How to Make a Great First Impression in Your Hallway

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They say that you only get one chance to make a first impression. That’s why the entrance, foyer and hallway are particularly important areas in your home. Whether you love having a home that makes you feel welcome from the moment you step through the front door, or you’re thinking of presenting your property for sale, paying some extra attention to your hallway with decoration and design can make all the difference.

Here are some tips and tricks to help you achieve that all important ‘love at first sight’ appeal with clever planning and stylish features to make your entrance areas both functional and beautiful.

How to decorate your hallway

Source: Catalystic Media

Not only is your hallway the first place you come to when you enter your home, it’s a transitional space with all other rooms lead off it. In terms of colour scheme, this can make it tricky to coordinate. However, you do have options. Pale or neutral paint shades or subtle wallpaper patterns will have the benefit of making your hallway appear lighter and airier than it really is, while busier wallpaper designs or bolder hues on the wall can be used to inject warmth and coziness, with the added bonus of making the adjoining rooms feel calm and spacious by comparison.

Hallways are high traffic areas and prone to knocks and scrapes, particularly if you have a young family. Protect your walls with gloss or oil based, wipe-clean eggshell paint below a dado rail, saving the beautiful wallpaper for above the rail. Protect your woodwork (skirting boards, floorboards, stairs, rails, and banisters) with tough, durable oil-based varnish.

Hallway lighting should be practical foremost without taking up too much room. Wall sconces or directional ceiling spotlights are a sensible choice, while pendant lights in high ceilinged hallways can make an eye-catching feature.

Which furniture works best?

When thinking about furniture, take your cue from the size and shape of your hallway. Many entrance areas are narrow, allowing at most for a radiator cover/shelf or a narrow console table for keys, post or decorative display items, and perhaps some coat hooks on the wall. A well-chosen wall mirror can work wonders to improve the feeling of space and light.

If you have the space, try to incorporate a pretty chair or bench, both as a focal point and a useful place for putting your shoes on. If the seating solution has storage underneath, so much the better. Hallways are hardworking spaces, so consider the multifunctional potential of every furniture piece!

For larger hallways or foyers with more room to play with, it’s a good idea to give the room an identity of its own – it may be too large to be no more than a transitional space. You could add an attractive coats cupboard, a central feature table, an antique chest of drawers, generous seating and concealed storage for shoes, sports equipment and other paraphernalia.

Hallway flooring considerations

Source: Harvey Maria

Heavy footfall areas such as hallways and stairs need hard wearing materials underfoot to be able to withstand scrapes, scuffs and dirt day in day out, and still look good. Hard flooring is an obvious choice and there’s a wealth of flooring products available. Whether you opt for natural stone, solid or engineered wood, or luxury vinyl tiles (LVT) largely depends on your preference.

If you choose a wooden floor, ensure that the boards are well sealed to help with cleaning. A clever design trick it to lay the boards lengthways to lead the eye into the house and elongate the space. Stone, terracotta and ceramic tiles are all great surfaces – but beware that unless you fit underfloor heating at the same time as the floor, you may need to add rugs and runners for warmth. LVT has the edge in terms of practicality, durability and price too.

Carpets in hallways add warmth but are perhaps not the most practical solution, particularly if your home is in the countryside, or you have pets or kids. If you do decide on fitted carpet, choose a robust and tightly woven design in a forgiving mid tone. Placing a hallway rug or runner on hard flooring may give you the best of both worlds – a practical floor but with added warmth and aesthetic appeal.