Dramatic Foyers

Our parents always told us that you cannot judge a book by its cover and that we are not to judge one another. Conversely, our parents also told us that we never get a second chance to make a good impression. However, if we are applying the first two rules to life, then should the third rule exist? As lofty and lovely as the first two rules in life are, that is not the way people work in general. We do judge books by their covers all the time and we do draw conclusions about each other based on first impressions. In the world of decorating the foyer is the first chance we get to make a good impression because it is the first space that people see when entering your home and it is the last space they see when they leave, so we want visitors to receive a great impression both coming and going. The entrance of a home should excite you and begin the story that will unfold as you move through the space, so that you want to see more of what lies beyond. Let’s peek into the foyers of a Lily, Lantana and Gardenia model to see how the foyer of a home can draw you in and make you want to see more, somewhere in the Heart of The Villages.

  •  Lily foyer
The Lily foyer is all about drama! The entry way table is weathered wood, and it looks almost faded black. We wanted to add a dramatic presentation that would draw the eye up to take advantage of the height in the space. We installed the arched mirror that is 72” high and 48” wide. The tall mirror brought so much light into the space and created a sense of volume as it drew the eye upward. A tall space with a tall mirror required a tall arrangement to create balance and more drama. We made an arrangement using three tall palm fronds that we set permanently into a vintage pencil reed bamboo vase. The vase was stained with rich mahogany stain and the rim of the vase where the palm fronds are set was finished with green moss and sword fern. The custom arrangement looks amazing in the space, and it is rare that you get to see a tall arrangement on a table. I like to teach clients to resist the urge to put tall decor in the corner of a room. It looks nice to lift tall pieces up so that they will make a more dramatic statement. We nestled a large book beside the vase and placed a piece of real coral on top of the book. The lamp was already there, and it looks even better with something taller on the table. To fill the large open gap underneath the table I placed a large basket the we left empty. The basket filled the negative space below and covered the outlet. The final item in the foyer was the addition of a six foot round natural color jute rug. The rug adds texture and interest to the space by filling it almost completely. Don’t be afraid to add a large rug to your foyer, it looks better and functions better than a tiny mat.

  •  Lantana Foyer
The homeowner of the Lantana foyer liked drama but not as much as the homeowner of the Lily. The Lantana homeowner wanted the foyer to look inviting and well put together, but he wanted it to be very traditional. We chose to add a foyer table in a brown finish that went with the rest of the furniture in the home. We added a round mirror in a gold finish. The mirror had spheres all the way around it for touch of whimsy. We added two very tall brass buffet lamps to the table. The height of the lamps works in the same way to pull the eye up and work with the volume in the space. We placed an arrangement of maidenhair fern in a chinoiserie vase for a classic timeless foyer table look. The rug is a 4×6 entrance rug on tile. This rug is washable and usually washable rugs are a bit thinner. To keep the edges down and everything in place, I added Alien tape to the four corners of the rug. The rug will stay in place until it is time to wash it! Finally, the front door was trimmed out in dramatic and traditional molding that makes the door look like real architecture in the space not just a front door.

  •  Gardenia Foyer
The Gardenia foyer is usually a wide entrance hall and there is room for an entryway console, but this homeowner did not want any furniture in the space. Though he did not want furniture in the space he still wanted it to look impressive and tie into the rest of the home. We decided to add wainscot to the hallway to visually ground the space. The wainscot would add interest to the walls the same way a piece of furniture would add interest to the space, but the wainscot does not take up any space. The wainscot was painted all white from the top of the chair rail to the bottom of the baseboard and it was installed around the entire foyer. We installed two large watercolor pictures of coral. The coral was painted in layers of blue and framed with a silver frame. The opposite wall received three mirrors hung in a pyramid pattern. Finally, we placed a large 5’x8’ rug in the foyer and filled the hallway from side wall to side wall. The foyer is not full, but it does not feel empty. I noticed that when walking through the foyer I did not miss the furniture at all.
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