Revive Your Space: A Hallway Makeover Journey

Welcome to the blog today, friends! I’m so happy you’re here.

If you’ve ever taken on a home refresh, you know it can quickly become an adventure! Sprucing up your home is certainly not for the faint of heart, especially when you’re working on several areas at once. Between our bathroom renovation and a few additional painting projects, our house has felt a bit like a construction zone lately. Thankfully, one of those projects is now complete, and I’m excited to share it with you today.

So, pour yourself a cup of your favorite beverage—I’m enjoying a warm cup of Earl Grey tea as I write this—and settle in as I take you on a little tour of our newly refreshed entrance hallway. It’s amazing what a fresh coat of paint can do to brighten a space and make it feel welcoming again.

As you can see in the photo above, our entrance hallway is quite long, with several rooms branching off on either side. This view looks from the far end of the hallway toward the front door, giving you an idea of just how much wall space there was to paint! It was definitely a bigger project than we first imagined, but seeing it all come together has made every hour worthwhile.

While we were at it, we also painted the wooden stairs leading to the upper level, which had recently been installed as part of another project. New trim around the entrance between the formal living room and dining room was finished, and I took the opportunity to freshen up the existing trim with a bit of touch-up painting. Even our front door received a little extra attention, and those small finishing touches really helped tie everything together.

Sometimes it’s the simplest updates—a fresh wall color, crisp trim, and a newly painted door—that make the biggest difference. The hallway now feels brighter, warmer, and much more inviting, and it’s such a pleasure to walk through it each day.

Our entrance hallway is actually divided into two distinct spaces, separated by the opening into the dining room. Directly across from that opening is another hallway that leads to our two guest bedrooms and the guest bathroom, creating a natural transition between the front of the house and the more private living areas.

The first section of the hallway, just inside the front door, is one of my favorite places to decorate. It features a small hunt board topped with a large mirror, and throughout the year I love creating seasonal vignettes that welcome family and friends as they step through the front door. Changing these little displays with the seasons has become one of my favorite decorating traditions. It’s such a simple way to celebrate the changing months and give our home a fresh, inviting feel.

With the new wall color in place, I realized that the artwork and accessories needed a refresh as well. Whenever you change the color palette of a room, even subtly, the surrounding décor can take on an entirely different look. By selecting artwork that better complements the new paint color, the space feels more balanced and harmonious. It’s amazing how a few thoughtful changes can make everything work together, creating an entrance that feels warm, welcoming, and beautifully coordinated from the moment you walk through the door.

Flanking the hunt board are two large prints by artist Tracy Dennison. Beautifully framed and generously sized, they make a wonderful statement as you enter our home. Their scale is just right for this long hallway, helping to anchor the vignette while drawing your eye down the entranceway.

Dennison is well known for her Art Deco-inspired paintings, and I’ve always been captivated by the elegance and glamour she brings to her work. Her use of rich, sophisticated color palettes and graceful figures beautifully captures what life might have looked like during that remarkable period. Each painting seems to tell a story, inviting you to pause for a moment and imagine the scene unfolding.

One of my favorite details is the couple dancing effortlessly across a grand ballroom floor while a live orchestra plays in the background. There’s such a wonderful sense of movement, romance, and celebration in the painting that it never fails to make me smile. It’s easy to imagine the music filling the room and the excitement of an elegant evening from another era.

The warm, vibrant colors in these prints work beautifully with the newly painted hallway, creating a balanced and welcoming space. I think they were the perfect choice for our refreshed entranceway, adding both character and a touch of timeless elegance to greet family and friends as they walk through the front door.

As you can see, the two large prints are the perfect scale for the mirror hanging above the hunt board. Together, the three pieces create a balanced focal point that anchors this end of the hallway beautifully. Their size and proportion suit the long wall perfectly, making the entrance feel both elegant and welcoming.

The rich colors found in the artwork are echoed in the beautiful Oriental rugs that in this part of the hallway. I love how the rugs bring warmth, texture, and a sense of history to the space while tying all of the colors together. They add just the right amount of softness and make the hallway feel inviting from the moment you step inside.

One of my favorite pieces in this vignette is the charming French trolley tucked beneath the hunt board. We discovered it several years ago while thrifting at a local Salvation Army store, and it remains one of those wonderful finds that continues to make me smile. Pieces like this are the reason I love thrifting so much—they bring character, history, and a story of their own into a home.

To the right of the hunt board sits an old metal grocery cart that I’ve repurposed to hold magazines I’m saving for future inspiration. It’s both practical and decorative, proving once again that everyday objects can become beautiful design elements with a little imagination.

Mounted on the mirror is a lovely watercolor depicting an ancient European city. I enjoy layering artwork in unexpected ways, and this smaller painting adds depth, texture, and another point of interest to the vignette. The timeless charm of the watercolor blends beautifully with the more modern Art Deco prints, creating an eclectic mix that feels collected over time rather than carefully matched.

I’ve always believed that the most welcoming homes are those filled with pieces that have been loved, discovered, and gathered over the years. Mixing different styles, periods, and textures gives a home personality and tells the story of the people who live there—and that’s exactly the kind of decorating I enjoy most.

On the opposite side of the hallway, flanking the double doors that lead into the formal living room, are two pieces of artwork that always make me smile. Although they are quite different in style, they each have their own personality and help make this entrance feel uniquely ours.

The first is a beautiful unicorn, mounted just beside the front door. For centuries, the unicorn has been considered a symbol of welcome, purity, and hospitality, making it the perfect guardian for our home’s entrance. I’ve treasured this piece for many years, and no matter where we’ve lived, the unicorn has always found its place beside the front door. It’s become something of a tradition, greeting family and friends as they arrive and making each new house feel like home.
The second piece is a watercolor that I recently added to our collection, and I fell in love with it the moment I saw it. The whimsical cat has so much character and charm, with a playful expression that can’t help but bring a smile to your face. It’s a delightfully quirky piece that adds a touch of lightheartedness to the hallway while introducing a lovely contrast to the new wall color.

Even though the subjects couldn’t be more different, the watercolor’s rich, saturated tones harmonize beautifully with the rest of the artwork in the hallway. I enjoy mixing traditional pieces with those that are a little unexpected, and I think this cheerful cat fits right in. It’s those little surprises—a whimsical painting here, a vintage treasure there—that give a home warmth, personality, and a story all its own.

The hallway leading to the guest rooms and guest bath comes next. It was painted the same color as the main hallway and is opposite the dining room. I used another large watercolor of birds in shades of pink to anchor this portion of the hallway.

On the opposite wall is a second watercolor of another bird that fills this space nicely. I love the serene quality of both these paintings. Hopefully they will lead to a good night’s rest for guests.

Here’s the dining room on the side opposite the bedroom hallway. You can see we still have stacks of art work leaning against the large cabinet.

Just beyond the dining room, and a little farther down the hallway from the bedrooms, is one of my favorite spaces in our home—our gallery wall. Rather than hanging each painting individually, my husband, who is wonderfully clever and quite handy, built gallery shelves in several areas throughout the house. It’s one of the best decorating decisions we’ve ever made.

I absolutely love the versatility of this system. Instead of measuring, hammering nails, and patching holes every time I want a change, I can simply rearrange the artwork on the shelves. It makes refreshing the display effortless and allows me to rotate pieces with the seasons or whenever I’m in the mood for something different. For someone who enjoys decorating as much as I do, it’s the perfect solution.

Like much of the artwork throughout our home, this collection is an eclectic blend of traditional and contemporary styles. Every piece is an original watercolor, and many were painted by talented local artists whose work we’ve collected over the years. I enjoy supporting regional artists, and it’s wonderful to have artwork that not only brings beauty into our home but also carries a connection to the places we’ve lived and visited.

Although the paintings vary in size, subject, and style, they share a beautiful harmony of color that ties the collection together. The combination of larger and smaller pieces creates visual interest and invites you to stop for a closer look. I think that’s one of the joys of a gallery display—it tells a story, reflects the personalities of the people who live there, and can continue to evolve over time.

This little corner of the hallway has become much more than just a passage from one room to another. It’s a place where treasured artwork, happy memories, and a love of collecting come together, making the journey down the hallway every bit as enjoyable as the destination.

Here’s a closer look at some of the artwork we selected for the refreshed entrance hallway. Together, these pieces add color, texture, and personality to what is quite a long space. By grouping the artwork into smaller collections, the hallway feels more intimate and inviting, encouraging you to pause and enjoy each vignette rather than simply walking through.

One little trick I’ve found especially helpful is using a small amount of removable picture putty on the back of each frame. It’s the same type often used in dorm rooms to keep pictures from shifting. It holds the artwork securely in place, prevents the frames from moving every time someone walks by, and, best of all, removes easily without damaging our freshly painted walls.

As with so much of our home, almost all of the artwork and furniture in this hallway has been discovered while thrifting or at estate sales. I love the challenge and excitement of finding unique pieces that have a history of their own and giving them a place in our home. Every treasure seems to come with a story, and that makes decorating so much more meaningful.

Art is such a personal expression, and we’ve always believed in buying what speaks to us rather than following trends. Of course, it’s always a pleasant surprise when a piece turns out to be worth more than we paid for it, but that’s never the main reason we bring it home. What matters most is that we enjoy living with it every day.

One of the things I love most about our collection is its variety. Original watercolors hang beside Art Deco-inspired prints, traditional landscapes share space with whimsical subjects, and works from different periods and genres come together in a way that feels both collected and personal. I think that’s what makes a house feel like a home. Each piece reflects a memory, a discovery, or an interest we’ve shared over the years, and together they tell a little of our story.

Thank you so much for taking this little tour of our refreshed entrance hallway with me. I hope it has given you a few ideas for your own home and perhaps inspired you to look at your favorite artwork in a new way. Whether your pieces are family heirlooms, thrifted treasures, or creations by local artists, displaying the things you truly love is what makes a home warm, welcoming, and uniquely yours.

Until next time, thank you for stopping by. I always enjoy sharing these little projects with you, and I look forward to seeing you again soon!