    The pros: Probably great for attracting young single male with no personal style.

    I apologize if I have insulted anyone. Just giving my opinion.

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  21. This is interesting. I strongly dislike the light fixtures and I don't care at all for the art/accessories arrangement over the bed in the master. I think the navy is crisp but I think there's too much of it. I think stripes were a good choice because they're crisp and timeless. I never boarded the weathered plank walls train and I still don't like them. Dining room set is a little too Rooms to go.

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  22. Its ok..a little too cataloguish for me....and a little dark maybe, but it could be the photos....can't wait to see the second one....not sure about the teal.....

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  23. Hard for me to get past the art placement... But overall fine for a model home. Probably appeals to many people who are interested in a Ryland home.

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