New House Design Board - Entryway

Since our move to the current rental, I don't drive by the site of our new house everyday.  Not being able to keep an eye on its progress doesn't stop me from longing for its completion!  Coming home to a rental, and knowing it's a temporary home, just doesn't feel very homey.  I look forward to the day of going home to our new house and be greeted with a welcoming entrance.  Let me share with you today what we have done and will do to make our entryway a statement for our home.

The size of the new house's foyer is around half the size of that in our old house, so we had to figure out how to create a welcoming entry that also displays our style in that tight space.   We wanted to make the entryway/ hallway as open as possible, so we made some changes to the builder's blueprint.

1. Remove the closet at the front door, since there's another smaller one by the garage entrance down the hall.
2. The main thing was opening up the whole basement staircase instead of the builder's plan with enclosed stairs via a doorway beside the foyer.
3. Remove the full wall beside basement stairs and replace with a structural pole and stair spindles.  The foyer would look more continuous this way with the wall knocked out, instead of ending it at the wall.

With the changes in place, the squarish foyer now feels much more open.  It's also much easier for us to decorate to make it a welcoming space, like how any home's entrway should be.

Remember my beloved blue ceramic trunk table, as decorated like this in our old house's entryway?  We can no longer use it at the new house for the same purpose, since it would take up half the foyer!  The foyer at the new house is approximately 8' across.  To keep a modest walkway from the door through the hallway, I looked for a narrow hall table to be placed on the left wall.  I was inspired by these beautiful foyers.

image via Style At Home

image via House & Home

To keep the entryway with an open feel, we opted for a console table instead of a cupboard.   I was considering glass console table options, until I saw this. 

Troy Console Table \ Joss & Main

Never in a million years would I consider something like this, since the Mr. and I aren't big fans of mixing wood and metal on a piece.  But somehow this seems to work.  Its wooden top mimics the rustic touch of our existing dining table, while the gold metal legs give it a more polished look.  I think this piece makes a great addition to our home, as I believe the entryway should project a style of what's to come in the rest of the house.  For us, it's a bit of polished casualness… does that make sense?!

The next integral piece of this entryway vignette would be a generous sized mirror.  Don't know about you, but mirror shopping can sometimes be daunting.  After a while, they all look pretty much the same.  There're some mirrors that at first seemed to be a great touch when used by a designer, and then we would start seeing the same style of mirror mass produced and over-used for a thousand times.  If you scroll through my Entryway Pinterest board, you would notice I've pinned numerous mirrors.  But none screams to me except for this:

Gleaming Primrose Mirror |  Anthropologie

This mirror with a delicate iron frame (not resin!) is regal yet understated.  The style of the frame elevates the flare in the casual console table.  At just over 3' high and across, it's the perfect size to complement the console table and draw attention to our 9' high ceiling.  I'm so in love with this mirror.  Do you think there's any chance this will be on sale?  Ever?

Another important piece in our previous home's entryway was the tufted bench.  Again, given the smaller foyer in our new house, we better not stuff the bench there and create a fire hazaard!  Once you've had a seat in the foyer, you won't do without one.  And so the hunt for our entryway seating begins!

Since a large bench doesn't fit in the space, it's time to switch to a chair.  Essentially, I'm looking for an accent chair that's the size of a dining chair.  Here are some examples:

1. Claire Tufted Chair | One Kings Lane; 2. Olivia Slipper Chair | One Kings Lane; 3. Faux Bamboo Chair | Maggie G Designs

I wanted the console table vignette to be the focal point of the entryway, so I chose a light neutral fabric colour for our chair choices.  Although I would have the chair blend in as a background, I would still want the chair to be visible to act as a visual extension of the console table.  That being said, #2 would have to be eliminated, as it's lower than the height of the console.  Another reason for it to go is, the Mr. always prefers a chair with arms over one without.  #1 and #3 both have a very welcoming feel to them, and I love the chippendale style of #3.  However, with the point of the chair being more blended into the entire console table vignette, I would pick #1 over #3, to avoid the tonal contrast of the dark chair frame.

Now that I've the basic pieces down, here's the fun part - accessorizing the space!  Lighting plays a big part in a room's ambiance, and that's especially true for the entrway.  We want to create a bright and welcoming entrance, and one can never go wrong with bling bling.  I think this chandelier hits all the right notes.  It's an appropriate size for the space, and its antiqued silver finish tones down the shiny metal, letting the jewels speak for themselves.  

Veronica Mini Chandelier | Joss & Main

We love classic blue and white decor, as in the photo inspiration above.  This rug below would ground the space nicely with the navy blue pattern and provide some contrast to the entryway vignette.

Barrington Rug  | Joss & Main

From the rug, I came up with the rest of accessories for the entryway vignette, by running through my usual vignette setting guidelines found here.  Blue and white boxes for hidden knick-knacks with a lamp to soften any harsh overhead light.  A chinoiserie pot of tall arrangement on the round mirror tray, which offsets the straight lines of the console table. A rose coloured bowl for an unexpected touch of colour and something to just toss in whatever as we walk through the front door.  Here's my idea of how it would look as you face the left wall of the entryway, with the armchair beside the railings to the basement.

Entryway Design Board | Classy Glam Living; Lamp  Horchow; blue and white boxes, mirror tray, faux orchid arrangement, rose compote  | One Kings Lane.

I CAN'T wait to come home to this!!

What do you think makes an entryway most welcoming?  I'm thinking of adding a tall floor plant or an umbrella stand to the left of the console table.  Let me know if you have any other ideas!

Disclaimer:  The reveal of the entryway may differ somewhat.  Who knows, maybe I would entertain a real orchid plant for once, but who am I kidding...  I'm a plant murderer.

The Perfect Desk for Little Man

The first week of back to school has come and gone.  I sure am glad the little man is finally back to his old self, thanks to a normal school routine.  It has been a busy summer for us, starting with our trip to Chicago, gatherings, to packing for our move last month.  The never-ending activities meant that little man barely had the chance to enjoy some quiet time at home, which for him is colouring or arts and crafts.  I had wanted to get him a desk before we moved, so that at least he would have a place in his room to spread out his colouring.  The back-to-school season once again got me started on searching for his perfect desk.  

What makes for a perfect desk for the little man?  I'm actually not too concerned about a kiddie's height desk, since he has no problem getting in and out of adult chairs.  I would much rather get him a desk that he can grow into.  

• Size:  Looking at his room size in our new house, a desk of around 4' or less would fit perfectly in a furniture placement plan I have in my head.  
• Style:  Either a traditional looking desk in a fun colour, or a modern-looking desk with legs in chrome.
• Storage:  He always wants more blank papers, so I think a desk with drawers to store his supplies is a must.  Of course, we also need those drawers to store his craft supplies to free up space in the office =)
• Leg room:  As a child, I had a desk with leg room the width of my chair.  I found that extremely uncomfortable, and just trying to skirm in my chair for comfort made me lose concentration while I studied...  Ya, blame it on the desk for my lack of motivation to study.  To avoid that for the little man, he would need a desk with lots of leg room.  Preferrably, leg room as wide as the desk.  Now I just hope that he doesn't lose concentration from swinging his legs too freely ;-)

These are simple things that I'm looking for, but a desk with the right combination of all of the above AND at the right price was not easy to find.

In order to maximize leg room, I'm basically looking for a desk with no obstructions under the surface.  That means the drawers need to be right under the desk.  Here are some examples:

Sources:  1. IKEA Alex desk; 2. Target Threshold Campaign desk; 3. Wayfair Cascadia Laptop desk; 4. West Elm Parsons desk

I love all the styles above, but the IKEA one is too long, and #3 and 4 are more than what we're willing to pay for.  We're price sensitive, and would like to get a desk that's bang for the buck that can still be a long-term piece.  

That leaves the Target Threshold Campaign desk, and that fits the bill perfectly.  I also love the drawer pulls in the campaign style.  I actually don't mind the desk in red, it'll definitely be a statement piece in his room.  Not to mention, 3 drawers are always better than 2, right?

Unfortunately, it's not available in Canada, so hopefully Target is planning to make the piece available shortly...  or I'll have to lug one across the border!

With a desk in his room, he will finally have a spot to work on his colouring.  I'm sure he will then want us to showcase his masterpieces.  I've always loved the idea of a gallery wall, but not really sure how it would fit in with our home decor.  What better place to try it out than the little man's room and with his own artwork!  I think the wall space above his desk will be a great spot for a gallery wall.  This is such a cute and easy way to change up the display as quickly as those pieces of artwork are churned out:

Pin via http://theprojectcorner.blogspot.com/2011/02/frame-collage.html

The little man has been reminding us occasionally to get him a desk for his room.  I know he's looking forward to having one, as he probably equates having a desk as being a big boy.  I just love little kids' logic and thought process =)

He's right in a sense though.  Getting him a desk is exactly the first step to a big boy room.  It seems like little man has fully grown out of his toddler years in lightning speed, and I assume he'll just keep growing up at the same rate, if not faster!  With our move to the new house, little man's room will be decorated with some funky-ness appropriate for "little men".  And I'm looking forward to that as much as he does!  

Here is my design concept of his little artwork area, with the perfect desk for his space.

Sources:  Gallery wall via theprojectcorner (above); Desk - Target; desk lamp - IKEA; storage basket - redinfred.com ; ghost chair - Structube; cushion - Etsy; desk accessories - Restoration Hardware; zinc letters - Anthropologie.

How do you like the workspace with the desk?  Do you have other art hanging ideas to share with us?

Would've-Could've Series - Master Bedroom

As you can probably tell by now, we like to decorate our home after much pondering.  The Mr. never embarks on a new project until we're certain that it's the look that we want, and one that we wouldn't get sick of for a while.  Well, all the pondering takes time, and then our preferences change as we go.  As with most homeowners, we left the master bedroom in our first home untouched (other than painting a striped accent wall), as we got side-tracked by other more pressing (interesting) projects around the house.  When we moved into our next house, the one we just sold, we vowed not to leave our master bedroom un-decorated like last time...

Since we had the builder converted an extra bedroom for our dressing room, we deleted the walk-in closet in our bedroom.  Our room essentially became a big rectangle, within which we were able to create a large sitting area.   The generous wall space gave us lots of furniture placement options, so much so that all options seemed viable, and our pondering process once again took over us.   You saw the projects that kept the Mr. occupied during this time.  It was only natural that we once again left our own bedroom untouched before we moved again!  

Today, I'm sharing with you some layouts and mood boards that I've created from my Pinterest inspirations.  

With our room being a rectangle, we had the option to put our bed near the window wall (left side of the room, which was how we had it) or at the other end of the wall (right side).

Option 1 - Bed near window wall (left side) - Sitting area on opposite side of the room (right side)

With our bed near the window wall, the empty designated sitting area became the little man's hotwheels test drive area and beyblades arena.  If I wanted to reclaim that area, all I had to do was create a small living room.  I was also inspired by this photo, and wanted to incorporate a mantel at the wall between the two windows.

via Traditional Home

Here is our bedroom's design and layout board using the floor plan as a background.  Main colour would be beige/ cream, with accent colours in warm undertones such as bluish grey, mauve, and earth colours.

Sources:  colour inspiration via Valspar; sitting area source unknown; fireplace inspiration via Tradition Home; chandelier and medallion rug via RH baby and child; floral motif rug via Joss & Main; chaise via Horchow.

This would've been the "easy" option, although the "trim crazy" Mr. would still want to put some wainscoting along the walls, similar to the sitting area inspiration photo.  The couch at the sitting area would be placed along the wall of the entrance.  I would keep the sitting area neutral, with pillows in accent colours and a pattern rug to ground the lightness.  The rug at the bed would be in a lighter colour, since our bedding already has a pattern and is of a mid-tone colour. A chaise would go in the corner, beside the fireplace.  We have 2 light fixtures in the room, and I think this chandelier would be a good size (Yes, it's from RH kids...  who says you can't use it in a room for adults?)

It has been our plan for the longest time to go with this option, until the Mr. threw a curve ball and suggested putting the bed on the right side of the room.  Leaving the fireplace between the two windows, and we would have a mini family room.  He tried to entice me to this idea with a vanity table.  I'm always open to new ideas, and a beautiful vanity table, so I gave him this design option. 

Option 2 - Bed on the right side of the room - Sitting area on the left - Vanity table

One would be greeted with a sensual vibe of the master bedroom, with the vanity table beside the window at the entrance's direct sight line. Two inviting armchairs flanking the fireplace, with a coffee table in gold tone finish, would set the focal point of the room.  I would incorporate a dresser beside the window for more storage (yeah!) and a beautiful vignette.  This design would even out the space, with a simpler sitting area.

Sources:  console table via Vogue; gilded bench via Elte; vanity table via Architectural Digest; tufted arm chairs via Anthropologie; coffee table via wellappointedhouse.com.

Option 3 - Bed on the right side of the room - Sitting area on the left - Wall unit

After the Mr. accomplished his masterpiece in the office, he sprung another design option for our master bedroom's sitting area.  He said the office's built-in was a practice run for our master bedroom's built-in...  I think he was trying to sneak in a TV at the built-in unit to challenge my "no TV in the bedroom" rule.  To satisfy his curiosity, I re-jigged the sitting area by putting in a comfy couch in place of the two armchairs.  Afterall, we would need seating appropriate for lounging if there's a TV!  I also excluded a fireplace, otherwise the left side of the room would look too heavy with too many chunky pieces.  I think a similar setting as in the sitting area inspiration below would look ultra-glam!

Sources:  wall unit via One Kings Lane; sitting area via New England Home.

Our master bedroom in the new townhouse will have a small sitting area, and we've already gone through several different designs of that space.  We want to maximize its wow factor and also make it look roomy in a small space.  Let's just hope this time around there'll be less pondering, so that our bedroom won't be undecorated before we move again!

Which option do you like the most?