Entryway Before and After

AFTER:

Welcome to our home!  This is what you will see when you step through the front door.  This furniture is hanging around from our early marriage, but it definitely is not going to be replaced, so this is a good place for it.  The highboy is located perfectly next to the dining room, since it holds napkin rings, candles, flatware, etc. 

BEFORE:

This is what it looked like when the previous owners lived here.  They were from Florida and the house had a feel of the tropics.  Since it is in the woods in northern Georgia, we felt a "mountainy" touch would be more appropriate.  We refinished and darkened all of the hardwood floors and since we didn't care for this exaggerated faux finishing, we painted over the rough plastered walls.  I may glaze these, but I haven't yet decided.  The color we have now is Benjamin Moore's White Dove in flat with the same color in semi-gloss for trim.

Here's the approach to the front door.

And here's the inside with the "speak easy" grille door open.  We had an antique French door here, but it had been poorly fitted to this space and an inappropriate set of hardware was added, so we replaced it.

I fell in love with this natural brass lantern and elected to hang it without glass.  I think I'm going to take the glass out of some of our other lanterns, too.  I love the shadows this throws on the ceiling.  If you're over 6'7", you might want to watch your head, though!

These watercolors are some of my favorite art pieces in the house. The entryway in our last house had a yellow and red Zoffany wallpaper with tulips on it.  I found this at The Stalls in Buckhead and thought it was so perfect, but I needed two.  I contacted the artist, C.Whitlock, and provided a piece of the wallpaper.  In only two weeks, she painted me another tulip to partner with this one.

 

I just love the detail she put in these.

The matting and framing is exquisite and makes the pieces so much more interesting.

I found these tole brackets in Chicago at Alexandra Branca's shop.  I had decided that I wanted Staffordshire dogs on top and had two beautiful old ones on hold.  Then I saw these quality reproductions with the yellow and red baskets and decided that I liked them better because of the color interest.  I struggled with the snobbery of antique vs. repro and the new ones won.  I have not regretted it.

The entryway goes on through this doorway.

This is the cherry piece that sits there at the bottom of the stairs.  I bought this waaay before it was knocked-off everywhere!

These bronze stag candlesticks give this vignette some height.  I just wish I could get those dang candles to stand up straight.  I bet I straighten them several times a week.

The small leather-bound books are held by these black forest acorn carved bookends.  Love!

We call this "The Chairman of the Board".  It is a strike-off of an English antique lithograph that is hand colored.  We had our English Springer Spaniel, Nittany, for seventeen years and there is lots of dog art and many dog accessories in our home.  I can't bear to get another puppy just yet, but I know I will someday.

Lots of leather-bound books here.

I bought this old mirror years ago at a consignment shop in Indianapolis.  I'd love to know it's story.  Anybody have info on it?

This is looking back toward the door.  You can just see the bottom step of the stairway here on the right. 

That's it!  A lot of stuff in a very small space, but I hope it feels warm and welcoming. 

I'm posting at

http://betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com/

for Metamorphis Monday