refreshing our tiny front entryway

If there’s one small gripe Alex and I have about our house, it’s our front entry. It’s small, has no storage, and leads right into a staircase. And because it leads right into a staircase, we can’t see it from our main living area, so we’ve pretty much ignored it for the past four years.

I recently decided I would tackle this very tiny space and make it something more joyful – it’s literally the first thing we see when we walk into our house and deserves as much love as the rest of our home!

Here’s what I was working with before:

As you can see, the space is tight and our storage was non-existent. Our shoes were always strewn about, and this area sparked zero joy.

Here’s how I went about refreshing our tiny front entryway.

refreshing our tiny front entryway

added storage for shoes

I had brainstormed a lot of different ways to add storage in this area. My criteria for a storage solution was that it was an effective way to store shoes, looked minimal and clean, and fit comfortably in our space.

I decided to check IKEA as they have some great storage solutions, and I ended up finding this shoe cabinet. Lucky for me, two of these cabinets fit perfectly on the side of our entry – one for me and one for Alex.

For $80 (!), these cabinets made the biggest impact in our entryway. I’m very much about everything being tucked away and in it’s proper place, so I’m happy this storage solution reduced all that clutter! Over a month later and I’m still happy every time I walk in and out of the house.

added storage for bits + bobs

Our keys, hats, wallets, and sunglasses used to all be shoved in a glass vase we have in the living room (which is at the top and to the right of this staircase). It was cumbersome to find our keys in that little vase, and was not nearly as organized as I wanted it to be.

The top of the shoe cabinets provided a great space to add a large storage box. This box now holds our keys and anything else we liked to grab on our way out the door. I opted for one with a lid so that there is literally no clutter in this area.

painted the inside of our door

I’ve always liked the look of a painted front door on the inside, but thought our entry was too small. And then I decided I would paint it anyway. There are no rules for making your home your own!

Painting the inside of our front door was an easy way to add personality to our otherwise plain entry. With the white shoe cabinets, I felt like this area looked too sterile with white walls and a white door, too.

We chose Unusual Gray by Sherwin Williams in a satin finish, which has a lovely sage green tone to it. This pop of colour makes me happy every time I leave the house. It also compliments a large piece of art we have in our living room, and that continuity makes me giddy.

swapped out the mat

A simple change but one that made our entry feel much more homey. I love this entryway rug from Crate & Barrel! It pairs nicely with the paint colour on the door and is a cute alternative to the traditional entry mat we had before.

With a few small but impactful tweaks, I have a new appreciation for our front entry. I love this area now! Tiny spaces deserve TLC too, and I’m happy I finally gave our entry a little bit of attention!

Do you have any creative entryway storage solutions? Would you paint the inside of your front door? I’d love to hear about how you’ve revamped your own entryway!