Expert Advice To Create a Welcoming Entry Space

Your entry sets the tone and the expectation about what’s in store for visitors. It also welcomes you home after a long day’s work, a vacation, or a tedious board meeting. Let us offer you some expert advice to create a welcoming entry space.

Color

Select a color palette for your entry that transitions seamlessly to adjacent rooms. If you’re following the decorator’s rule of three (three complementary colors in proportions of 60-30-10—primary, secondary, and accent color percentages), choose the primary color for your entry.

Some home stylists like to use wallpaper in an entry to create an instant ambiance. Peel-and-stick wallpaper offers many color and pattern options, and the best thing is you can change it anytime you want without damaging your walls.

Scale

If you’re blessed with a large entry, you can use a central table for a large vase of flowers and add seating and a large console table along the walls.

For small entries, don’t make everything teensy-tiny. Just have less, but make the furnishings count. A chest of drawers that doubles as a console table, plus a well-chosen piece of artwork for the wall can work wonders.

Function

Entries are the landing pads of your home. Thinks coats, boots, shoes, purses, keys, and mail. Keep your entry tidy by establishing places for all these things. Use coat hooks on the wall with shoe cubbies underneath or a coat rack and umbrella stand. Have a place to organize and recycle mail using a decorative wastebasket.

Light

Ensure your entry has appropriate lighting. You can soften the glare of an overhead light by using a lower wattage bulb, and you can enhance lighting with lamps if you have an outlet in your entry.

Mirrors are great for small spaces, reflecting any light that comes to them. They also give you a chance to check your look before you head out and for guests to do the same when they come in.

Rugs and Mats

Add color with a durable and easy-to-clean vinyl rug. These come in an amazing array of colorful patterns to match or complement your decor. Since your entry is a heavy-traffic area, you’ll appreciate how easy they are to clean, their durability, and their low profile, which won’t obstruct your front door.

Remember that your entry begins outside. Outdoor porch mats are both functional and attractive, giving guests a taste of your artistic style and maybe even your sense of humor. More than just a place to wipe your feet, doormats can emphasize the season, offer a written message, or celebrate the dog that will be wagging its tail in anticipation of greeting you.

Choose a doormat that will create a smooth transition from outside to inside, echoing colors and themes you use both indoors and elsewhere in your outdoor spaces. Have fun using our expert advice to create a welcoming entry space to express your style and personality as visitors enter your home!