Hi friends!

I spend a lot of time browsing beautiful home decor images on Instagram. It has become my favorite way to decompress! The trouble, and by trouble I mean blessing, with Instagram is there are just so many gorgeous images… the struggle is very real, friends! I make mental lists of all the projects I want to take on in our home: shiplap, board and batten, crown molding- the list goes on and on. One of the areas in my home that I know needs attention is my foyer. I need a foyer update, but how? The biggest challenge w/ this space: I do not have a foyer. We have just a big entryway that eventually expands to our dining room and formal living area. Here is our foyer before (yikes, I have a Kirkland’s bag in this shot- sums up my life, really!):

How can I transform it into a defined space to greet guests?

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FOYER UPDATE IDEAS

I first considered wainscoting. However, this is a long wall and may not be ideal for my first time doing wainscoting. Next I considered board and batten down the entire wall, but again, as a first timer that may have been too big a task. In my mind, an idea was forming, and it started to take shape as this:

 

This is my vision, slowly coming together thanks to the use of painters tape.

Our foyer has very little natural light, and it certainly does not help that the walls have dark paint. I know I want light and bright with practical storage options. With three teenagers, we can quickly acquire a huge piling of shoes by the door!

I love the look of board and batten. Being my first project requiring me to nail boards to the wall, I think a simple layout is best!

FOYER UPDATE- GETTING STARTING

First, I gathered my supplies:

• Pencil
• Painters Tape
• Level
• Sand paper (or electric sander, which I do not own)
• Nailing Gun
• Caulk
• Wood Glue
• Spackling
• Spackle Knife
• Shop Vac for Cleaning

Next, I had to measure the space and configure the board sizes. I am pretty good at math, but it took a couple of do overs to get it right! Since I was flying solo on most of this project, I knew intricate cuts and complicated shelving was out. I made a trip to Home Depot, purchased the boards, and they were kind enough to make the major cuts for me. And here I go…

The endless SANDING!! I do not mind nailing boards and caulking the seams, but sanding until my arms nearly fall off is, well…

The board and batten area is painted Behr Ultra White. Also, I added hooks to the center board.

Okay, in this shot you see the lighter wall color. I had to paint it! The darker wall color was just not brightening the space as much as I wanted. When you update a room, it is sometimes best to make every change you have been contemplating. For me, it was a lighter entry!

Tada!! I am so happy with the way our foyer turned out! What fun project have you conquered this week?

Next Monday I will reveal my first attempt at stenciling furniture… here is a sneak peek:

Click here to see the reveal!

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Until next week friend,

Kelly