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Gnome-free zone

REBECCA DUBE

From Friday's Globe and Mail

Latest comment posted at 11:34 AM EDT 25/06/07

Curb appeal is key in the real estate game. Now, home stagers are taking their act to your tacky front yard and turning it into a temporary oasis that's prepped to sell ...Read the full article

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  1. Old Folksinger from Canada writes: This is a Charter issue for the gnomes. I have reported Katu Design in Toronto to the Department of Justice in Ottawa.

    This is the worst case of blatant discrimination of a minority people that I have seen in years and I trust that I will receive the unanimous support of other G&M commentators that follow.
  2. Rodger Harding from Canada writes: Fluffing indoors and outdoors has become so transparent due to over publicity...the de rigeur petunias at the front door are almost as bad as standard resume fare...as is the lone table in the dining room with a driftwood and fruit arrangement....
    Some agents I know panic sellers into spending thousands on fluffing/furniture/art hire sell houses that are promptly gutted...expensive kitchens, bathrooms et al all landing wastefully in the dumpster....
  3. Gimma A Break from Canada writes: I'm with you, FolkSinger...there are some things up with which we cannot, as proud Canadians, stand! Gnome Power - in fact, let's have a parade...for all Gnomes, GSBTQ and others.
  4. Nite Owl from Calgary, Canada writes: I think they need a new name. Nobody I know would want to be a "fluffer." On second thought there was this one girl in high school.....
  5. Peter Cromerovich from Erehwon, Canada writes: I thought a fluffer was someone who suffered from wind but I have since learned that it is more commonly known as the name and function for the lowest paid person in the sex business. I won't disgrace these hallowed pages with detail as anyone who has access to this post can also Google the definitions but I would suggest a less controversial name such as garden sprucer or groomer.
  6. Lou Laroche from Canada writes: Free the Gnomes! Let these oppressed slaves of humanity back into their natural habitat. Europe is way ahead of us in North America. Google "Gnome Liberation Force". Some Gnomes have even had mass suicides in protest of this thoughtless greed.
    As for fluffers, did you know that fluffer drop-outs almost always become editors at the G&M. Its true.
  7. Bob Rollheiser from Canada writes: Canada cannot be considered a leader in aesthetically pleasing gardens until pink flamingos and Garden Gnomes are given their rightful place not only in the gardens of the nation, but indeed even on Parliament hill. Admittedly there are many gnome like creatures already there, but they must come out the opposition front benches and proudly waddle the streets of the Burg. Pink flamingos hiding in the censorship pool of the G
  8. Bob Rollheiser from Canada writes: There is a conspiracy afoot to keep pink flamingo's imprisoned in the G
  9. Akbar M from Regina, Canada writes: Why bother with any of this stuff. It's a sellers market. Utter waste of money when your house will sell no matter how it looks or what you do to it. Of course I live in Saskatchewan and its boom time.
  10. Ed Anger from Canada writes: The gnomes have been peacefully watching over us for decades and this is how we repay them. Mindless uprooting of entire gnow families, its completely racist. This wont stand.

    Leave the gnomes alone or vengeance will be unleashed upon all fluffers. Don't say you weren't warned.

    I am happy to report that the flock of pink flamingos located in transcona Winnipeg is doing very well.
  11. Kathleen H from Canada writes: A few notes from a real live Home Stager:

    Roger H: I agree, it is wasteful and not eco-friendly when very functional and useful elements of a home end up in a dumpster when a home is turned over. However, in preparation for a home sale, in most cases the art of a home stager is to make use of existing items in a home to make for a tip top presentation - rearranging furniture, decluttering etc. Furniture or art can be rented, but this is in fact eco-friendly as it gets rotated time and again to other homes rather than the homeowner buying things they may not end up using down the road.

    Nite Owl and Peter C.: Thank you for shedding lite on the inappropriately used slang terms highlighting our industry. The correct term is home stager or staging consultant.

    Akbar M: It doesn't matter if it's a seller's or a buyer's market. If it's a hot market you might be leaving money on the table if you're not presenting your home in tip top shape. You may lose a few dollars by being complacent.

    As for Gnomes, well, I think they got their fifteen minutes of fame with Travelocity's ad campaign. From an aesthetic perspective, if you HAVE to keep your Gnome, well things always look nicer in groupings so at least gather up three rather than just having one. Pink flamingoes - keep them for your 70's retro-themed backyard BBQ!
  12. Kay Ay from Canada writes: We bought our house in part because of the gigantic maple trees in full October glory in the front & back yards (and knowing everything inside could be painted).
    I would never buy a house with a large garden area again. It's too much work for my skill level so a house with a walkway flanked on TWO sides with flowers would turn me off regardless of how pretty it looks.
    We've put in perennials that require little work and look bright and pretty.
    But there will be work to do when we eventually decide to sell.
    And gnomes aren't decorative in and of themselves; not to mention they are shy and should be slightly hidden :)

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