As the name of my blog indicates, I spend a lot of time thinking about home. Of course, my Heavenly Home is the one that is eternal, so that’s where I need to lay up my treasures, and that’s the one I’m striving for. But in the meantime, I have been given this tiny piece of the here-and-now—this home on the edge of town, this family, this neighborhood—in which to serve Him. And, though this is in the earthly realm, I want the things that happen here to be investments in the Heavenly realm.




Tuesday, January 15, 2019

Home Projects: A Small Makeover in the Hall


There is a narrow hallway in the bedroom wing of our house. This is a hardworking hallway, for there are seven doors in it. One leads to the dining room and the main part of the house. One leads to Bekah's bedroom, one to Kati's bedroom, another to the linen closet, another to the main bathroom, one to a powder room, and one to the library. There is one length of wall without a door.

When we painted the girls' bedrooms, we took some extra time to paint this hallway. (Actually, we nearly bit off more than we could chew to paint the hallway with its seven doors! It took lots longer than we anticipated.) Still, it was rather dull with its neutral colors and no adornment. 

But last summer, this whale print in Jenny Steffens Hobick's shop caught my eye. It was very affordable, so I ordered it, picked up a frame at Hobby Lobby, and hung it in the hallway.



The whale inspired me to buy a rug! I purchased a red wool Oriental style runner from the Safavieh Heritage Collection. 

Funny story. (Or maybe it's a sad story.) Bekah and I measured the space together. But when it arrived and we unrolled it . . . well, it just kept going! It rolled right into the library! It was a good four feet too long! How did we do that? Did we measure that inaccurately? Or did I forget the measurement by the time I got to my computer to place the order? That's more likely. Regardless, I had to roll that thing back up, stuff it into the packaging, and ship it back. We re-ordered in the correct size. Good grief.





I started collecting frames for a gallery wall of family photos. For cohesiveness, I limited my choices to black, wooden, non-shiny frames which I found at HomeGoods, Marshalls, and Hobby Lobby. I couldn't find the right size for the wedding photo collage, so I sanded off the shiny-ness of the frame it was already in. I found the "thankful" sign at Target's Dollar Spot. (I have two more square frames that will go on the bottom left side of the gallery, but I haven't decided which photos to use yet.)




With a little bit of intention,

and without a lot of money invested,

our dull hallway that was merely a passage is now a defined space with its own personality.



No space is too small to be ignored, don't you think?

20 comments:

  1. I agree! I’ve been thinking about my hallway with four doors off of it, and wanting to do a rug to warm the space up. After I paint this space of course!

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    1. I know you'll paint it! 😁 But a rug would be great too!

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  2. Your rug is lovely and pulls the whole space together.

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  3. Love everything that you've done - great colors in the rug!

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  4. If you say so, I believe it. 🙂 There are, however, many ignored spaces in my home. Your hallway looks wonderful. Runners are great for protecting heavily trafficked floors. And I like your gallery wall.

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    1. Vee, your spaces are lovely and charming! Thanks for your encouraging words!

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  5. Cheryl, your new rug looks lovely down your hallway with seven doors. What a beauty you chose in that rug! Our hallway has six doors and we have a runner down our's as well. Your lovely collage of Thankful family photos is perfect. I can imagine painting all those doors took some time, but so worth the effort. ♥

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    1. I am glad you like the rug, Martha Ellen! It kind of called my name when I saw it. ;) Sounds like we have similar spaces!

      I forgot to mention that the "thankful" sign was only $3.00! Win!

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  6. Great job with a small space that leads to so many different spaces. All lovely.

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    1. Thank you, Lorraine! It's a busy space that sees a lot of traffic. Why not give it some attention, right?

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  7. Great way to showcase those photos. Lovely hallway rug.

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    1. Thanks, Melissa! I am glad to have a place to display them. Don't know why I didn't think of it before . . .

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  8. Love what you did with that space. Yes, I can imagine how long that hallway took to paint with all those doors! Yikes. Love how your photo wall is coming together.

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    1. What were we thinking when we decided to "just go ahead and paint the hall too" when we painted those two bedrooms?! We're happy with the space though. It has a lot more personality with a few accessories.

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  9. It looks beautiful! I have a gallery wall in our hallway but it doesn't look as good as yours. I am careful in other rooms to have frames coordinating but just threw up various photos in the hallway (you can tell it, too). We have carpeting that goes from the living room through the hallway but the hallway section is getting worn in spots. I have been keeping an eye on runners that will not clash with the shade of green from the carpet. It would increase the life of the carpet at a very reasonable price.

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    1. Thank you, Brenda! I'll bet you love to look at the family photos as you walk through the hall. I do! If your mix of frames bothers you, might you paint them all? Just a thought. I also love the visual interest that the runner provides!

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  10. It's lovely Cheryl! One of my plans for this year is to do a large gallery wall on my landing wall. :-)

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    1. Thank you!

      Your gallery wall sounds like a great goal. I'd love to see it when you're finished! Maybe you can share it on IG?

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