Sell your house more quickly (and for more money) with these simple staging tricks.

Though major upgrades can sometimes make a difference, often all that’s needed to speed up a sale is a little bit of thoughtful staging. From the living room to the bathroom, simple, elegant touches that help potential buyers imagine themselves right at home.

Bedroom

Depersonalize and declutter. Remove family photos and well-worn novels from your bedside table. All that should remain on your nightstand during a showing is a simple bedside lamp and maybe a clock or some fresh flowers. Aim for a gender neutral look with simple, clean linens and a luxurious throw or cushion in cozy grey or cool white—think hotel chic.Showcase your storage space. Reduce the amount of clutter in your closet to give a sense of spaciousness—aim to have about 25% percent of your closet open. This is a good chance to do a pre-move purge!Key Products neutral throw: Linen Way Oxford throw, $155 from Provide; Cableknit Faux Shearling throw, $79.50 from Chapters. bins for closet organization: Doug Johnston rope weave basket, $240 from Provide; Kvarnvik box, $8.99 from Ikea

purple-living-room Designed by The Cross Décor and Design; photo by Janis Nicolay.

Living room

Make a good first impressions. Again, depersonalizing is key, but that doesn’t mean the space can’t look like a home—strategically place beautiful coffee table books and neutral artwork on display to add visual interest that invites visitors to imagine themselves living there.Embrace some flower power. Fresh cut flowers are a great addition too that bring life to a space… just make sure the vase is simple and not too bold.  A bowl of fresh green apples is a great alternative if flowers aren’t your bag.Light it up. Proper lighting is important in these sort of spaces: each room should have a minimum of two light sources.Tone down the colour. Repainting may be necessary at this point—soft whites or greys, or warm cream colours are inobtrustive but inviting.Rearrange the furniture to set a scene. You may also want to rearrange your furniture and put anything that’s too big and bulky in storage: aim for small groupings with plenty of space around them.Key products  simple vases for fresh flowers: Heth Ceramics Single Stem vase, $150 from Provide; Honeycomb Etched Teardrop vase, $29.50 from Chapters. beautiful coffee table books: Vogue Living, $97 from The Cross Décor and Design; Cookbook Book, $41.34 from Chapters

  1013-higherlearning3 Designed by BYU Design, photo by Barry Calhoun.

Bathroom

Freshen up the linens. Matching linens give any bathroom a hotel chic look—think crisp white towels and hand cloths and a fresh shower curtain.Hide things in plain sight. Clear the counters if you can, but if you’re really stuck for space, store your toiletries neatly in pretty matching containers.Freshen up the cabinetry in a snap. Replacing hardware with shiny new (matching) pieces in a neutral style just takes an afternoon and adds instant appeal to a space. Also something to consider: installing  a pedestal sink—it can make the space seem bigger.Key Products  bathroom containers: Fryken rattan baskets, $14.99 from Ikea; Enamel canister, $28.64 from West Elm. towels: Abyss Superpile bath sheet, $210, or hand towel, $32.95 from The Cross Décor and Design; Afjarden towel, $12.99 from Ikea

VIDEO: Watch Western Living Condo editor Stacey Mclachlan share her condo styling tips on Breakfast Television