What a difference a home stylist makes

Michael Penney of Canadian House & Home recently posted these home makeover shots from Country Living and I died a little bit when I saw what a difference some subtle restyling makes. It really made me think about how a home can go from nice-enough to amazing given the right styling. Now if only I could get my own home stylist to tweak my house...

Here are two examples from one home:

The living room before was nice enough. I like the hardwood floors but I immediately thought the furniture looked like it was floating. A rug was definitely in order. Here's the after:

Isn't this after incredible? I didn't even notice the sofa shape before, but once moved against the window and accessorized with a throw and pillows, I love the shape of the back. The rug makes such a huge difference in anchoring the furniture too. All they did was add accessories (notice the main furniture is still the same, as is the wall color) and the room looks a million times better.

The bathroom in this house was also very standard. Not bad per se, but pretty dull:

Again, this after is gorgeous! It's a little country for my style (I'm pretty sure that's all due to the garden-y wallpaper), but the crisp shower curtain (hung high to accentuate the space) is so much better than the glass doors, and I am so into that mirror. I should be, since I own it. Can you believe I got it at Tarjay for 40 bucks? I have it above my fireplace mantle.

So what do you think? Aren't these re-styled rooms above-and-beyond what you ever thought the befores could be? It just goes to show how those houses in magazines get so beautiful: stylists.

All photos from Country Living, as photographed by Lucas Allen.