Tag: entryway

One Room Challenge: Week 6 (Front and Back Entry, Stairs, and Hallways – Final Reveal!)

Hey, who needs a distraction right now? Today is reveal day for the Fall 2016 One Room Challenge! Let’s get into it.

I have been sharing my progress over the past six weeks as I’ve worked on making over our front entry, up the stairs and down the second and third floor hallways, and then down the other stairway and out the back door. There were major setbacks (hello, serious plumbing problems), but we’ve also made huge progress. These spaces touch every other room in our home, and the entire house feels more polished now that they’re (mostly) done.

Front Entry

Let’s begin with the front entry, which needed the least amount of work. The walls were cream when we moved in and I had painted them a silvery blue a couple of years ago, but I wasn’t completely happy with the color. A fresh coat of pink paint (Dutch Boy Sandstone Quarry, 408-2DB) went a long way here. The color choice was driven by my inspiration, the sandstone of India’s Hawa Mahal in Jaipur.

The gaslight-style fixture has been replaced with a modern lantern from Lamps Plus. Brass! Quartz! I’m into it. Then above the door, I replaced the red exit light with a simple white globe. Is it weird to miss the bizarre old EXIT light? We still have it and could swap it back out again. I sort of miss the way it would make our house glow red like a bordello.

The old rim lock on the front door had been temperamental for a while, and it finally broke just as I was about to work on the front entry. Nice timing! I had to bore some new holes in both the door and frame for the Nostalgic Warehouse deadbolt, and the new oval door knob is using the existing mortise.

Our IKEA sideboard continues to work well for us (inside are shoes, hats, gloves, etc.), but the single lamp on top has been replaced by a matching pair by Visual Comfort from ATG. That beautiful faux-shagreen tray normally holds mail as it comes in, but a stack of books is prettier to look at than a stack of mail, eh?

We have an antique hall tree on the wall, but it’s useful to have that freestanding coat rack in the opposite corner too. A boot tray hides out beneath the sideboard for wet/muddy/snowy footwear. I want a pretty entry, but it has to function for our family of five.

The copper chair is by Blu Dot and we’ve had it for a while, I just hadn’t written about it yet. It has a living finish, so the metal will patina over time (and has already started). I would have loved to go with a fabric chair, but this one will stand up to the kids and even improve with their abuse.

The semi-antique rug has been here for a while too. The basics of this entry were in place and I felt good about most of the choices. Including the space as part of my One Room Challenge was more about tweaking and perfecting than a complete overhaul. I saved that for the other areas that needed more help!

Beth from South Loop Loft came over a few nights ago and we played around with some of the styling throughout. She brought an amazing black mirror I’d had my eye on that you’ll see in the second floor hall, and she surprised me with the black candleholder you see poking out from behind the flowers. The perfect masculine counterpoint to the more feminine elements elsewhere.

I had planned on pairing the ‘Mask’ art by Jennifer Ament on the far wall with a more classical Thomas Gainsborough print, but in the end I replaced it with an abstract painting I bought years ago from Michelle Armas. The Gainsborough was moved to the top of the stairs, and I like the way the folds of the pink linen shade from The Shade Store mimic the folds of the dress in the painting.

Ready to see more?

Oh, there’s more.

The Back Entry

The textured plaster walls in the back entry and stairway from the basement all the way up to the second floor were dingy and cracked. We hired Signature Look Painting and Decorating to repair, skim coat, and paint them, and it all looked great! Then we had to cut holes in our lovely new smooth walls to investigate a plumbing leak. Not so great.

Add to that some stairs that were in need of more than a cleaning and a coat of paint after we removed the old carpeting, and the back stairway is just not finished. We have a new plumbing stack, several steps have already been replaced, we’re ripping up and replacing the wood on the landing, and hopefully soon we can move on and get to the fun part. Everything will eventually look like so.

Our Victorian has front and back stairs and we did finish the front, so you’ll see more of that amazing Karastan antelope print carpeting in a moment.

The walls are painted in Dutch Boy White Linen (007W), a soft creamy white, and the windows have pink linen roman shades from The Shade Store again. There’s a mirrored sconce from AllModern just above the back door and a tassel sconce by Crystorama on the second landing to match the others in the second floor hallway. I added black chandelier shades to both.

We’ll hang a black pleated pendant shade from AllModern in the back entry after its repairs are finished.

I’m excited about getting the pleats I had wanted, but I don’t think it’s going to mix well with sawdust and plaster dust! Better to wait a bit.

Third Floor Hallway

Take those back stairs all the way up, ignoring the new holes and general awfulness that has happened, and you end up in the third floor hallway. Behold! Many doors, painted black (Dutch Boy Authentic Black, 437-7DB).

There were 14 doors throughout the second and third floor halls, each taking between 3-5 hours for repairs, prep, priming, and painting. The ones up here are each different, but fresh paint and new brass hardware from Nostalgic Warehouse and House of Antique Hardware unify them.

I would like to replace that carpet, but it’s not a priority. The other side of the hall has space for an old IKEA Effektiv bookcase, which is filled with kids’ toys (their playroom is nearby). The architecture isn’t as interesting up here as it is elsewhere in the house, so I went with a simple brass sconce and I tried my hand at a gallery wall outside of the bathroom. The art is a mix of old and new, mostly from South Loop Loft and Artfully Walls.

Oh what fun it will be to destroy my hand-painted floork there! Plumbing, you are the worst. Well, maybe electrical issues are the worst? I don’t know. We’ve had both! Quick, let’s look at something pretty. Another faux-shagreen tray, a cute little dog, and Jill Rosenwald’s Versailles coping bowl, customized in pink.

All right, down the front stairs to the second floor. That Karastan antelope carpet is something, eh?

So good. As is the wallpaper you’re about to see.

Second Floor Hallway

The hallway is not completely finished, but it’s far enough along that you can get a sense of it. Please pardon any dust I didn’t get to before taking photos — it has been a construction zone for weeks.

The radiator is on wood blocks to protect the floor; those will be removed after it has been reconnected. Above is another tassel and rope sconce from Crystorama on Farrow & Ball’s Tourbillon wallpaper in pink.

Opposite the radiator are the stairs. They looked like this not too long ago, so I’m feeling pretty chuffed about how they turned out.

Brandon ripped out the old carpet and staples, then I cleaned and prepped the stairs before painting them – black treads with white risers. Overall, it wasn’t the easiest thing to do, but it’s so worth it in the end. The other stairway will get there too. Soon.

Down the other side of the hall, the wallpaper has not all been hung yet. This hall has been through so much in our three years though! A quick refresher…

So much better now. A new drywall ceiling has been dropped down a few inches below the old plaster one to cover conduit piping from our home’s rewiring, and our brass Schoolhouse Electric fixtures are back up.

I have two runners from Annie Selke’s Dash & Albert, but the other is still in its packaging since we haven’t finished working up here. That white dresser from Joss & Main replaces the built-in storage that used to divide the hall. Above is the mirror I mentioned earlier from South Loop Loft, along with a miniature portrait from Chairish, a brass bug, a vintage blue and white jar with a plant, and a wee brass lamp from Bellacor.

There’s more to be done, but I’m pretty happy.

Thank you to Linda at Calling it Home for organizing this event and inviting me to participate again, and thank you to House Beautiful for your partnership and coverage. I’m also grateful for the support of my One Room Challenge sponsors, and for the opportunity to work alongside the other participants, each of whom are listed below.

And thank you for following along! It has been a hectic six weeks. I have so much more to go into about the behind-the-scenes madness and the back stairway is still a mess, but I’m thrilled with where we ended up. The house is closer than ever to my vision for it, and that feels amazing.

Follow along with the One Room Challenge participants!

• Jana Bek • Chris Loves Julia • Shannon Claire • Coco.Kelley • The Curated House • Driven by Décor • The English Room • From the Right Bank • Sherry Hart • Hi Sugarplum • House of Jade • Hunted Interior • The Makerista • Making it Lovely • Marcus Design • Pencil & Paper Co. • Megan Pflug • Place of My Taste • Suburban B’s • Waiting on Martha • Media Partner House Beautiful • TM by CIH

My One Room Challenge Sponsors

Thank you to the following sponsors for generously providing product.
• AllModern • ATG • Bellacor • Chairish • Crystorama • Dash & Albert • Dutch Boy • Farrow & Ball • Jill Rosenweld • Joss & Main • Karastan • Lamps Plus • Nostalgic Warehouse and House of Antique Hardware • Schoolhouse Electric • South Loop Loft • The Shade Store

My One Room Challenge Posts

Follow along from the beginning!
• Week 1: The Before Shots • Week 2: The Design Plan • Week 3: Work Very Much in Progress • Week 4: Those Stairs, That Hall • Week 5: When it Rains, it Pours • Weed 6: Final Reveal!

November 9, 2016
One Room Challenge: Week 1 (the Before Shots)
I’m thrilled to be taking part in the One Room Challenge again! A huge thank you to Linda at Calling it Home for organizing the event and inviting me back. I worked on our bedroom and den last time; both are right next to each other on the second floor. Going to sleep and waking up in a finished space is especially nice, but what’s that just beyond the door? Oh, right. A hallway that still looks like this after we rewired the second and third floors of the Victorian.

So as I was thinking of which space I wanted to do this time, everything just felt wrong when we still had glaring issues along that hallway. Conduit along the ceiling! Holes everywhere! Bare bulbs and missing light fixtures!

But is that really enough of a ‘room’ for the One Room Challenge? After working simultaneously on two spaces for the ORC last time, just doing a hallway seemed way too easy. Hmmm… What if I do the hallway and down the back stairs, out to the back door. We’ve never touched that space, and it could really use some help.

That’s more like it. Now we’ve got some work to do. Ah, but what about the front entry? It doesn’t need all that much, but wouldn’t it be nice if the front and back door hardware matched? Plus I’d been thinking of changing the paint color again and I hadn’t gotten around to swapping out the light fixtures yet. Let’s add that to the mix.

OK, the front entry, up the stairs, down the hallway, and down again to the back door. Wait, maybe I should update the third floor hallway too? It isn’t as awful as the second floor hall, but it is in need of some repair. I was already planning on changing the sconces up there and the doors could use a bit of love at the same time.

The front entry, up the stairs, down the hallway on the second and third floors, down the stairs, and out the back door. Have I made enough work for myself yet? Yes? Good. All of the connecting spaces together at once. I’ve been planning the design, but work hasn’t started and will be progressing in real time. Six weeks! Six weeks to do all of this…
- Repair Walls and Ceilings
  back entry and stairway: fix cracked plaster, patch holes
  2nd floor hallway: patch holes, new drywall framed, hung, and taped
  3rd floor hallway: patch holes
- Stairs
  front stairway, second to third floor: remove old carpeting, repair treads (as needed), install new runners after painting
  back stairway, basement to third floor: remove old carpeting, repair treads (as needed), install new runners after painting
- Prime and Paint
  front entry and stairway: walls, ceiling, stairs (second to third floor)
  back entry and stairway: walls, ceiling, door, trim, stairs (basement to third floor), railing and spindles
  2nd floor hallway: ceiling, doors, trim
  3rd floor hallway: walls, ceiling, doors, trim
- Hang Wallpaper
  2nd floor hallway: walls
- New Door Hardware
  front entry: door knob and deadbolt
  back entry: door knob and deadbolt
  3rd floor hallway: door knobs, hinges
- Window Treatments
  throughout: roman shades
- Install Lighting Fixtures
  front entry: two pendants
  back entry and stairway: pendant and two sconces
  2nd floor hallway: four flush mount fixtures, three sconces
  3rd floor hallway: flush mount fixture, sconce
You know. Plus the pretty stuff. Lamps, art, furniture, all that.

I’m going to get more into the design details next Wednesday, but for now, I’ll leave you with my color inspiration. The red and pink sandstone of Hawa Mahal in Jaipur, India.

Images: 1 • 2 • 3

It’s going to be so good! Every single room in this big old Victorian feeds off of these connecting spaces. Getting these right is going to make a huge difference.

Follow along with the One Room Challenge participants!

• Jana Bek • Chris Loves Julia • Shannon Claire • Coco.Kelley • The Curated House • Driven by Décor • The English Room • From the Right Bank • Sherry Hart • Hi Sugarplum • House of Jade • Hunted Interior • The Makerista • Making it Lovely • Marcus Design • Pencil & Paper Co. • Megan Pflug • Place of My Taste • Suburban B’s • Waiting on Martha • Media Partner House Beautiful • TM by CIH

My One Room Challenge Posts

Follow along from the beginning!
• Week 1: The Before Shots • Week 2: The Design Plan • Week 3: Work Very Much in Progress • Week 4: Those Stairs, That Hall • Week 5: When it Rains, it Pours • Weed 6: Final Reveal!

p.s. If this sounds like the kind of thing that would motivate you to work on a room of your own, join in as a guest!
October 5, 2016
Choosing a Console Table and Mirror for an Entryway
A reader, Melissa, recently wrote to me asking for help with her entryway.

“I just love your style and design approach of mixing the old with the new. I have recently moved into a new home (a 2-story traditional) and slowly adding my personal touch to each space.

I have been on the hunt of a great console table for our entryway. I love the idea(s) of a simple box frame console table against a large floor mirror, an acrylic waterfall console and/or a statement table. I like the less is more approach. The space where I would be putting the console table is approx 48″ W and is directly across our staircase. I have attached some links of the table styles I have been considering. Can you provide me with any suggestions of tables or how to choose the right console table?”

I’ve gotten similar questions in the past, so I asked Melissa if I could answer here on the blog. She agreed and also sent a few photos of her entryway so we could see the space she’s working with. I have several ideas and options, but before we get into all of that, let’s look at her inspiration photos.

Source: Taylor Jacobson Interior Design, featured by My Domaine

Source: Jessica de Ruiter’s home, featured by One Kings Lane

Source: Better Homes & Gardens

Melissa also linked to these three tables (each very similar): the Slim Console Table in Natural Steel from Room & Board, the Nolita Mini Console Table from CB2, and the Box Frame Console Table from West Elm.

Very different from the inspiration images! And then there’s the acrylic waterfall console idea in there too. Here are a couple of photos of Melissa’s space. The spot where she would like to put a console table is about 48″ wide and doesn’t look to be very deep. She is planning on replacing the mirror.

Looking first at the entry with the teal console table, I found several similar pieces. I included a lamp and a couple of vases too, should the inspiration have as much to do with the color as it does the shape of the table.
- Taylor Jacobson Interior Design (Inspiration Image)
- Henredon Sofa Table, Chairish
- Rustic Ceramic Vases, West Elm
- Beverly Table Lamp, Lamps Plus
- Jordan Console/Desk, Bungalow 5
- Chiba Console Table, Selamat
- Harlow Console Table, Bungalow 5
The Malone Campaign Console Table from West Elm is worth a look too. I included the matching nightstand in a post last week, but while that came in teal, the console table is only in white, mint, or red.

Next, we have several options for the vintage/antique tables in Melissa’s other two inspiration photos.
- Jessica de Ruiter’s Home (Inspiration Image 1)
- Better Homes & Gardens (Inspiration Image 2)
- Spanish Carved Console Table, Chairish
- Petite Console Table, Wayfair
- Classic Design Hall Console, Wayfair
- 19th Century Oak Gateleg Table, One Kings Lane
- Peterson Console Table, Wayfair
- 19th Century Carved English Console Table, One Kings Lane
Finding something similar online is a bit difficult, as your best bet is a combination of scouring thrift shops, flea markets, garage and estate sales, and Craigslist, plus patience. The newer tables above are a bit lacking in charm, but they’re very affordably priced and they’d be great paired with more interesting finds (mirror, lamp, accessories, rug). The antiques that I’m drawn to have turned legs or carved details. I included a few examples here that may be a smidge out of Melissa’s comfort zone, but if she’s into them, they could be amazing.

Two out of three of Melissa’s inspiration images had vintage Persian rugs (like this one), and all of them had white walls, simple accessories (like the glass column vases and lamp), and natural materials with texture (worn woods, woven baskets, a sisal rug). Keeping that as a base for mockups, I paired mirrors with six of my favorite tables from the options above.

Look 1: Tork Brass Mirror • Beverly Table Lamp • Dahlias • 19th Century Oak Gateleg Table • Beachcomber Round Basket
Look 2: Maroc Wall Mirror • Fig Leaf Branches • Harlow Console Table • Eyelash Baskets
Look 3: Moroccan Gilt Mirror (similar to Melissa’s) • Peekaboo Acrylic Console Table • Rustic Ceramic Vases • Round Belly Baskets
Look 4: 1940 Églosmisé Mirror • Glass and Gold Table Lamp • Spanish Carved Console Table • Halton Basket
Look 5: Acacia Wood Mirror • Dahlias • Peterson Console Table • Huntington Baskets
Look 6: Sailor’s Mirror • Fig Leaf Branches • Nolita Mini Console Table • Beachcomber Round Basket

Any of these combinations would work for Melissa’s entry — it’s just a matter of personal preference! Which is your favorite, and which do you think would be best for her space?
March 23, 2016
IKEA Stockholm Sideboard Review

Somebody sent me a message recently because he was thinking about picking up the same IKEA Stockholm sideboard that I bought for our entryway. Questions about it come my way pretty often, actually. Do the doors stay even? Has it held up well? Would I recommend it? Yes, yes, and yes. It’s my favorite IKEA purchase to date (which is saying something because I’ve owned many a piece from IKEA over the years), so I thought I’d offer a review.

I bought mine two years ago, shortly after moving in to our house, because I was looking for shoe storage in the entryway. I didn’t want “anything too precious since it’s going to be used on a daily basis by the whole family” and I deemed the style, scale, and price right. The sideboard comes in a painted beige finish for $389 or a walnut veneer for $449. I like the painted version for my house because it already has so much woodwork, but the walnut finish looks good too — much better than some IKEA wood tones of the past (I’m looking at you, orange beech).

We keep shoes inside, so I added cushioned shelf liners that can easily be removed for cleaning or replacement. The kids have the left half, and the adults have the right. Besides shoes and bags on the shelves, their drawer holds things like sunglasses and floppy hats during warmer months, and winter hats, mittens, and gloves when it’s cold. ‘Our side’ has things like a lint roller, comb and small brush, and reusable shopping bags in the drawer, the bottom shelf has a few pairs of shoes, and the other shelf is home to our baby wrap and diaper bag.

I spent some time adjusting the doors so that they would hang evenly when I first assembled the sideboard, and I haven’t had to do anything to them since. There are push-open mechanisms inside, and in my house, they’ve held up to a fair amount of abuse from the kids! The doors can be left plain but I drilled holes in mine for knobs. If you want to do the same, remember to leave enough clearance for the drawers inside. I’d hate to see someone make the mistake of drilling right at the top and then having the back of the knobs keep the doors from closing. And another note on choosing knobs — if you have kids and they’re anything like mine, you might want to go with something that doesn’t need to be aligned in a certain direction. All three of my kids spin them around, either on purpose or by accident, so something round would have been a better choice.

The Stockholm sideboard is sturdy and surprisingly heavy, making it feel like a good solid piece of furniture that should hold up long-term. My only complaint is that two years in, the top has a few small scratches and dings in the painted finish. They aren’t noticeable enough to bother me, but they are there. I’ve always thought that it would be nice to find a remnant of marble or travertine to top the sideboard, so that’s an option if the scratches worsen over time or I just feel like updating the look.

I’ve had people over who have commented on how nice the sideboard was, and they’re always surprised when I say that it was from IKEA. I highly recommend it.

November 19, 2015
The Entryway, Painted and Updated for Fall

This post is sponsored by Target.
Shop Home Décor for modern luxury made easy.

I nixed the teal idea for the entryway and went with a dusty blue/green/gray. Teal would have played beautifully with the wood, but I felt like it was going to be too much in the context of the rest of the house. Subtle is a bit better in this case.

The color is Sherwin-Williams’ Comfort Gray. It continues up the stairs and down the second floor hallway. It’s also in our bedroom, and when I chose the color, I wrote “before we moved into this house, I did tell Brandon to slap my hand away from the paint if I start trying to put gray on all the walls. But! This is more bluish!” I still stand by that because while gray is lovely, but I get tired of seeing it again and again. So then of course I used it, again. (Ha. But this is bluish!)

I’ve had that lamp for almost a decade (here it is in our old apartment, just before I started blogging), and I picked up the sideboard shortly after moving in to store our shoes. I’ve since added a boot tray below for wet shoes and boots that we can pull out as needed. The rug is vintage, as are the Thonet chairs, and the painting is by Jenny Vorwaller.

The lamp adds some much-needed light, and the bowl is a great drop spot for Brandon’s wallet and keys. We added a desk to the library, so our mail is being sorted there now instead of in the entryway, leaving most of the sideboard top to serve as a pretty display surface. So I prettied it up with a few new additions!

I love that gold polka dot vase. The house’s architecture is formal, so it’s nice to inject a little levity here and there. And please do forgive the flowers for not looking their best. They were much prettier four days prior to being photographed, but then, you know… I went into labor! By the time I was out of the hospital and able to set my camera up, the pink dahlia had just about had it, and I had to pitch most of the dusty miller entirely. (Blame baby.)

The black vase is vintage, and the Charley Harper owl was a gift. I added a few art books and a few candle lanterns. Those are pretty now for fall, but they’ll be great for holiday decorating too.

This was super fun to play around with when I was going nuts with nesting energy. It’s also really nice to come home to.

October 9, 2014
The Entryway (Again), with its New (Old) Runner

Let’s forget about the not-so-pretty photos from yesterday, and instead look at a runner that IS working.

Saving on the sideboard meant I could put the extra money toward the proper-sized runner for the space. It’s a vintage Persian Koliaei rug, about 50 years old, that I bought from eSaleRugs after Jenny’s recommendation. It seems like they have 50% off sales pretty regularly, the shipping was fast, and my rug arrived in great shape.

I like that the blue randomly changes midway through the rug. I laid it the other way at first, and it seemed off — like the lightest part should be nearest to the light source of the window and front door.

The runner called for switching things up a bit, so I’ll find places in the house elsewhere for the pink and coral painting, Heath Ceramics pottery, and blue dhurrie that you saw here before.

Also, I swapped out the off-white plastic outlet cover on the floor for a wood one, and it blends in much more nicely now. A small detail, but it’s nice to have it done.

I saw this painting pop up in Jenny Vorwaller’s Instagram feed and I scooped it up right away, but I had to wait a few months because it turned out she was about to hang it in the downtown Seattle Anthropologie. Isn’t it gorgeous? The name is “Warp and Weft” — very appropriate to be talking about it in a post about rugs. I like it in the entryway, and I’m perfectly fine with it not being completely matchy-matchy. I do kind of want to steal it away for the bedroom though, so I’m not sure if this is its permanent home.

Can you imagine how awesome it’s going to be when the weather gets nicer, and we can have the front door open with a view of the pretty Victorian screen door?

This is the first space people see when they come over, and the first thing we see when we come home. It took a few months, but it finally looks and functions the way I wanted it to.

January 30, 2014