Foyer
First impressions, set the tone for your lifestyle, show off your collectibles and greeting guests graciously. These are the things I think of in the foyer area. Your statement here can help drive other design features of the home. I like the foyer to have a connection to the rest of house rather than being something foreign. On the other hand, sometimes a transitional space can be nice. Bringing exterior materials to the interior with glass at the entry and at the rear can be a nice way to enter the home.
Design Tips:
- Think about the statement you want to make to guests. What furniture or artwork do you have that you might want to display or not?
- Entry closets in South Texas aren’t as important as northern parts of the country. I recommend putting personal jackets near the mudroom/family entry. You can temporarily store coats of guests in other areas when needed.
- The foyer can have other uses for transitioning into other areas of home. They can also be an isolated space serving only the entry purpose.
- Think about what guests first see when you open the door. Try to make that thing a special element or feature.
- Be sure to leave circulation space for yourself as well as guests.
- Lighting can be dramatic or subtle. Sometimes the option for both is nice.
Bonus Tips:
- Don’t be afraid to express yourself in the foyer space.
- Special art lighting may be needed here.
- A niche can look nice but be careful to not limit the size. Take the niche to floor so either a statue or a furniture piece can go there. You might change what you wish to display here.
- I suggest putting switches in different locations on either side of entry door. This minimizes the large switch plate that is hard to remember what switch goes to what.
