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Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms

by | Oct 11, 2013 | Decorating Inspiration, Entries/Mudrooms, Seasonal Decorating & Entertaining, small houses

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Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Roomsvia One Kings Lane

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small RoomsAtlanta Homes Magazine

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Roomsvia Atlanta Homes Magazine

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms

Pottery Barn

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms

House to Home, Hallways

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms

Atlanta Homes

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms
Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms
Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms
Unknown source, anyone know where this photo originated? 

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms

One of my favorite things about Fall Nesting is getting cozier in the space I have.

I love looking at hallways, entries and small spaces to figure out how to give them the most punch, both with design and use of space!

Even if you don’t have a large entry (some of these inspiration pictures could seem like large entries compared to yours!), you can use these inspiration photos for ideas for any small rooms.

While my house overall is a fine size for us at 2500 square feet, it isn’t huge and each room is on the small side. Every inch counts, both with design and function. You might remember me discussing redesigning my small living room at one point. While the room continues to evolve, I’m still working on what I hope will end up being the BEST use of that room. I’m slow, but sometimes with a small space the perfect solutions take time. But it’s fun to be inspired by all these great looking spaces.

As these inspiration pictures show, you can have function, clever and attractive storage, seating, workspaces and a certainly a big dose of personality no matter what size your room is! Make the most of every inch with well-chosen pieces for the space you have.

I LOVE thinking about adding built-ins to benches and bookshelves to storage and charm this time of year. I am narrowing down a few new ideas for my home that I’ll be sharing with you soon!

Making the most of even my smallest rooms is one of my favorite things about Fall nesting!

What good ideas do YOU see in these spaces?

Let’s share in the comments!

Making the Most of Hallways & Entries & Small Rooms

***Catch up with the 6th annual Fall Nesting — 31 Days of Falling for Fall series!*** It’s not just about pumpkins, we’re talking about so much more!

Day OneDay TwoDay ThreeDay FourDay FiveDay SixDay SevenDay EightDay NineDay TenDay ElevenDay TwelveDay ThirteenDay Fourteen,Day FifteenDay SixteenDay SeventeenDay EighteenDay NineteenDay TwentyDay Twenty-OneDay Twenty-Two, Day Twenty-Three, Today is Day Twenty-Four!

Come visit fellow Fall lovers & Join the Fall Nesting Link Up Party!

17 Comments

  1. Lisa H.

    The space from ‘House to Home’ kind of made my heart jump. Love that style! They are all really great looking spaces, and the thing I notice that is consistent about them is the lighter wall colors. I used to think I needed color on the walls, but I’m really rethinking that lately. The lighter walls with pops of color from furniture and accessories is very appealing to me lately.
    Thanks for the great examples!

    Reply
  2. Sharon Lefavor

    I like to
    He entry way coat storage in the Atlanta Homes picture. I have the perfect cabinet to make a similar style bench and cubby storage.

    Reply
  3. Patty Virginia

    all of the small spaces are lovely. The thing that stands out to me is not to be afraid of incorporating large pieces in a small space. I am very guilty of this because I always feel that a dresser, picture, etc.it will be too overpowering and take over. However, just the opposite occurs as in the Atlanta Home Magazine pic.
    Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  4. Adrienne

    I love these spaces! I have a non-entry! An entry where the door opens and you just step right into my living room. I’ve tried to make a teeny, tiny feeling of an entry. I’d love to see a feature on rooms like that – rooms where the outside is just on the other side of the door and you step right into life in a small living room – a room where there’s no room to make anything look much different than it is.
    ~Adrienne~

    Reply
    • Helene

      I have a non-entry, too, Adrienne! But I didn’t let that stop me. I placed an antique hutch right in my living room on the wall closest to the front door. It has shelving and cupboard space and serves as a wonderful catch-all for the “life” that comes into the house at that spot. But when the doors are closed it just looks like a pretty wooden antique to the unsuspecting eye. It’s been a lifesaver and keeps my kitchen counters clear of mail and papers. I think the non-entry adds to the cottage feel. Let’s hear it for smaller homes!

      Reply
    • Melissa @ The Inspired Room

      Sure, I understand the dilemma, I’ve had houses like that too! I think creating the illusion of an entry within the living room is a great idea (like Helene said), like a hutch or shelf or small bookcase near the entry but actually in the living room. Even just a few cute hooks on the wall right inside the door, and maybe a small mirror above the hooks, can make the “entry” feel more useful and functional as an entry.

      Reply
  5. Kay F

    These spaces are beautiful to look at, but what do you do with a really narrow (3 feet) long hallway? There would be no room at all for even the narrowest bookcase, and certainly not for a console table or bench. The hall takes you through the middle of the house (so the wall space is broken by doorways, as well as a hall closet) and ends in an expanded room that used to be a den and will now be our living room. I have some sizable pieces of original art, which I plan to arrange on the walls, with track lighting above to spot them. If anyone has a better idea, I’d love to hear it!

    Reply
    • sarah

      why don’t you think about doing a board and batten treatment 2/3’s of the way up the wall from the floor? top it with a picture ledge and do pictures in all one color frame along the ledge. could be very unifying and stunning. The board and batten will help add height to the narrow and longness of it.

      Reply
      • Kay F

        That’s a wonderful idea, Sarah, and if the pieces were smaller it would look stunning. But mine are so large that they would fill or exceed the space above the picture ledge!

        Thanks.

        Reply
  6. Rose L

    I have a very small house @820 sq. ft. (perfect for reitrees). My entry is an alcove that is less than two feet deep but seven feet wide. The alcove is filled with the door and three windows on the three walls so there is no space for furniture in there. It doesn’t make for much of an entry before stepping directly into the living room. I am working on remodeling and redecorating this space as we speak. I hope to place a simple, antique coat tree in the corner of the alcove and a large rug that will extend somewhat into the LR space. I plan to place two chairs facing into the room with a sofa table behind them to allow a place to set your gloves, purse or what have you when coming in the door. A guest will then have to walk around the table and chairs to actually be in the LR which I hope will give the entry a little more definition of being it’s own space. Time will tell if it will all fit together the way I am imaging in my minds eye. I have scrubbing, painting and new flooring to install first so it will be a while before I get to the stage of furniture placement and accessorizing.

    Reply
  7. Jeanette @ Creating a Life

    Shelving, furniture pieces and baskets are always a great way to add storage AND cozy character to small spaces. Thanks for the inspiration!

    Reply
  8. Kerry@homecrush

    I love gallery style in an entryway like several of these inspiring images use. When you’re coming and going into a home, galleries of art and objects tell stories about the people who live there . . . and give you something to look at while you’re putting on your coat :)

    Reply
  9. Kristina

    Lovely ideas, all of them. I’m all for squeezing in bookcases wherever you can. I love the idea of a hallway lined with books — what a dream! But 2500 sq ft for a small family is a small house? That is a very spacious home in my book. I live in 1900 sq ft. and have a hard time finding new furniture scaled properly for my house. I have more luck in San Francisco and Berkeley, where even nice dwellings are much, much smaller than where I live. Then I have to figure out how to get furniture shipped 90 miles East….

    Reply
    • Melissa @ The Inspired Room

      Oh no, you might have misunderstood. My house is not small, but it just isn’t huge! The main issue is that my rooms are all on the small side. If I had 2500 square feet with less rooms that might make the house seem bigger, but we have an entry, four bedrooms, an office, a living room and a dining room and family room. Each room is smallish and has its own challenge when it comes to how to use the space.

      It isn’t easy to figure out what to do in some small rooms, I’m still working on it. I’ve lived in a 1600 square foot house so I know how hard it is even with less space! But I actually loved the challenge of making the most of my tiny house and I’m determined to do the same in this one!

      Reply
  10. Lisa

    Hmmm, Cozy…good word…Yes Fall is definitely about getting cozy.

    Reply
  11. Manette Gutterman

    Any of these spaces I dream of living in someday. I would be so thankful!

    Reply
  12. Irma

    We will be putting our Craftsman style house up for sale in a few days. We’ve been working hard to stage it to look more spacious but retain charm. Our house basically has 1600 sq. ft. It has great character but our entryway is a small closed in porch. It’s a 5×8 room with a bedroom window that relies on light in the porch for its daylight. It has a big coat closet, another small square window, and a newer steel door with oval glass, and sidelights. And the ceiling is lower. Very little wall space and too narrow for much in the way of seating or table for keys. Unfortunately, I havent seen much online for ideas.

    Reply

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