2 level century home decor

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2 level century home decor

I have my first Airbnb listing with two levels. It is a century home but I feel like the second floor living room “needs” something for decor. (Eagles Nest) and also the first floor entry table set up. (Horse& Harness) Any decor ideas would be appreciated! 

Top Answer
Tara0
Level 10
Oxford, United Kingdom

Hi @Crys816 I'm a superhost in the UK, with over 10 years experience, and my current listing is a period house in Oxford, built in the late 19th century.

 

I've also travelled quite a lot as an Airbnb guest, so my comments come from both a host and guest perspective. The following comments are about Eagles Nest.

1) Delete the b&w photos in 'Photography studio' section. They are not appealing nor relevant to guests booking your place.

 

2) Delete the photo with the sign saying Clark Family Cemetery (if this is a massive selling point, then just mention in the description) . Delete the baffling photo of the road sign place (most guests won't click through to see the caption). Ditto, delete the photo of the mining sluice. Remember, your primary goal is to sell the living accommodation, not random niche tourist attractions.

3) Interior decor. I like the kitchen and dining room, and they're what you expect from the exterior photos. 

Tone down the bedroom, to make it chime with the kitchen/dining/exterior house look. It's too 'fancy' and fussy [with the candelabra light, too]. Go more homespun LL Bean. (And you're already selling homespun with the photos of the farm animals, right?)

One huge improvement you can make to the bathroom - the black shower curtain is so depressing, get a white one. And show the interior of the shower.

Living room: are there original floorboards in that room? If so, sand and oil them, because the grey carpet is depressing. Paint the walls off-white, clean the windows, bring the light in, make it simple and airy. Get rid of the pouffes, they are everywhere! Get rid of the heavy gothic drapes. 

Basically, you have a gorgeous home and it's ruined by the faux luxe vibe. It should be homely and sort of a bit rustic. 

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Tara0
Level 10
Oxford, United Kingdom

@Crys816 Here's my Horse & Harness critique:

 

1) One impression I get is a really excessive quantity of window coverings / drapes. Is the house very overlooked by neighbours? If not, tone down and let the light in. Not every window needs drapes. Also, many of the drapes hung 'modern-style' not on traditional hooks on poles - it just looks wrong/ugly (even in modern homes). 
2) Again, get rid of all the strange 'cage' lights (ceiling and wall). 
3) Photo 5 of the sofa bed isn't pretty. 
4) Change all bedlinen to white.
5) Dining area looks bleak. Add seat pads for the chairs, maybe a houseplant or two, and change those white storage boxes to nice baskets.
6) The porch looks great, but it's completely bare! Some rattan chairs and table needed.
7) Consider the logistics of offering a unit sleeping up to four, but with only one bath and toilet, no shower. 

Hi @Tara0! Thanks for all your critiques. You being all the way in the U.K. Is pretty neat 🙂 I wonder what you mean about the curtains on the poles? We hung them closer to the ceiling to give the room more height and grandeur. We plan to open all the curtains (not the bathroom) when a guest arrives and it’s so bright when that is done. Don’t worry we have showers in both places. (It’s behind the toilet and in the descriptions) I agree the sofa bed isn’t as pretty as the main bed (I ordered two deceptive pillows for it) but sofa beds just are so plain to work with, but I wanted to add a picture so people had some idea of where a 3/4th person would sleep. We do offer sleeping up to 4. The dining room is in the entryway and so all together it does have more items in it. I need to load a photo featuring that! We did purchase a 2 person rocking chair for the porch-on a nice day I’ll load a photo. I’ve got seat pads ordered for the chairs 🙂 🙂 

Tara0
Level 10
Oxford, United Kingdom

@Crys816 I mean curtains where the top is 'threaded' through the pole, rather than hung below the pole with hooks - it's a modern method which I personally think is less attractive than the traditional way. 

You say you plan to open the curtains when a guest arrives - so, I think it would make sense to take photos with the curtains open, so guests can see how bright it is - before they arrive.

 

If you have showers in both places then add photos of the showers, because guests won't know otherwise (like I didn't).