Kitchen wall color, wood grains get aid

The space: A kitchen in a Bloomington twin home.

Selling points: Lots of room, ample storage and newer laminate floors.

The turn-offs: Unflattering wall color, too many collectibles and too many wood-grain surfaces including the floors, cabinets, backsplash and ceiling beams. "Everything kind of blended together," said Lori Matzke of Centerstagehome.com. "We wanted to break that up a bit for interest, and then balance out the space to create a more functional feel."

Here's what Matzke did to dazzle buyers:

Boxing up the collectibles makes the room feel more spacious, and moving the microwave to another countertop that's not visible from the entry shows more counter space.

Painting the walls a soft sandy beige warms up the space and complements the color of the cupboards and flooring.

Faux-wood countertops were replaced with a soft marbled white surface that visually breaks up the wood grains elsewhere in the room.

A table and two chairs give the room a sense of balance and make it feel more functional Soft chair pads in a silky shade of olive green add texture and downplay the wood-grained surfaces in the room.

Removing the heavy window scarf and the screens, and washing the windows brings more light into the room and gives buyers a clear view of the landscaped yard.

Open house tip: Leave lights on over stove and sink to add even more light.

To downplay the faux-wood backsplash, Matzke leaned colorful artwork with a shiny metallic frame on the counter near a glossy green and gold canister set.

Greenery on the countertop and kitchen table adds texture and color and helps draw the buyer's eye around the room.