Rachel French Designs: Caught in a Whirlwind: Part II

The week we have all been waiting for came and went in the blink of an eye. This past week was the install of an entire home. When we arrived, the walls had already been painted and wallpapered, the trim had a fresh coat of paint on them, and the floors had been updated with a dark stain. The draperies and light fixtures had also been installed. Our job was to install all of the new furniture, rugs, lamps, and accessories. Basically, it felt like we were prepping for a magazine shoot.

The garage before un-boxing everything.

Accessory wonderland.

First things first, our team and the movers had to unload all of the furniture from the trucks. Luckily the house was in a cul-de-sac because we took up the entire street with our two moving trucks. The system was to un-box all of the furniture so that the movers could take the items inside. It felt like Christmas as we opened huge boxes and tore away the wrapping in one swift slice of a box cutter. Accessories and lamps were placed in the garage, almost like a staging area, so that the items that worked best in the space could be easily found. Most of these items came from the shopping that went on the week before, so extras were bought in case one item didn't work. Some shopping had to be done mid-week to find some more floor lamp options and pick up miscellaneous items like candles and accessories.

A blank canvas.

Love the wallpaper!

Once all the items were unloaded and placed, we worked to tweak the pieces in order to make the space look as close to perfect as it could. It takes a team to make the process run smoothly. Then came the cleaning and staging. This involved cleaning the mirrors, placing lightbulbs, and organizing photo frames.

And that bookshelf display that I was talking about earlier came together quite nicely. It took a while to get the placement of each piece right, but it was well worth the effort. The room was one of my favorite in the home and I think the bookcase really added a special touch.

The finished product.

Believe it or not, that's about 260 books!

Fun chair.

Once Friday came, we were all exhausted. But the job wasn't done yet as we had to invoice all of the items. This is done by going around to each room and writing down all the things that weren't "contract." Meaning that we had to record the items that client did not previously know about, like art pieces, accessories, and throw blankets.

The whole install process was such a great experience and it was so cool to see the project truly come together. By the end of the week, the house looked like a show home, ready to be photographed. I will leave you with a few of my favorite images of the home!