This Is How L.A.’s Top Home Stager Worked Her Magic on a Post and Beam Home in the Topanga Mountains

Post and Beam homes are known for their exposed wooden beams, vaulted ceilings, and spacious, open rooms. With those features, the style already speaks for itself, design-wise, so when you’re decorating the home, it can be a balancing act—showcasing the beautiful ceilings and wood, while also giving the space personality through furniture and accessories. That’s what celebrity interior designer and home stager Francesca Grace was tasked with for this home staging project in the Topanga mountains of Los Angeles.

Jeremy Spann

Originally built in the 1970s, the 2,834-square-foot Post and Beam style home has three bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a detached guesthouse and children’s playhouse. Some noteworthy features include the statement-making rock fireplaces, the gorgeous views of the mountains, and the yard with a sauna, playhouse, and ample outdoor entertaining space.

Jeremy Spann

“Staging a vintage home with so many unique features is really exciting for us,” Francesca says. “There are usually quirkier features than a more modern/contemporary home, so it really allows us to play up the charm. It can also be a little more challenging at times because room layouts don’t always make the most sense. As designers/stagers, it’s really up to us to show how the home can be functional in those more awkward layouts and why we always encourage staging an older home. Many times buyers have a hard time visualizing layouts or how modern furniture can work in an older home.”

Jeremy Spann

To start, Francesca and her team homed in on three factors for inspiration: the style of home, who their client was, and the story they wanted to tell. For this house, they wanted to show that it was a family home, while still honoring its design—they did so by bringing in unique pieces and giving each room a unique identity. 

Jeremy Spann

“We really wanted to complement the architectural style of the home and not take away from its unique beauty. To accomplish this, we decided to furnish the home with colors that reflected the outdoors by using a lot of raw and organic materials,” Francesca adds. Their goal was to also make the space very inviting and unique, which was accomplished by using rich colors, a variety of fabric, texture, and material, minimal patterns, and modern architecturally forward pieces.

Jeremy Spann

Jeremy Spann

The biggest challenge with the staging project was the primary bedroom, which had an unusual layout. But Francesca says she and her team placed the furniture in a layout that worked with the space, making it feel proportional and functional.

Jeremy Spann

All in all, the staging was a success, and definitely made an impression on the buyers. “We received a lot of wonderful feedback from the design,” Francesca says. “The dramatic living room with its large windows and high ceilings paired with our interiors was really impactful and memorable. Our design story was perceived just as we wanted and we are so happy for the new owners to start their own story in this beautiful home.”

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