Good morning my lovelies. I’m so glad you’re here. Have I told you how much I appreciate you lately? Well, I do. And, since I can’t have you over for a half-sweet, vanilla latte (my fav.), how about I finally welcome you into my front door?

Let’s get to the Foyer Before and After Makeover, action! Small budget, but I think it turned out pretty great. Let’s take a look at where we started…

If you’ve visited my little spot in the bloggerverse before, you’ve maybe seen me kill off a few “boob lights”. Well, this one didn’t make it either. It was one of the first things to change.

… along with the floor, paint, storage… the bannister railing even got a little touch of black to class things up a little.

This is the first view you see, and our home is a “walk-out”, meaning, no true basement — those stairs you see are actually leading up to our main living area… kitchen, living room, bedrooms… that sorta thing. So, we’re already starting out at the bottom, and the ceiling height is a little on the low side (we even have a bulkhead over the front door). So, we really needed to lighten things up a little!

The door to the right as you walk in the house leads to the garage… and it was plainer than plain. It was so sad, with it’s flat white surface and it’s little brass chain lock. Yep… so welcoming, right?!

My basic little door, got a pretty serious dose of personality with an old farmhouse window, turned door decor. That makeover was the perfect example of a plan, that didn’t quite work… but ended up better than expected!

And, how cute is that starburst mirror by the way? $40 at Homesense. Get outta here!? So good!

And — of course, we took a good look at the closet in our foyer this Summer with my closet and bench makeover… and we’re still totally enjoying it! The doors just weren’t working for us…

Yeah, this was a big job…

But it was totally worth it. We’ve had a few people ask about the functionality, and…  It. Is. Awesome!! The Kiddo can climb up there, and hang up her own jackets, the big drawer under the bench hides all the  little things. And that gallery wall? Hasn’t budged an inch. Those 3M strips are amazing. Just like velcro.

And, of course I cleaned ‘er up for you, but here is a look at how she looks on a more average day…

Yep, stuff. Stuff in use. And, it’s not so bad. You see the large canvas bags on the hooks there too? These are AMAZING for all the off-season stuff. The Kiddo’s winter coats (which are about to come out), my snow pants… that kinda thing. Super handy, cute, and no need to banish everything to a plastic bin in the back of the garage. Loving thiiiiis!

Then there was the door. Remember that awesome door from the HFH Restore? Well, the inside got the black paint treatment too… along with the entire interior door frame.

And, it’s sooooo good. White walls, black door, wood-tone flooring… nice contrast and so much warmer, and more welcoming. The new light isn’t too shabby either — another $50 find from Rona.

There’s my homemade barn board shelf… And, let’s not forget my big experiment… this copper shoe rack could of gone sideways on me for sure, but I’m happy to say it’s still there, it’s working great and, (Psst… it usually holds twice as many shoes) it’s so easy to clean under floating shoes. EXACTLY what I was hoping for. Yay me! I might even build another row… maybe.

I’ve got a little work in progress happening with that art piece too… I’ll get around to finishing it one of these days…

Welcoming was the goal. I think we got there. What do YOU think? Please feel free to leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you!