How luxury show homes are dressed to impress

It’s hard not to instantly admire a show home from the moment you step inside; the tasteful décor, clever use of floor and wall space, and the wow factor features that we all dream of recreating in our own homes.

We pride ourselves on delivering excellence with the help of professional stylists at Abode, who furnish and decorate our show homes to provide home-seekers with interior inspiration and a flavour of what living in a Cavanna home could be like.

But planning to dress a show home doesn’t happen overnight, in fact it typically takes 10 weeks of preparation and lots of collaboration.

“We begin by setting a budget and briefing Abode on the development, putting emphasis on the area that we are building in and what it has to offer buyers”, said Paul Furner, our Director of Sales and Marketing.

“We’ll move on to talk about the show home house type, including the number of bedrooms, layout and key features, and then together we develop a persona of who the residents might be.”

Richard Ornelas, Sales Director at Abode added, “Developing a persona is vital to the design process. It helps us think about how homeowners would use the space, what each room would be for and what furniture would appeal to them.

“For example, young professionals might be on the lookout for a house to cater for a home office, whereas families are more likely to want to see how to style a nursery or children’s bedroom.”

When agreed on a persona, it’s over to Abode to develop a mood board.

“We always start by visiting the location to get inspired and think about how to reflect all that the local area has to offer, into the home”, explained Richard. “We then create a visual and engaging mood board for each room with wallpaper samples, swatches of fabrics, colours and sketches of room layouts to help bring our vision to life.”

Paul said, “Feeling the texture of the materials and seeing the exact colours being incorporated into the space is hugely beneficial for us. Not only does it allow us to ensure they reflect the quality of our build, but we can then start to visualise how the space will look – it’s an exciting stage in the process.”

TIP: If you want to do something similar for your own home, Richard recommends collecting swatches from fabric shops, paint samples from DIY stores, print off pictures of interiors that you love and attach them to a pin board which you can pick-up from a craft store. Alternatively, Pinterest is a great digital alternative!

On developments offering a wide range of house types, like Cavanna @ Elm Park in Exeter, two show homes were opened to show contrasting ways to decorate.

“The show homes are decorated in contrasting colours from fresh and subtle blue tones, to a warmer scheme of burnt orange with dark accents. This offers buyers a different option when thinking about how they might decorate their own Cavanna home,” said Richard.

TIP: Use floor to ceiling curtains on a discreet curtain track which can often fool the eye into thinking that the ceiling height is actually higher than you think! And not forgetting texture. Textured wallpapers as opposed to large patterns can make a room feel more upmarket and welcoming. Pair this with fabric scatter cushions and low lighting, and you can create a simple and easy cosy and homely feel.

Once the show home is complete our team step inside and explore the space, “We love exploring the show homes for the first time! We put ourselves in the shoes of the potential buyer and check every detail with a fine tooth-comb. We make sure each space is fit for purpose for all family members before a final sparkle clean is done ready for the official opening”, said Paul.

TIP: It’s important to prioritise practicality when buying beautiful pieces for your home. For example, if you’re looking to add bedside tables, find some with drawers to hide any wires or knickknacks from view.

Richard’s number one rule is; “Continuity is key! If you want to recreate the ‘show home look’, then have one colour that runs through the house. This could be in accessories, artwork or the base colour to the walls, but it will help to create an easy on the eye transition from room to room.”