Make a Good First Impression: 4 Ideas for Entryways
Author:Shoshana BergerEntryways are like first impressions: an ugly one is hard to get over.
I’m a big fan of using eye-popping elements like wallpaper (learn how to apply it yourself from Derek and Lauren’s book) and colorful coat-hooks (like this Eames classic, the Hang-It-All).
Another key element is a bench (handy roundup of retail options here), where people can sit comfortably to remove their shoes, or park a purse—easing their way through the invisible curtain of your home. Benches are the gateway drug to do-it-yourself home design: they’re easy to build and offer a high bang-to-buck ratio. Here are a few ideas:
1. Buy modern hairpin legs and affix to a piece of salvaged wood as Angela Ferdig did here. You can easily make something like this for $200 rather than almost $2,000.
2. Reupholster (or call an expert to do it for you) an antique with great bones but a shabby top. This Etsy designer will gladly do it for you.
3. Mix it up: use off-the-shelf boxes (like these from Ikea) to create a stacked bench with built-in shoe storage, or cut up Ikea LACK tables for a very mod pastiche.
4. Bring the outdoors in: Your inner hobbit needs this Droog-inspired log bench. 
Welcome, now make yourself at home.
