The Quill Blog

_{(above image via Sunsets Over The Bay Airbnb)}

As a designer, I've always felt a bit conflicted about the need for ceiling fans. In the past decent looking options haven't been easy to find, and they almost never look as nice as a beautiful pendant in a room. 

However, as a girl who grew up in Tennessee, I understand completely the need for them. Function over form is necessary sometimes, particularly in the hot regions. I grew up sleeping with a ceiling fan over head and on nearly all the time, something one can become quite addicted to actually.

I've noticed over the last couple of years there has been an increase in nicer looking fans hitting the market that don't offend my design sensibilities. So I thought I'd do a quick round up of my favorite ones I've seen lately, and some nice inspiration images of similar ones being used in well decorated homes.

1. Lowes $179.99 | 2. Lowes $159.98 | 3. Lowes $199.99 | 4. Lowes $349.99 |5. Shades...

_{(above image: Stoffer Photography Interiors)}

Window treatments can really go either direction for making a room feel complete and refined, or chintzy and cheap. You obviously don't want your rental to look cheap. You want it to look polished, put together, cool, and most importantly, guest ready. That's why you're here reading this blog, right? Right.  

I've considered posting a round up of the best 20 blinds and curtain panels, but I think maybe let's not complicate the issue. Best to cut to the chase sometimes, and you've got lots of decisions ahead for completing the decor in your rental.

3 EASY(ish) Steps to Layer the Right Window Treatments in Your Airbnb:

1. Hard Blinds
2. Curtain Rod
3. Curtain Panels

I say easy-ish steps because doing window treatments yourself isn't really easy. It's going to take some work. However, to help cut down on the time and effort you put into this process, let's narrow down the time you spend selecting the...

_{(above image: West End Whisk Away Nashville listing on Airbnb. Photograph by: Bryan Ladd Photograpy)} 

Decorating a Short Term Rental is a tricky art.

You want to add character and interest to your space with cool decor, but you don't want your guests to feel overcrowded by superfluous stuff. 

I've found the key is striking the balance between too much, and not enough. You certainly don't want your home to feel as cold and sterile as a refrigerator box. But you also don't want people to feel surrounded by 'other people's things'.  Because that feels weird as a guest. 

Let's talk about some ways to achieve this balance. 

1. Large statement Art_{(above image: West End Whisk Away Nashville listing on Airbnb. Photograph by: Bryan Ladd Photograpy)} 

Anna of West End Whisk Away, Nashville has created a charming haven in this historic rental home. Her decor in the dining room demonstrates perfectly what oversized art can...

I once stayed at an Airbnb in Canada that was very clearly stocked and furnished with 100% Ikea everything. From the dishes to the duvet covers to the sofa. All of it. It wasn't great. It wasn't horrible, but it was not great. It lacked soul, for one thing. 

Let me first clarify, I love Ikea. I love the experience of visiting the stores and seeing the vignettes all set up in their staged glory. I love buying their art supplies for my kids. They've got some incredible storage solutions, and I'm even a fan of their kitchens for the right application. 

But do I think a Short Term Rental should be 100% Ikea? Definitely not. And if you're here reading this, I probably don't need to explain why. To boil it down, it will not differentiate you or your rental. In a market flooded with Ikea everything, you can be better. 

That said, there are some excellent Ikea furniture and decor items that you should totally consider folding...

_{(above image via: Studio McGee)}

If you've been following me for a while, you may have heard me say to "always start with a plan, not throw pillows." At some point, though, you should definitely think about throw pillows. Why?! Because they're the fun handbags of the interior design world. 

If you're overwhelmed with where to find unique throw pillows for your rental, or how to pair them together well, this post is for you! 

Where to start

Throw pillows are a great way to add extra pops of color into a room. If you're wanting to mix multiple patterns and textures for a designer look, here's a simple breakdown of how to do that. 

_{(above image: Studio McGee)}

Step 1: Start with a patterned pillow. Find a pattern you love that speaks to you and works with your existing color palette. Use this as the foundation to build from then... 

Step 2: ...add other patterns or textured solids and play around with what works. 

This may go without saying, but you...

If you've been paying any attention to the design scene lately, you'll notice that plants are everywhere.

They literally bring life to a room, and can make an otherwise flat design feel complete and photo ready. Plants will make your temporary rental stand apart from your hotel competitors because: 

Hotels don't have plants!

As you're designing your Airbnb, you don't want to skip over adding some green buddies to your space!

However, I can understand your hesitation, especially if you yourself aren't going to be visiting the property regularly to care for them. Luckily, I've put together this easy guide for you to follow to make the process less stressful!

I also gathered up some of the best faux plant options on the market right now, so keep reading!

Step 1: Which Plants to Buy

Obviously, I'll suggest plants that are hardy and hard to kill. It's important, however, to recognize two things. 

1. It's okay to kill a plant, and then buy a new...

I've had several people ask me how to shop the items in this Living Room, so I thought I would create a quick new blog post and share the shop-able links. 

Quite a few of the main items we used in this room design have gone out of stock, so I re-worked the vision board with new, similar products available for purchase. (Always keep an eye on those shipping times if you're in a hurry. They can change rapidly now-a-days.) 

Here is the original board I created when doing the design: 

And here is the board with current shop-able items: 

In the above room, we used a vintage gold chest, vintage mid-century side board under the tv, and also a vintage black end table to the right of the sofa. I would of course, as always, encourage you to fold in some vintage and 2nd hand items if you can, but also here is a full shop-the-look board below! 

I first learned about these washable rugs from Ruggable a couple of years ago. As a dog owner at the time and avid dog lover, I was immediately intrigued. 

But I'll be honest, I was skeptical. How could a flat weave rug that you can put inside of a washing machine actually look and feel nice enough to meet my rug standards? And does it actually wash and dry easily? 

Further investigation into this company, and a few years of incredible reviews from raving fans to sort through now, and I think this is actually an incredible design solution for a short term rental. 

Recently on an STR design webinar I hosted, someone asked what rug I would suggest for a vacation rental where lots of mud consistently gets tracked in due to location and clientele. (Apparently their guests did a lot of ATV riding and they were located in the woods.) Without hesitation I would suggest going with a Ruggable rug for any property like this where your rugs may be getting extra dirty. ...

I've been working on a short term rental design project in Portland Oregon, and have been on the hunt for sleeper sofas. (The spot I'm designing is a 1 bedroom, with a nice living area so we wanted a versatile sofa that could sleep one or two more people.) 

Since I've been on this hunt, I thought I would share my findings with a round up of some great looking sleeper sofa options with you. It's not been easy to find sofas in stock for immediate shipment, but some of these have fairly quick ship times.

Scroll on for some great sleeper sofa options broken down by retailer! 

1. $1899  |  2. $1699  |  3. $2499  |  4. $1999

If you're considering adding a sleeper sofa to your BNB, try not to be put off by the larger price tag that comes with them. Of course they cost more. There is a whole bed in there, and that means that you can charge a higher nightly rate for your rental on...

It began with the stalking of this gorgeous North Carolina mountain cabin's Instagram account, and it developed into an IG friendship with a fab and very funny design and renovation power couple. 

Loree Beth Harris, who goes by LB, and her husband Will own Both Minds Design, a thriving design firm in Nashville, Tennessee. They bought and renovated this cabin to share with the world as a short term rental, but also as a reprieve to rest and recharge as a family of 4 when they want to get out of Nashville and head to the mountains. 

If you want to hear them talk about their business and hosting a mountain vacation rental, head to this link to watch my IG Live interview with them. Did I mention they're super entertaining? You won't be dissapointed.

Before we Dive into the Q&A portion of this blog, here is a board to help you shop the look of their beautiful cabin which they've aptly named Cabin Dreamweaver. 

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