Looking at a blank page (or canvas) in front of me often makes my mind go completely blank. It’s as if I never had a thought in my life and I become stumped and convinced that I truly have nothing left to say. Fortunately, the moment passes. One thing – well actually there are 3 things – I have learned to do – when stumped:
1. Walk away – preferably outside
2. Clean
3. Pull out the House Beautiful magazines (or one of my Design/Decorating books.)
Of course, the risk is always and what often DOES happen is that I become so distracted – writing goes on the back burner as I busy myself elsewhere – but I tend to write best when I am not forcing it so when I do return to my laptop – I am usually very clear about what I have to say.
Returning from the Design Bloggers Conference I am SO excited to dive headfirst back into my blog – especially with renovations on the horizon but also because as long as we live here – and I have things to say and share – WHY NOT?.
Always the organizer – – I decided to start at the FRONT DOOR – and over the next few weeks – I plan simply revisit each room in the house, go over what has been done – what I want to do now that we are down to one kid at home (sniff-sniff, big ugly, sigh) and explore all the possibilities…which are endless!!!
This is OUR front hall when we visited
Our Old Country House (November 2003)
for the first time
YEP. Says it all. Old wallpaper. old floor. old. nasty dirty carpet going up the stairs…no lighting…
…really no way to go but UP! Ha! ha!
The front hall is a huge space – the entryway is 35ft x 10ft.
I remember walking into this house, which we were being shown as a rental and which we did rent for the first year, and being so excited at the possibilities. I did not see the OLD and the UGLY, but what I saw were the BONES – the tall ceilings and the wood floors and the transoms over the big black doors and the giant staircase. At the time, our entryway was just big enough for a little 3 x 5 rug – and this hall seemed endless and vast.
Changes we made:
- Refinished floors
- Installed lighting at both ends.
- Put a beautiful piece of walnut on top of the radiator.
- Added the old church pew – it was the FIRST piece of furniture we brought into the house and has lived in the hall the whole time. It was first painted red…and served as the “time-out” bench. Pretty much every day I told someone “go sit on the red bench and take a time out”
- added a 5×7 entry rug and a runner
- Painted the front and back doors Benjamin Moore “Graphite”
- The walls have been a few colors and are currently painted Sherwin Williams ‘Steamed Milk”
SHERWINN WILLIAMS STEAMED MILK.
I DISCOVERED THIS COLOR LAST YEAR WHEN I VISITED THE 2015 SOUTHERN LIVING
“IDEA” HOUSE – DESIGNED BY BUNNY WILLIAMS.
She used this color throughout the house.
BUNNY WILLIAMS USED STEAMED MILK THROUGHOUT THE IDEA HOUSE. AS YOU CAN SEE
IT TOOK ON MANY PERSONALITIES AND ALLOWED THE DESIGN FEATURES OF EACH ROOM
TO SHINE!!! IN THAT WAY, IT IS A VERY GENEROUS COLOR!
I have never been one to fawn over NeUTRALS but this color swept me away. It is NOT white. It is NOT yellow or BEIGE or even GREIGE. It is just a beautiful color. EASY. SOOTHING – and the perfect backdrop to ART and Furnishings . I was ready to move beyond the GRAY PALATE which has dominated our home for 5 years or so and yet, I knew I wanted a simple wall color that LIGHTENED my sometimes dark hall. STEAMED MILK WAS PERFECT.
Here is what works with STEAMED MILK. It is a soothing neutral, but with some personality and yet
not so much personality that it competes with the artwork, the color
the rugs and the “stuff” which fills our hallS.
My front hall doubles as my Mud room. AND THE DOG ROOM
This color follows you up the stairs AND WHEREAS other colors I have used struggle with the
changes in light from upstairs to downstairs. steamed milk holds its own and looks LOVELY is
BRIGHT and LOW light without going too YELLOW.
there you have it!!!
CHANGES I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE :
1. NEW RUGS _ puppy life has taken a toll on our entryway rug and I ready for a replacement. There are a few on Dash and Albert that have my eye –
2. MOVE THE SIDEBOARD – I love this piece and will never part with it but would love it in the dining room/studio. If I did move it I would replace it with something open and easy like this from
I AM FINE with the lighting – HOWEVER – if I WERE to get new Pendants I LOVE these!!!!
SOURCES:
ENTRYWAY
Lanterns – Ballard designs Delaney Pendant
Church Pew- Vintage/Circa Charlottesville
Pink Gourd Lamps – Robert Abbey
Sideboard – Vintage – inherited from my husbands grandmother
Wall Hanging Pegs – Pottery Barn
Horse Painting – Lesli DeVito Paintings
Upstairs Pendants – Shades of Light
HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY!
I would love to leave you with a question –
What 3 things do you think MAKE an entryway?
Wow! You made some major changes to your entryway and they have made it just stunning! That took a lot of thought, planning, work, time and it is now such an inspiration. Great job!
Thank you – you are such a sweet person and I appreciate your feedback, sometimes it ONLY in looking backward – that we can see how far we have come!
I visit your site just to see the colors you use. I own and frequently pull out my fan decks for Benjamin Moore and for Sherwin Williams but I have to spend A LOT of time to decide color what to put up and I don’t always get the results I think I will which can be discouraging for the next round of choices. We moved into a house that was very elaborately, carefully and tastefully painted in shades that are somber. The coordination of them is beautiful and clever but not at all my taste. Your light, playful, colorful taste feels just like what I want but don’t quite know how to do. The wall colors you provide – named and numbered!- with examples are SO HELPFUL. This combo is the first I think I might try on my hallway stairs and on the 3rd floor guest bedroom. Thnak you! Keep it coming! Your spaces delight me!
You are just so kind and I LOVE color and how it can change everything! Just today I was being annoyed by the art in my bedroom. I went inot my studio and got a different painting, in a different color and now I LOVE it. I love color!
Wow. We repainted our family room about 2 yrs. ago. I’m not loving the color because it does indeed take on yellow tones in certain light. The room only has one large window and remains pretty dark due to my covered porch right outside. I went from a stunning hunter green to B.M. ‘Sea Urchin’ which I thought would pick up a lot of the burlap I was planning on using in the room. Despite living with samples of the wall which seemed like forever…the end result was a major fail. Big time. Ugh. Two years later, I am still attempting to work up the courage to tell my husband we need a ‘do over’, lol! I love how ‘Steamed Milk’ appears in your home. All of our moldings are painted B.M. ‘Navajo White’. Maybe it’s time to step out of our comfort zone and use ‘Chantilly Lace,’ as well! Curious…is your staircase (risers?) also ‘Chantilly Lace’? Thank you so much for this post…I truly enjoyed the photos and it gave me something to seriously consider!!! oxoxo