apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Landing strips are fine and good, but how do you make a nice-looking one in a loft? My main room is just one big rectangle, so if there are wet umbrellas in the landing strip, there are wet umbrellas in the living room.

I love that lamp. Where did you get it?

Amused,

have you considered using some sort of enclosed furniture (like a small cabinet of armoire) as your landing strip?

or even, better, what about using small room dividers of some kind to corner of a small area around your entryway, to block the soggy umbrellas from living room view. you could also orient your furniture so that it faces away from the door.

Lots of lofty options! A console table or credenza or pedestal set perpendicular to the door will change traffic flow to suggest "entry" -- the more solid the piece of furniture, the more it divides the room. Back it up with a folding screen or large potted plant to make even more of a division.

To hold wet stuff, you could always put a pretty towel or doormat in a clean sheet tray to hold umbrellas or wet shoes (or buy one of those fancy trays that's made for the purpose).

in my apt, though definitely no loft, you walk in the front door and fall straight into the living room. not good and definitely messy (mail and outerwear in giant piles) so i divided up the room, using furniture and a rug, into three separate spaces. you can click on my name to see how i set it up if that helps you out at all.

I live in a loft. I have a door mat right outside my entry door and I had a 4' x4' of slate put in at the interior entryway and placed a modern coat rack to the right of the door/entry. Because it is right by the wall the coat rack creates a natural stopping point along with the slate and everybody delivery people, friends all stop there before "entering" into open space. You could use any stone at the entry or those carpet squares that you can move around &color match. Good luck it's a fun project. I want to try some of the hanging room dividers but haven't worked up the nerve for that as a next step.

Well what a surprise that my neighbor Ira's hallway made it here too. The lamp I think (there is a story but I confuse them all) was one of those things from another family member's house, so not something you can run out and buy.
From personal knowledge I know the system works well as I have something similar. Coats, bags, keys, umbrellas stay close to the door and do not move to the living room.

I actually use the top right hand drawer of my desk as my landing strip. It's not by the door, it's in my living room, and in my last apartment it was in the dining room, but no matter where it's been, as soon as walk in the door I unload my wallet, keys, ipod, change, etc. into this drawer and I always know where they are.

im thinking about building huge canvas frames, covering them with canvas on both sides, painting them black, and rasterbating pictures to put on the sides that face out. then i'll make sort of an entryway/hallway by hanging them from the ceiling about four inches from the door frame on either side, and putting some sort of tall, narrow cabinet on one side of the doorframe and a coatrack on the other. Has anyone else done anything like this, and if so, did you like the finished project?

I used a large hutch and turned it so the front faces into the main part of the room and the back faces the front door. Then I put a piece of furniture and a mirror at the back of it to create an entry. Click on my name to see what I did.

It seems that if you have an open space you can "create" an entry, but what do you do if your front door opens into a hallway? Mine is really narrow too, and you pass the kitchen and coat closet on the way to the living room. Does anyone have a similar layout in which they've found space for muddy shoes, umbrellas, etc.?

Anne,

That's a great idea and by adding the mirror, it doesn't seem like the back of a piece of furniture, but like an actual divider meant for that purpose. Love it.