Create the entryway of your dreams by following these guidelines.
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Whether they are big or small, entryways are an important part of a home. An entryway is a transitioning room and the first room guests step into from the outside coming into the intimacy of your home, and so making it welcoming and inviting is key. Now, not all of us may have a dedicated room for an entryway. You may just walk into your living room or hallway, but you could always find ways of making your entrance a great transitional space into your home.
Three things to think about as you look at your entryway are:
· Is it welcoming for visitors?
· Does it function as an entryway?
· Does it meet your style goals?
If you have some ideas already, GREAT! And if you need a little nudge in the right direction, here are a few pointers that should work for you.
Have a surface & possibly a place to sit
Having a table of sorts or a console table helps to anchor the entryway. It’s a surface where decorations such as vases, trays and decorative objects can be placed, but also an accessible surface you can place things like your keys, mail or a newspaper (if anyone reads those anymore), while you take off your outside clothing. This table is also be a great way to express your style, so choose something you love that would go with your design.
Little stools or benches are great and functional to have in your entryways too that help people comfortably and easily take off their shoes without any worry of falling over, and help them transition into more comfortable house shoes.
Flooring
As people come into your home with their dirty shoes, it is great to have a hard flooring or have some kind of rug that makes it okay for people to walk through with their street shoe bottoms and into the rest of your house. Another way to control dirt coming in is to have a rough weather-proof mat outside that people can clean the bottom of their shoes on. Your hard flooring and your rug can also be an opportunity to implement you style so don’t let that opportunity pass by.
Great lighting
Great lighting is important so that your guests have good visual cues of where everything is and they can adjust well visually to your home from outside. Lighting is another way you can express your style and some options would be pendants or chandeliers along with tabletop lamps or floor lamp, whatever suits your fancy. Just make sure your space is well lit.
Storage
Hats, coats, shoes, gloves… you name it, they need to be stored somewhere, so storage is pretty important for your entryway. There are many options you can choose from e.g. coat closets, hooks, floating shelves, coat racks and more. Baskets are also a good option to slide under a console table where you can throw in smaller items. It really depends on the space you have and what you can do with it.
Mirrors
No one ever wants to enter their host’s house with hat-hair and knowing you have messy hair after putting all your coats and scarves on can be really annoying, so a mirror in your entryway can be a lifesaver. You could always doublecheck on things. Play with your options and get the one or ones that make a good style statement.
Nature
Dried, fresh, potted or faux, adding some kind of plants to your entryway can help ease the transition from outside to the inside of a house and add a little natural beauty to the space.
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