Welcome to MadonnaStaging.com Blog
Madonna’Staging is owned and operated by Madonna McDowell.
Madonna’Staging offers Real Estate Staging, De-Cluttering, Home Re-Design, and Cleaning services in Central Florida and consulting worldwide.
Madonna McDowell is a Certified Real Estate Staging & Redesign Professional.
Contact Madonna McDowell Today! via:
Cell Phone: 772-359-0930
Email: info@madonnastaging.com
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We were asked by a friend to help her with the landscaping for her yard.
Madonna is also trained as a Master Gardener, so …
As a favor to her we agreed to provide a landscape design for the front of the property and part of the back.
We decided to do it pro-bono to decide if we want to and should also offer landscaping services to our other clients.
She wanted a yard that was very low on care (water, weeding, and etc.).
So …
We used mostly native plants and eliminated most of the grass.
The landscape was designed as a “zero landscape,” meaning that all plants were to be native to South Florida with no watering system.
The plants that were picked are drought resistant and need little water once the roots are established and are therefore very low maintenance.
Here is one of the Before Picture of the front yard prior to any of our landscaping work there:
Here is one of the After Picture of the results of our landscaping of this same front yard:
What do You think of the Results of this Landscaping Project?
Pretty Dramatic difference!, isn’t it?
and doesn’t this home have a lot more “curb appeal” than it did before?
We had several helpers in the execution of this now beautiful ‘yard.’
Paris and his helper hauled and placed the materials for us.
I don’t know if we could have completed it in the 11 days without you Paris!
Please Post Your Comments Here and let us know what you think of the results of this landscaping project and to help us decide if we should also offer landscaping services to our other clients, ok?
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What a transformation!
Went from “What am I going to do?”
… to …
wouldn’t do anything else!
Displayed excellence from the beginning to the end.
In this day and age their workmanship and sense of ethics is like finding a needle in a hay stack!!!
Absolutely outstanding work! ,…
would highly recommend to anyone!
- Pat
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/2009/12/01/staging-cleaning-landscaping-in-south-florida/
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/client-testimonials/interior-redesign-client-testimonials/
Just Contact Madonna and schedule Madonna’Staging Interior Redeisign Services for Your Home Today at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/redesign/
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It is the best Feng Shui if your guests see an attractive lobby area or living room when the 
front door is opened.
However, we do not want the door to open directly onto the living room as this destroys the privacy of the occupants
The remedy for this is to partially screen the entrance.
A bookcase, decorative screen or a large potted plant can provide the necessary privacy without detracting from the feng shui of the room.
The interior should be well-lit to encourage the ch’i to enter.
Dimly lit and gloomy entrances discourage ch’i.
The remedy for this is to increase the amount of light in the entrance area.
A chandelier would be perfect for this, as the crystals energize the ch’i and reflect it in every direction.
It is bad Feng Shui for the front door to open directly onto a staircase going either up or down.
This confuses the ch’i as it does not know whether to upstairs or into the rooms on the ground floor.
It also means that the occupants will be inclined to come into the house and immediately go to their own rooms, rather than socialize with other family members.
This does not apply if the staircase is at right angles to the front door as this arrangement allows the ch’i time to get used to the layout of the house.
The remedy for a staircase that goes directly up from the front door is to hang a crystal from the ceiling above the bottom step.
The ch’i will be attracted to this, rather than to the staircase.
Usually a staircase going downstairs from the front door will have a door. Keep the door closed whenever possible
It should not be possible to see the back door from the front door.
This situation allows the ch’i to enter the house, only to immediately leave again.
Also, if the back door is at the end of a long hallway leading from the front door, you have an internal shar. If possible, change the position of the back door.
Alternatively, a screen could be put up to conceal the back door from anyone entering the front door.
Crystals or wind chimes can be hung up immediately inside both the front and back doors to encourage the ch’i to linger.
Finally, if the back door is solid, a mirror can be placed on it to encourage the ch’i back inside.
For those of you out there that are starting to get your home more attractive, more comfortable and more balanced, …
I hope my Feng Shui tips will help you!
- Madonna
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/feng-shui-tips/
and …
and/or …
Please also Post any your questions you may have regarding how you may encourage as much positive chi’i as possible into our home, ok?
Please see Madonna’Staging Interior Redesign Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/redesign/
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Did you know that January is The National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) Get Organized (GO) Month?
and …
Did you know that last Monday was National Clean Off Your Desk Day?
Did you Clean Off Your Desk for National Clean Off Your Desk Day?
Every January, GO Month is dedicated to raising awareness of the benefits of getting organized and of hiring a professional organizer.
Each year, NAPO also conducts a GO Month survey with members of the public to gauge their familiarity with professional organizing as well as their perceived need for the services a professional organizer can provide.
Of 400 adults polled in a November 2008 survey:
Reference: (1) Wikipedia
Many people also make New Year’s Resolutions, every year, to get and stay More Organized, you know?
But …
How many people do you think actually follow through with their New Year’s Resolutions and actually get and/or stay organized throughout the year without some professional help?
I know it isn’t easy to initially get organized when you have been very disorganized for a long time, …
and …
Then it is an ongoing challenge for you to continually stay organized, right?
But …
There are Many Benefits to being and staying More Organized!
… including reducing stress and frustration, and as noted in the survey results above, that …
Organized People Save Time, and Money, every day!
and …
When you have your external world, e.g. your home, your office, etc. Organized and in order, then you will get your internal world / your life in order too!
… You know?
Do you need some help initially getting organized and/or staying organized?
Madonna’Staging can Help You both get and then stay More Organized all year long!
Madonna’Staging can provide you with all of the Organizing, De-Cluttering , Cleaning and/or Interior Redesign services you may need to Help You both get and then stay More Organized all year long!
Please see some Client Testimonials for:
and if you are ready and would like some Help to Celebrate Get Organized Month, fulfill Your New Year’s Resolution and getting More Organized Now and staying Organized all year long, then …
You may find More Information about …
and Please Contact Madonna at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/about/
… to start getting More Organized Now and then staying Organized all year long!
Your Tips for getting and staying More Organized?
… and …
if You Cleaned Off Your Desk for National Clean Off Your Desk Day this year? 
, ok?
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You can clean your copper very easily and without the use of chemicals.
Mix baking soda with enough lemon juice to make a paste.
Use the paste as you would any metal cleaner.
Buff the copper clean with a soft cloth.
Please Post / Share Your Tips for cleaning copper, other metals and/or any of Your other Great Cleaning Tips here, ok?
and …
Please come back here for more of Madonna’s Tips on how to clean your copper and other metal items and Please find More Madonna’Staging Cleaning Tips at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/cleaning-tips/
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In Part 4 of Madonna’s Feng Shui Tips Madonna shares some Feng Shui Tips 
regarding how you may use Feng Shui to improve the “curb appeal” of your home and/or make your home more attractive, more comfortable and more balanced:
Here is a exercise that may be very revealing and make you see your home in a new light.
Take photos of the front of your home. (photos are very important you will see thing in photos that you do not normally see).
Start at the curb and take pictures as if you are a potential buyer.
We all view our homes with our emotions and it is hard to see it the same way a stranger would.
By doing this exercise you will be able to make the improvement that are needed. Not only for the sale of your home if you are wanting to do so …
But also for feng shui, it is very important to keep the front of your home clean and in good repair.
The placement of the front door is of extreme importance in feng shui.
The positions of the front door and the stove are the most important aspects in feng shui.
The size of your front door should be in keeping with the size of your house.
If the front door is overly large compared with the size of the house your fortunes will suffer.
If it is too small, ch’i is constricted and there will be disagreements in the family.
REMEDY Any shars that may be afflicting your front door.
This is the most important single aspect of feng shui.
Look for angled roof lings of neighboring houses, straight lines, streetlight poles, a single tall tree, and anything sharp, angled, pointed or straight.
For instance, if your home is facing a T-junction you will need to make the road that heads towards your front door “disappear.”
A pa-kua mirror above the front door will do this.
Fences and trees can also create an effective remedy.
For those of you out there that are starting to get your home more attractive, more comfortable and more balanced, I hope my Feng Shui tips will help!
- Madonna
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/feng-shui-tips/
and …
and/or …
Please also Post any your questions you may have regarding how you may encourage as much positive chi’i as possible into our home, ok?
Please see Madonna’Staging Interior Real Estate Staging Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/real-estate-staging/
and/or …
Would you like some help encouraging as much positive chi’i as possible into our home?
Please see Madonna’Staging Interior Redesign Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/redesign/
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Image via Wikipedia
Baking Soda has been around for centuries.
It has so many different applications. cooking, cleaning, deodorizing, and even healing.
A) Baking Soda will clean and deodorize your (Vinyl) shower curtain:
B) Baking Soda will clean fiberglass and glossy tiles:
( No Harsh Chemicals)
Please Post / Share Your Tips for cleaning with baking soda here, ok?
and …
Please come back here for more of Madonna’s Tips on how to clean with baking soda and Please find More Madonna’Staging Cleaning Tips at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/cleaning-tips/
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Image via Wikipedia
In Part 3 of Madonna’s Feng Shui Tips Madonna shares some Feng Shui Tips regarding how to encourage more ch’i into your home:
The front door should be easy to locate.
If your guests find it hard to find, the ch’i will find it hard to find too.
A front door that opens in rather then out is better.
Doors that open out discourage ch’i from entering.
The front door should open onto a bright, well-lit room, giving a glimpse of part of the interior of the home.
We want the entrance foyer to appear expansive.
If the front door opens onto a small lobby area, the ch’i is constricted and confined.
The remedy for this is to put up a large mirror. The mirror should be large enough that it does not appear to cut off your visitors’ heads.
A mirror in this position makes the entrance area appear larger and encourages the ch’i inside.
It can be a good idea to place the mirror above a small side-table or other piece of furniture.
Fresh flowers or ornaments could be placed on top of this to help attract the ch’i indoors.
The interior should be well-lit to encourage the ch’i to enter.
Dimly lit and gloomy entrances discourage ch’i.
The remedy for this is to increase the amount of light in the entrance area. A chandelier would be perfect for this, as the crystals energize the ch’i and reflect it in every direction.
For those of you out there that are starting to get your home in balance, I hope my Feng Shui tips will help!
- Madonna
and/or …
Please also Post any your questions you may have regarding how you may encourage as much positive chi’i as possible into our home, ok?
Please see Madonna’Staging Interior Redesign Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/redesign/
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This is a cleaning tip on how to take out white water marks from wood furniture.
Spray vegetable cooking spray on the white marks.
Let it set for a minute or two.
Than rub it in with paper towel and walk away.
In about 5 to 6 hours later it will be gone.
What other ways do you know of to remove water marks and/or other stains from wood?
Please Post / Share Your Tips for removing water marks and/or other stains from wood here, ok?
and …
Please come back here for more of Madonna’s Tips on how to remove water marks and/or other stains from wood and Please find More Madonna’Staging Cleaning Tips at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/cleaning-tips/
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We (Madonna’Staging) were contacted by the homeowners and were asked to Stage, Clean and Landscape their “new home” in phases for a future move-in date.
Scope of Project:
Phase I (completed)
Completed in 2-1/2 days or 20 hours
**See pictures below for Phase I
Please note: Plants (greenery) was not added in the home at the time of Phase I completion. Pictures will be updated upon completion of all phases.
Wow, there were many antiques to choose from and we did it!
It was a wonderful experience working with these homeowners!! They are such a joy to work for & with!!
We are looking forward to Phase II. **More Pictures coming soon!
and …
Please come back Here to see our further progress on and more before and after pictures from this Staging, Interior Redesign, Cleaning and Landscaping Project for this client in South Florida.
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In Part 2 of Madonna’s Feng Shui Tips Madonna shares some basic Feng Shui rules:
1) The bedroom should be kept clutter free, so the ch’i can flow freely.
2) If a doorway and the head of the bed share the same wall, it can make you restless and disturb your sleep and if there is a door to the bathroom on the same wall it should be kept closed.
Front Door:
Your front door represents you and your approach to life. We just come in and out of our doors without noticing anything. It can be an interesting exercise to enter your home and try to see all the things that a stranger would notice when he or she visits. Ideally you want your front path and front door to be cheerful and welcoming. But does it? Is your paint on the front door in good shape? Is all the front clean? Does your door bell work? If not this is all bad feng shui!!! If your front is welcoming, plenty of light, flowering plants and an uncluttered entrance all this creates good feng shui!
3) Your front door is of supreme importance in feng shui as it is the main location where ch’i enters the house. In feng sui we want the front door to be slightly larger than the back door. We do not want the beneficial ch’i to come in the front and go immediately out the back door.
4) The front door should be in proportion to the size of the house. If it is too large it will allow valuable ch’i to escape. This will cause financial problems.
5) We do not want the door too small either. If it is too small the amount of ch’i able to come in is restricted. This will cause finacial problems also. And also make your guests nervous and apathetic.
6) In feng shui your front door is the door most frequently used. So if you always come in and out of your home through a door other than the actual front door that becomes your front door in feng shui.
7) Your front door should be on the left side of the house. That means if you are standing inside your home the front door should be on the left side of the front of the home. I know you have no control over this if you are already living in your home., but for the ones buying a new home it is something to kept in mine.
The story behind this is that the dragon looks over the left-hand side of the house, and his energy and bountiful ch’i enters the more easily when the front door is located on this side.
A door in center is better than having the door on the right.
Front doors are also good to have facing east or south. That means that you will be warmed by the morning sun when you leave for work. This will put you in a better mood.
9) You do not want any shars to affect the front door. This is the single most important aspect of feng shui. The front entrance must be protected. The most serious shar of all occurs when the house is sited on a T-junction, with a street heading directly towards the front door. This is made worse if the street heads downhill towards you front door.
10) The path leading towards the front door can also create a shar if it consists of a straight line leading from the road to your front door.
There are remedies for all of this. Your can plant a hedge or put up a fence, so that the street is not longer visible. The path can be changed to a gentle curve or put something to make the path to a angle just before the front door. If you can’t do any of these things. You can put a pa-kua mirror above the door which will serve to eliminate the potential harm coming from these shars. A pa-kua mirror symbolically captures the shar and reflects it back where it came from.
For those of you out there that are starting to get your home in balance, I hope my Feng Shui tips will help!
- Madonna
and/or …
Please also Post any your questions you may have regarding how you may encourage as much positive chi’i as possible into our home, ok?
Please see Madonna’Staging Interior Redesign Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/redesign/
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Are you too busy with all of your holiday shopping and other holiday 
plans to also get and keep your place clean throughout and/or decorated for this holiday season?
Madonna’Staging can Help You get Ready for the Holidays and keep Your Place Spotlessly Clean throughout the whole holiday season!
Please Call Madonna McDowell / Madonna’Staging at: 772-359-0930 and/or Contact Us through our website
at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/cleaning-services/
For More Information about how Madonna’Staging
can Help You get Ready for the Holidays and keep Your Place
Spotlessly Clean throughout the whole holiday season!
and ..
You may see some Client Testimonials for Madonna’Staging’s
Cleaning Services and Decorating Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/client-testimonials/cleaning-testimonial
and …
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/client-testimonials/interior-redesign-client-testimonials/
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“May your walls know joy.
May every room hold laughter.
and …
Every window open to great possibilities”
- Source: Unknown
Do You have a Favorite Quote You would like to Share?
Please Post Your Favorite Quotes Here! ok?
and …
Please visit us again to find more of Madonna’s Quotes of the Day, ok?
and …
Please find All of Madonna’s Quotes of the Day at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/quote-of-the-day/
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We all know that WD-40 is Great for lubricating things, like squeaky hinges and car parts, right?
but …
Did you know that you can also use WD-40 for a wide variety of house cleaning tasks?
The following are just the first few, of more to come, Madonna’s Cleaning Tips regarding how you may clean various things around your home using WD-40:
Cleaning uses for WD-40 – Part 1:
What other uses of WD-40 do you know of for cleaning around your home?
Please Post / Share Your Tips for other uses of WD-40 around the house Here, ok?
and …
Please come back here for more of Madonna’s Tips on how you may use WD-40 for various home cleaning tasks and Please find More Madonna’Staging Cleaning Tips at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/topics/cleaning-tips/
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Ch’i is the universal life force.
It gathers near gently flowing water and is created whenever anything is done perfectly.
To operate effectively we need to encourage as much chi‘i as possible into our home.
Ch’i can be both positive and negative.
For instance, gently moving water creates positive ch’i, while stagnant water creates negative ch’i.
We want as much good ch’i as possible, but naturally want to eliminate any negative ch’i.
Ch’i needs to be nurtured and gathered.
Chi’ is made up of both YIN AND YANG.
Yin and yang are the two opposites in the universe. For instance night and day, short and tall. None of these can exist without the other.
The ancients never tried to define yin and yang, but just collect lists of opposites.
YIN is represented by black, and YANG is white.
The concept began many thousands of years ago when the ancient Chinese called the shady, northern slopes of the mountain YIN and the sunny, southern slopes YANG.
The ancient Taoists used the familiar symbol of yin and yang to represent completion.
This symbol, which looks like two tadpoles in a circle, symbolizes the universe.
One tadpole is black with a white dot in it and the other white with a black dot in it.
The dots indicate that inside every yin there is a certain amount of yang, and inside every yang is a degree of yin.
If your property is too yin, (t0o flat) you can remedy this by planting shrubs and trees or perhaps by the introduction of rocks or a garden shed. It is important to think ahead. Small trees grow into big trees, which can alter the feng shui of the immediate area.
If your area is too yang, (too hilly) you may be able to flatten part of your property to create a balance of yin and yang energy.
Even the house itself is divided into yin and yang areas.
The front of the house, which serves to greet people to the property, is outgoing and yang.
The farther inside the house you go, the more yin, and private, the rooms become This is why bedrooms usually feel better if they are situated well away from the front door.
For those of you out there that are starting to get your home in balance, I hope my Feng Shui Tips will help!
- Madonna
and/or …
Please also Post any your questions you may have regarding how you may encourage as much positive chi’i as possible into our home, ok?
Please see Madonna’Staging Interior Redesign Services at:
http://blog.madonnastaging.com/services/redesign/
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