An Updated Entry

April 28, 2013 by Jennifer @ Brave New Home 12 Comments

The title probably should have read “an updated kitchen” because that’s what I initially got this  Turkish rug from Pottery Barn for.  I was going to layer it on top of the impact absorbing mat currently in there for more visual interest but this indoor/outdoor number isn’t something you want to be standing barefoot on—washing dishes is already enough of a chore!I tried it at the front door and The Hubs commented that it was just too nice for such a high traffic area.  So I moved it over to the little hallway that leads to the first floor.  And things just snowballed (in a good way! should I say snowconed instead?) from there.Here’s what the wall looked like before.  I found this frame next to a trash can and painted it white (it was originally black).  White seemed like a “safe” color at the time.The rug really helped giving me some color guidance.  I was sorta stuck on what color to paint the frame then I looked up and saw the grey concrete pot in my living room and went with that color.  I had leftover paint so I painted a dollar store frame I had on hand a shade darker.I thought it would be neat to make a wall mounted coat rack for Anak’s jacket and my purse (which is always laying around on the kitchen floor) so I bought some wood for $4 and three coat hooks for $4.30 a piece.  The hooks were on the more expensive end of what Home Depot carried but I knew exactly the look I wanted and these hooks didn’t protrude out too much which is exactly what we need for a high-traffic narrow hallway.
I had this wood medallion made in Thailand that I picked up from Ross for $12 a few years back but have never been able to incorporate into my decor for some reason.  So I popped it off the stand to play around with it a bit more.Here’s my tip for rug pads: buy drawer liner at the dollar store and just cut it to size (works for smaller rugs).  This was all I had leftover—I think a trip to the dollar store is in my near future!Here is the coat rack mounted pre-paint.
And here’s the view from the front door.  I’m quite tickled with it since I never had any intention of updating this spot.  I think the rug helps anchor the space and define it as an entry way.  I think this wall would be a perfect candidate for wallpaper treatment, too!I’m hooked on these hooks!The view from the stairs.  I thought my little color scheme could be too heavy and dark especially going into spring but the yellow really helps liven it up.And my little floral arrangement is another dollar store deal (this post just seems full of those!).  I bought two sprigs of flowers for a total of $2 and the little pot was from Target’s dollar bin.  I just put in some of that green floral foam and stuck those branches in.

Linked to Lines Across, Mad in Crafts, Keeping it Simple, Cheerios & Lattes.

This post is sponsored post brought to you by Pottery Barn.  All opinions are my own.

Have you ever bought something for a specific purpose only to use it in a completely different way?  What are you tips for faking an entry way?