Every month we bring you interesting ‘how to’ blogs to aid you in any stylish renovations you decide to make in your home. This month we take a look at an important but often under-styled part of our homes – the hallway.
Style to Impress
You have probably heard that it takes less than seven seconds for someone to form an impression, good or bad, of something or someone that they meet. For guests stepping foot in your home, this judgement is based on many things, including the appeal of the hallway.
But more importantly than that, it is the space that welcomes you home after a busy day. So, why shouldn’t it be a stylish place, and an impressive one at that? But how do you achieve the elevated heights of an impressive hallway?
We show you how…
- Plan it – first on our list is to think carefully about how the use of this space will change over the coming years. inevitably, the main issue will be storage. Consider carefully what will work for storing coats, boots, shoes and bags now, and in the coming years.
- Draw it – if you consider how much technology has changed our homes, you will understand just how much the hallway has changed. For older properties, the hallway can be sadly bereft of electrical sockets, with a phone socket placed in the middle of an expanse of wall. If you can, get these moved so you can draw a plan of the best place for your furniture to be placed.
- Consider bespoke storage – storage is usually bereft in the hallway and so, if you use it as the space through which everyone passes as they enter and leave your home, the biggest investment should be in the storage facilities. From bespoke under-the-stairs solutions to detailing such as drawers in small console tables, maximising as much storage as you can from the space.
- Maximise light – many hallways suffer the same fate in terms of lack of light, both natural and ambient. Maximise light as much as possible and, if knocking down a wall isn’t on the cards, make sure that any window dressings are minimal in fuss but allow light to shine in. Consider LED lighting for up and down lighting on the stairs. Modern lamps nestling on slimline hallway console tables are also perfect for adding a soft glow and more than a hint of ‘welcome’ to your home.
- Mirrors – great for reflecting light, they are also a stylish means of adding much-needed detail. In effect, you are looking to create a space that is welcoming and warm, a task that decorative mirrors fill with aplomb. If you find you constrain yourself in terms of finish and style in other rooms, let your choice run free and choose a mirror that us superbly ornate and full of sparkle!
- Artwork – there is no reason why the hallway needs to be bereft of artwork and yet, we so often leave the walls blank. Either choose one or two key pieces or why not use the expanse of walls to create a beautiful picture and artwork gallery?
The 2018 hallway renovation trends are…?
… monochrome colour schemes, with matching hallway rugs and runners. And if you have the budget, consider adding detail to a barren hallway with wood panelling.