Hello friends! How is your summer going so far? I just returned from vacation which is always a bit of a bummer, but it was so awesome to be surprised by our “almost” finished mini-mudroom entry when we came home! As soon as we walked in the door the whole family was oohing-and ah-ing over the drastic changes that my brother had made to the space over the week we were gone. Here is how the mudroom entry looked when we left last Saturday morning:

The beadboard had been installed along with the trim, and chalklines had been marked for the board and batten (check out my Mini-Mudroom  Makeover Part 1 post to see more before photos.)

The peel and stick groutable tile floor at the entry and landing in front of the powder room had just been experimentally scraped away to find the original hardwood underneath. Measurements for a built in hall tree/shelf had been taken to make better use of the strange “junk ledge” and wall beside the stairs with the door bell, light switch and thermostat.

I am loving my in-progress current view from the landing at the top of the 3 stairs that lead into the kitchen to the right and living room to the left! Now that tacky tile has been removed and the original hardwood floor sanded and exposed, I am set on keeping the hardwood floor instead of adding new tile. My brother did an amazing job with my design for a “catch all built-in” on the awkward wall space beside the stairs. I wanted to hide the door bell so he enclosed the top and added trim. We had two cabinet doors leftover from our kitchen makeover that we be installed at the bottom of the built-in. There will be a shelf  inside the cabinet with baskets for keys, small umbrellas, scarves and gloves etc.

I wanted the catch all built-in in the mini-mudroom entry to be similar in style to this one in the kitchen with corbels, beadboard and trim. The two areas can be seen at the same time when standing in the kitchen or landing, so I thought it would seem more original and harmonious for the shelving styles to continue from space to space.

Original Hardwood Floors for the Win!

We were all stunned at how pretty the 100-year old hardwood looked once it had been exposed underneath all the goopy tile adhesive after it was sanded down. At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to do some kind of new tile or keep the hardwood, but now that I have seen it I definitely want to just keep the hardwood floors. The landing is adjacent to the powder room, so hardwood seems to be the best choice since it doesn’t clash with the original hex tile in the powder room.

This is our “new” view coming up from the basement into the entry and I am just loving it already! Even though the floor hasn’t been stained and sealed and the walls are only primed, I can already see that my vision of giving this an update with historic character is turning out as I had hoped! aWhite beadboard with board and batten, chair rail and pretty crown molding and trim has added brightness elegance and character to a previously grungy and “blah”space. There will be coat hooks on the trim on the lower landing wall. I think I am going to keep the wall behind the door free of hooks and even wall decors so everything looks less cluttered.

I had my brother install a new light box so I can put some kind of pretty light fixture over the door to create a bit of a foyer feel. Now if I can just make up my mind on a light!I have my eye on a couple at Lowes. I really love lights with a mix of wood and metal. Since we have dark woodwork in the rest of our house, I think the warmth of wood can be tied in through this type of light. 

I found this amazing basket at JC Penny on sale and it is perfect for catching dirty soccer cleats in the entry, and I can just grab it and put it down at the foot of the stairs in the basement when company comes and more space is needed for coats and purses on the hooks above. I still need to find some small baskets for the catch-all built-in shelves and possibly a few other  organizational accessories for those shelves. The hunt is on the agenda for the week ahead! 

I am defintiely bummed to be home from the beach, but having this new space to look forward to using soon is exciting too! In the next update I hope to share that it has beenfreshly painted with new light fixtures. I will also share some more details about the woodwork and trim. Be sure to subscribe by email or check back next week to see how the space is coming along.  We;re on the home stretch now!

Are you working on any DIY home improvement or garden projects this summer? I love hearing from you, dear readers! Thanks for visiting today!

Amber