Your hallway is often the first room people see when they walk into your home and it deserves to be as grand as you can make it. It is the first chance you get to truly wow someone and it sets a precedent for how the rest of the house is going to look. Whether you are choosing the finest parquet flooring Ireland has to offer or you are on the hunt for the perfect lamp to hang from the ceiling, there are lots of ways you can transform your hallway into an elegant space. You can find some stunning parquet flooring designs here: https://www.woodfloorwarehouse.ie/parquet-flooring.
Also, here are some of the best things you can do.
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Contents
Guide the Eye with Colour
Colour in a hallway is used to guide the eye further into the house and you would be surprised how easy it is to do so. The first thing you need to do is take stock of what shape your hallway is. Is it narrow and leading away into the rest of the house or is it a wide, open room offering you the chance to play with a lot of space? Analysing this will give you plenty to think about.
If you are using stripes with something like a rug, you should try to find ones which run flush with the direction of the room. So, for example, if you have a narrow hallway which extends backwards from the front door into the property, you should look for a long, narrow rug with vertical stripes. Laying this down will encourage your eye to follow the lines back into the property.
The same principle can be applied to a runner for the stairs. Whilst some people prefer to leave the stairs in the same colour as the floor in the hall, a runner in a different colour can capture your attention and lead your eye up the stairs. This again makes you think about moving forward off the threshold and into the rest of the house.
If you are creating colour patterns such as this then you need to make sure that you are choosing the right hue for the walls too. Neutrals like white will always help to open up a space, and if you are trying to guide the eye then don’t let it get confused by a clashing wallpaper. You should also remember to consider the colour of your floor. Finding parquet flooring in Ireland which matches the colour story you want within your hallway is incredibly important. You don’t want to set up a visual which is then ruined by the wrong shade of wood. Try to picture the final room as soon as you can and take samples everywhere you head to shop so you can be certain that everything will correctly match.
Source: Joshua McHugh
Pick the Right Floor
When it comes to a stunning entry hall, it has to be parquet flooring. Ireland has plenty of options for real wood floor offers so make sure you find one which fits your budget perfectly. If there is one place where you need to make a sensible choice for your flooring, it should be in the hallway. The first metre in from an outside door collects 90% of the dirt which people track in with their shoes. This means that you need to find a floor which is durable enough to withstand this damage while still looking amazing.
Hallways are also very high-traffic areas. You need to make sure that you have a floor laid which can withstand people walking to and from various rooms. A floor which wears down to quickly simply isn’t good enough. While you can try to protect it using a rug and other materials, the right choice from the beginning is going to be imperative.
Parquet flooring in Ireland is always going to be the right choice for any busy home. Not only is this style of flooring stylish and perfect for any statement hallway, but it is also incredibly long-lasting. Think about how many grand country homes use parquet flooring in their rooms. It could be the perfect addition to your hall.
Source: Trendir
A Place to Rest
When constructing the perfect hallway, you should try to think about sliding in a place to sit if you have the room. Finding somewhere to sit and sort your shoes out is always welcome but the stairs can be a welcome substitute if there is nowhere better.
You can find many slim benches which will help to make a hallway feel more elegant. Some of these even have the capacity to have storage fitted underneath if you need them to double-up with something else. A seat in the hallway is not always necessary but it can help to make someone feel truly welcome. If you have the space for one, you should definitely include it.
A squishy armchair might also be the perfect alternative if you have room for it. Once upon a time, we had a place where we would sit and chat on the telephone for hours. It could be a cute nostalgic throwback if you create a place like this in your new home. If you don’t have a landline anymore, you could very easily place here another piece of technology here which you use in your everyday household life.
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Storage
The need for adequate storage might not jump to the forefront of your mind when you are thinking of the best ways to create a stunning entry to your home, but it will help in more ways than you could realise. If you do not have adequate storage, your hallway could very easily become over cluttered quickly. The hall is one of the places where people tend to shed their belongings when they walk through the door. If you do not provide places for them to put things, everything will just be dropped and left for you to clean up.
Have a look for shoe stands and coat hooks which will fit in well with your hall. If you have children, try to ensure that each one of them has their own space. This will encourage them to actually make use of it and tidy up after themselves when they get in.
Make sure that any key tidies you have are well clear of the door and are ideally hidden from site. It is not the best idea security-wise to keep your keys in plain sight of the door; even if they are easy to remember when they are on a hook right next to it.
Source: Ideal Home
Lighting
Learning how to correctly light your hallway will truly help to bring it to life. Take note of how much natural light your hallway gets. If your hall does get a lot of natural light, then you will want to pick lighting sources which compliments it and helps to properly transition through evening to night.
For this, you probably want to pick soft lighting like that offered to be wall-mounted lamps. A few of these in the right places around the hall might be all that you need. Table lamps look very nice but unless they are connected to a light switch, they can be very fiddly to switch on and off, so it is better to avoid them.
The final option is the pendant lamp; a brilliant option for everyone and especially those with halls without an abundance of natural light. You can opt for a simple design or something more extravagant depending on the style of the hallway you are designing. If you opt for something highly decorative then be aware that it will draw your eye right there. This might not be the best option for those who are attempting the colour theory mentioned earlier in the article, but it might be interesting for someone who wants something a slightly simpler hallway to draw attention to something personal.
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Mirror Mirror
If you have a smaller hallway, a mirror might be just what you need to make everything feel just that little bit bigger. A mirror creates a false sense of size and can really help to open up a space and it is all with a simple reflection. Mirrors are also a brilliant way to add something interesting to an otherwise blank wall. You can choose a simple mirror or something a little fancier if you would like some decoration.
The advantages of placing a mirror in a hallway are that you also have a place where you can check your appearance right before you leave. It is such a small thing but it can make all the difference to your day; especially if you are running somewhere important. Who knows what you might catch if you are able to just grab a moment to quickly assess your appearance before you leave?
Source: Decoratorist
Greenery
If you have a small porch off your hallway, or if you have a lot of natural light, you might have the perfect conditions for growing some plants without even realising it. With the right collection of plant pots, you won’t even have to mess up that parquet flooring. Ireland has some great weather for trying to grow plants so you should not have any trouble finding something to grow.
Most people save the veg or herb patch for the kitchen, but it could just as easily fit in the hallway. This has the added advantage of greeting your guests with a lovely fresh herbal smell as they step into your home. You can also grow things like tomatoes or lettuce to add something to your larder if you fancy something a little different.
Even if you don’t want to grow edible plants, there is still plenty of ways to add greenery to a hallway. You could very easily find a range of succulents or cacti which can add some greenery to your hallway for minimal effort. There are also plenty of hanging or creeping plants which can be used to make everything seem a little more natural. If you really want to make it feel like a jungle has been brought into your home, there are plenty of plants on the market which will allow you to create the indoor garden of your dreams.
Source: Alexander James Interior Design
A Piece of You
The most important thing you can bring to your hallway is a little piece of yourself. It might feel difficult to do when you are starting with a blank slate, but the opportunities are truly endless. You could hang pictures of your family or some artwork you all love. You could display some awards your children have won.
Even simply using your favourite colour to paint the door could help to inject a little piece of you into the room. No matter what you choose to do, there is always going to be something you can add to your home.
Another brilliant way to add a little personality is through the simple use of a blackboard or a whiteboard near the front door. You can use this to write up tasks for the day or little messages between family members. It could even end up as a guestbook of sorts for your friends and family. No-one said that a grand entrance had to be one which looked imposing. You could just as easily create a grand entrance which is welcoming and lets someone know that your house is always a place where everyone should feel at home.
Source: Decorilla
What You Want
The easiest way to turn your hallway into a grand entrance is by following your own instincts. Is there something you like in particular, be that a style of flooring, a wallpaper, or even an eye-catching pendant lamp.
Since the hall is often one of the simplest rooms in a home, it is, therefore, one of the easiest to completely makeover. Take a look at your current hallway and start to think about where you might make changes. It won’t be long before you find the perfect design style to completely transform your hallway into the grandest entrance of your dreams.
