Home Near the Lagoon

Staging and Interiors by Kathy Sollitto

For the interior of this home, I chose transitional furnishings because they offer an updated, contemporary look and were compatible with the home’s beautiful architectural features. By using earthy tones and natural fabrics with a few rustic elements, my intent was to create spaces that felt calm and inviting in a casually elegant and slightly understated way.  Sometimes, “less is more” and for a smaller home like this one, It was important not to “over” furnish the rooms allowing the spaces to feel more generous and balanced. The staging vignettes add lifestyle elements with a suggestion toward “the serenity of Vineyard life”.

Paintings by Kara Taylor

Hart Haven Rental Staging

January 2024

Staging by Kathy Sollitto

When the owners of this beloved Vineyard home engaged my services to stage their vacation home, we embarked on a journey to brighten and refresh the spaces. Over the next few months, we designed a new built-in pantry closet with sliding barn door for the galley kitchen, designed a mounted wall space for the TV and furnished the brand new screened dining porch & deck with modern, outdoor furniture. With the completion this spring of the newly painted "white" interior and a LL refresh, this lovely home offers beautifully blended indoor and outdoor spaces that beckon one to sit, relax and enjoy the warmth of a perfect Vineyard day.....

West Tisbury Hilltop Home

January 2024

Vacant staging by Kathy Sollitto

In designing a staging plan for this pretty hilltop home,  I wanted to highlight its interesting architecture and "walls of windows "with contrasting trim . The newly painted soft white interior and light hardwood floors were the perfect canvas for my staging installation.

So, for this home, I chose transitional furnishings with contemporary lines and light neutral fabrics to create a warm and inviting feel. I added a few french blue accents to unite the spaces and  compliment the existing blue wallpaper and tile in the bathroom areas. With the addition of original artwork, and a few more decor items, the spaces felt complete and offered a casually elevated look and feel ....in keeping with vacation living on Martha's Vineyard.

Pastoral Chilmark Home

Summer 2023

Vacant staging by Kathy Sollitto

I recently furnished and staged this lovely up island home, privately situated and surrounded by rustic stone walls, perennial gardens and quiet woodlands. The orientation and architecture of the house provided light filled spaces with vaulted ceilings and a soft neutral palate. I wanted to compliment these features of the house and work with the existing color palate, so I chose transitional and contemporary furnishings in light neutral fabrics, with contrasting accents, orginial artwork and pops of color throughout to unite the spaces in a clean, slightly understated way that would lend itself to the second home real estate market on Martha’s Vineyard.

Paintings by Kara Taylor

Bedroom Staging

Summer 2022

Partial Staging of an Occupied Home by Kathy Sollitto

“My house had been on the market for four months and there were only a few viewings. I hired Kathy Sollitto to help me stage my house. Based on her feedback, we painted some inside walls, removed some furniture and she worked her magic. When Kathy had finished staging my home the realtor took new pictures and we re-listed the house. The next day we had four viewings and two offers. My home is now under contract. I can’t speak highly enough about Kathy. She is professional, talented and works within your budget.”

— Jay Wilbur

Comfort and Sophistication off Lambert’s Cove Road

March 2022

Rental Staging by Kathy Sollitto

“When I embarked on a house improvement journey in late 2021, I had an array of goals in mind including better adaptability to optimize both summer and off-season living, positioning for seasonal rentals and long- term value enhancement. I also knew I had options from do-it-yourself to engaging an interior designer. Collaborating with Kathy through By Design MV was one of the earliest decisions I made in my “quarter-century refresh “project, and a cornerstone of the very successful outcomes that followed. Her decades of experience touring island homes as a realtor were invaluable as we tried to reimagine the best life for a much-loved family home off Lambert’s Cove Road. Concentrating on the intersection of comfort and optics, she cultivated and curated new life in—and a bright future for –old spaces. The value proposition for working with Kathy is very, very strong.:”

— Eugene J. Berardi
Vineyard Haven, MA

Lambert’s Cove Antique Home

September 2021

Non- Occupied Staging by Kathy Sollitto

My assignment for this project was to stage the living areas of this antique home incorporating the existing antiques and furniture, adding soft goods and décor items where needed. Following an initial editing process of depersonalizing and removing extra carpets and furnishings, I rearranged some of the furniture and brought in additional soft goods and décor items in colors that would enhance the major pieces of artwork that were currently in place and were also compatible with the overall color palate of the house. The country kitchen which had been renovated in recent years lent itself to adding a couple of lifestyle vignettes encouraging one to linger with a cool drink and enjoy the pastoral views of the property. Because some of the upstairs rooms had patterned wallpaper, I chose simple white matelasse’ bedding with down comforters and added white towels and spa elements to most of the bathrooms. The result was a fresh updated look with more of the beautiful antique flooring exposed and a sprinkle of french blue accents throughout. The staged spaces felt integrated and projected a warm and inviting feel, while still preserving the character of this lovely historic home.

Modern Farmhouse Kitchen Renovation

May 2021

Kitchen Design Consultation and Photo Styling by Kathy Sollitto