Tag: foyer revamp

Vibrant Wallpaper in the Foyer

Written by Jenna on April 15, 2018. Posted in Brick Ranch Fixer Upper.

As the cold days have continued (it’s still feels like winter even though it’s been officially spring for almost a month), we’ve slowly been making changes to our new-to-us brick ranch fixer upper. I actually can confidently say that we’ve been making our envisioned updates faster than I’ve had time to share on the blog… life has admittedly been full.

Right after Christmas – the day after to be exact – I took the plunge into updating the foyer with a vibrant new wallpaper.

I am wallpaper obsessed and would love to adorn every wall with a colorful pattern. Thankfully in reality, I know where to draw the line and I know how to balance a dramatic wallpaper with a more subtle surrounding.

For the foyer space, a vibrant + colorful paper on all walls would have been overload. Instead I chose to use this blue & white Ikat patterned wallpaper by Graham and Brown on one wall and then balance the deep hue with a light neutral, Valspar Snowy Dusk, on the remaining walls.

The result is so pretty. Most of the elements in the space were seen in the foyer of our previous home – the gold dresser, the fern art prints, the ottoman, and the rug.

As always to appreciate the ‘after’, you have to take a look at the ‘before’…

Once we moved in, the space was a black canvas. I knew I wanted to add in a pop of color, but I didn’t want to overpower the space. I chose to use one wall – the side wall of the entry space – to add the wallpaper.

I’ve shared tutorials here and here for how to wallpaper a wall, but I’ll share another quick rundown…

1 / starting from the center of the edge of the wall (depending on the design), measure the wall to mark the width of the wallpaper

2 / line up a level on the on the measurement

3 / mark a level line with pencil – this will be the edge for the paper to align to

4 / this paper required to use wallpaper paste, so using a paint brush, I ‘painted’ the paste onto the wall, then applied the paper

First line of paper went up easily…

The most important part of installing wallpaper is to line the edges up with the next panel. The edges can’t overlap but have to join side by side without a gap.

Once the paper is positioned, then using a wallpaper smoothing tool, lightly glide over the paper towards the seam / edge to smooth any air bubbles. Then wipe away any excess glue with a damp cloth.

At the wall corners, ceiling, and base use a sharp blade + the smoothing tool to carefully cut the extra wallpaper.

This one wall took about 2 hours to wallpaper start to finish.

From how it looks before to now, the difference is quite dramatic…

The foyer space is so striking and inviting now with the bold wallpaper backdrop.

Even though there is a new pendant ceiling light in the space, I added a plug-in wall sconce that has brought beautiful ambient light. It was a great find from World Market for less than $60! I adore the pretty, soft glow in the evening hours.

The 6 fern framed pieces are watercolors. Years ago I framed dried ferns, but over time they started to brown, so I found these watercolor prints through Etsy (wonderful shop by the way) and made the plunge to purchase them. I love how they look so real and bring an organic vibe to the space.

The gold dresser has been around for 5+ years (sorry, can’t find the source) and the bench adjacent to it was from One Kings Lane (again, no source but it’s a typical x-leg bench stool). The pretty pillow was a recent markdown, red sticker sale item I picked up from Home Goods. The yellow + apple green hues perfectly paired with the other elements and colors throughout the house.

We also have a new color on the front door… we went from apple green in our previous home to a vibrant, bold yellow.

The color is Valspar Lemon Curd and is a true yellow hue. If you haven’t checked out our recently renovated Pajama Lounge, the rich + bold color is also used cohesively throughout the space as well.

A new black lockset also adorns the door and brings an updated modern look to the mid-century house.

From the moment you step on the porch and set foot inside, the goal we set for ourselves and for those that visit is to feel greeted with a colorful, vibrant space balanced with warmth and an inviting ambiance. Do you think we achieved that?

Thanks for visiting and please return soon for more room renos + DIY projects!

DISCLAIMER: THIS POST ON CREATING A COHESIVE COLOR PALETTE IS A COLLABORATION WITH LOWEâ€™S. ALL OPINIONS + SELECTIONS ARE MY OWN.

Foyer Reveal

Written by Jenna on October 15, 2013. Posted in Decorating. 19 Comments on Foyer Reveal

You guys have been troopers holding out this long for the final reveal of the foyer. I was waiting on a few pieces that I had ordered, and over the weekend they finally arrived. I hurriedly styled and took pictures of the space, and this is the result…

It is so fresh + updated. I’m thrilled with the result and it wasn’t a lot of work.

A new greige paint color + wide horizontal stripes + a gold dresser + a few added accents = A revamped foyer that makes a statement

Past Posts you may be interested in
gorgeous gold dresser + new foyer paint colors —> Click here
10 top greige colors —> Click here
tips + tricks for painting stripes —> Click here

Let me take a step back and show the evolution of the space over that past few years. When we moved in a little less than 4 years ago, the space was dark and the complete opposite of inviting. The mouldings were wood, the floor was a dark teal ceramic, and the space looked dated. Actually this picture (from 2011) shows it better than when we moved in with the walls painted and the chevron sisal rug.

Within that year, I stenciled the wall, tackled the staircase (no more carpet), changed the wood mouldings to white, and installed a new luxury vinyl tile floor. The result (from 2012)…

A lot of tone-on-tone cream hues. Not really my style. Hence the 2013 revamp!

Let’s take a tour of the new space…

This is the main “feature” wall of the foyer. It’s a fairly small space, with a lot going on. The foyer, office, and dining room/kitchen are all off of the foyer space, as well as the entry to the garage, the coat closet / pantry, and the laundry. A lot. As much as the space needs to be pretty, it also had to be super functional and not cluttered. It’s a high traffic area with our family coming and going throughout the day.

On the main wall is where I decided to add wide horizontal stripes in contrasting colors – a light greige with a dark charcoal (all the details can be found in this post). The wide stripes visually create a taller space and fools the eye to think the space is long. The stripes pull you in.

Even though the foyer is not a huge space, it does allow room for a piece of furniture. I found this gold “gorgeousness” dresser that is super amazing. It had me at first sight! As much as it’s beautiful, it also is wonderfully functional. The 4 drawers allow plenty of storage for the kids shoes and other misc items that never seem to have a home.

Next to the dresser, I added a beautiful upholstered ottoman – perfect for sitting and putting on shoes – as well as my favorite garden stool. A few added pillows (from other rooms in the house) + some fun accessories for the dresser, complete the space!

The rug is a recent purchase from One Kings Lane and was handmade in India. I love the pattern, as well as the two blue hues. Since I have multiple blue paint colors throughout my home, it really ties it all together.

Here’s a view coming down the stair…

For the walls above the dresser, I decided to bring the outdoors in by framing nature. The new “art” above my dresser are dried ferns and wild flowers —> for tutorial Click Here. They were super easy to create and are so meaningful to our home since they came right from the backyard.

Look who hopped in the photo session… My little kitten Samson. He’s never an arms length away.

Welcome, as you come through the front door, this is the view. The light greige color was continued around the room, but the darker charcoal stripe was only added to the main wall.

To continue the deep charcoal color in the space, I also used it on the back of the front door. Now the space completely flows since the color is used in multiple places. And just to point out, the stair railing is also a taupe / gray color, so it’s all cohesive.

It’s a great space to come home to now. It’s absolutely an inviting, welcoming spot to enter. Something that it wasn’t before…

Thanks for taking a tour of my recently finished foyer revamp! This space has had quite the transformation over the years. I hope you enjoyed! If you want to see more spaces in my home, click on over to my House Tour.