I feel like I’m living in an Architectural Digest catalog and I can hardly believe this is my home.  Cary, our stager, has done an amazing job at transforming my warm and inviting home (ala Ralph Lauren style) into a brighter, lighter contemporary expanse with an appeal towards the more youthful and hip Mill Valley home hunter.

Having put 95% of our household goods into storage (READ: packed tighter than a tin of sardines into one half of our own garage, with the overflow packed into our crawl space that was recently built into stadium seating), we are now living with our ‘must have’ worldly goods.  These include the obvious: clothing hung in our thinned out closets,  personal necessities, a 50% stocked kitchen, and a handful of furniture pieces that Cary incorporated into her staging design. (I’m shocked we even had a handful of furniture pieces WORTHY of being used in a staging plan)

We are now living amongst white upholstered sofas and chairs, a heavy (but sleek) wooden  black laquered dining table surrounded by 6 leather-cushioned/cane-backed chairs all sitting atop a woven sisal rug, vasts amounts of floral displays sitting on end tables, coffee tables, and other specifically selected niches.  Our kitchen now boasts a display of my favorite Barefoot Contessa cookbook which is flanked by some fancy bottles of expensive imported water on one side, and bottles of fancy imported olive oil on the other.  Our walls are adorned with original oils, framed by contemporary wooden borders, depicting images of California beaches and other serene, daydream-like images.  Our master bedroom has been transformed into the type of relaxing retreat we only experience in a 5 star hotel suite.  White linen drapes trim out our large glass doors, and they flow downward…pooled onto the carpet, as if an ocean breeze might gently billow them further.  Our Cal-King bed now is sheathed in a blue and white duvet with matching layers of pillows atop more pillows.  Two   chairs, slip-covered in the same white fabric as the furniture in our living room and sporting matching pillow decor to our bed, beckon a potential buyer to relax with a great Kindle read.

So, now that our home is about to be showcased to the world (and I do mean, to the world…The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Marin Magazine, Christie’s International, etc.)  I sit here taking it all in.

I wonder if our beloved yellow lab will mess with the masterpiece. The market has clearly heated up, creating a frenzy over any property in decent shape.  I wonder if we will be fortunate enough to receive multiple offers.  I wonder if we’ve over-anticipated, under-estimated, or over-looked the reality of the Mill Valley buyer sentiment.

And, when we do find our buyer, I wonder where the hell we’re going to go next.

I’m ready to move on to our next chapter.  I’m not sad to be leaving this home.  It’s been great, but it’s time to turn the page.  NOW is the time.  This home is ready to showcase. We’ve repaired, remodeled, re-landscaped, and completely reinvented a property which had been sadly neglected for decades, until we came along almost 15 years ago.

Our adventure is about to begin… the big reveal is just 48 hours away, when our listing agents (yes, a team of two) will host our first open house.  A property website will be launched in a matter of hours, and a 6 page glossy brochure will be available to all lookie-loos who come to see.

Let the games begin!