Dawn’s House: Entryway Makeover!

Well if you have followed our palette wood fireplace surround and palette wood baby gate posts at all, you know that my husband and I (ok, mostly I) are on a mission to:
>> Add (affordable) character to our “builder basic” townhouse
>> To continue to add function, with limited space– every inch counts!
When we first moved in our entryway was a deep plum color. It was a little too dark for our taste so we attempted to paint it an orange color that we had in our previous home and really liked. So while at Home Depot, we grabbed a paint sample that we thought was close and had it mixed up.
We got home and were about halfway through painting it before we realized that it was NOT AT ALL the color we were hoping for. But, with other projects underway, we decided to finish painting it and leave it.
A year later, we were finally able to re-address it.
 
Functional entryway makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.
 

Our Entryway Before

Ok…I think the color actually looks worse in this picture than it did in real life, but here is a “before” picture of our entryway:
 
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.

Entryway "before" board & batten makeover!

 

The Entryway Plan:

When I was looking for inspiration to make our slightly awkward shaped entryway more “user friendly”, I was inspired by these pictures on Pinterest and immediately fell in love with the style and function of the board and batten and hooks.
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten
 
While we have a small closet in the entryway, guests often don’t know where to stash their coat and didn’t have a place to sit and put their shoes on.
So, once I convinced my husband that this would be a worthwhile project, we followed similar processes as those in the pictures above to create the board and batten. (Click on the pictures to see their step by step!) We also (primed–ugh!) and re-painted the walls to match the grey that goes up the stairs to the main living area.
 
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.
 
We had also previously updated the lightning fixture at the bottom of the steps with this exterior industrial looking light from Home Depot. For only $32, it was a fun, inexpensive style update, and we’ve received a lot of compliments on it.
 
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.
 
And then for the final touch, I painted the exterior doors in the entryway a deep charcoal grey to add a little contrast.
I was a little nervous to paint the doors, but used a satin-finished paint and this fine mini roller from Menards and they turned out GREAT. No lines and a great, smooth finish!
 
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.
 
And, after much searching for the perfect bench, that wouldn’t be too big, found this one at Ikea for $60, the most expensive part of the project. Had I not REALLY liked the shoe racks that it has I would have looked for something a little less expensive.
 
Functional Entryway Makeover with board and batten and dark contrasting doors.

Overall…

I’m really happy with how it turned out. With the lumber, paint, and hooks the board and batten cost around $60. And it was TEDIOUS. If I were to do it again, I would prime and paint the boards first (as opposed to once they were already up), paint the wall, and then attach and fill the nail holes and caulk along the seams where the boards meet the wall.
But, in the end, it was worth it…I can hardly look at the before picture anymore ;)
Oh! And if you haven’t had a chance yet, you’ll want to check out the baby/pet gate and fireplace surround:
Baby-Gate-Quick-LinkFireplace-Quick-Link
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Palette Wood Fireplace Surround
Related Posts:
>> Palette Wood 3-Hour Baby Gate (with link to plans!)
>> Palette Wood Fireplace Surround (looks just like re-claimed wood!)
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