Before and After: Simple Upgrades Make This Plain Entryway Tons More Inviting

published Dec 12, 2020
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About this before & after
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Rental Friendly
Before: Neutral stair steps and entryway

Even though fewer people might be visiting your home these days, it still feels good to have an entryway that’s warm and welcoming.

Unfortunately, that’s not what Samrudhi Sharma of Weekend DIYer had over at her place. While the stairs to her split-entry home—where the entryway landing sits between two flights of stairs, one up and one down—were perfectly functional, they didn’t really sparkle. “The entryway was very bland and boring,” Samrudhi says.

Samrudhi wanted to create a space that made you feel good to step inside, whether you were going up or downstairs. To do that, she reached for elements that would be easy to add to the space and wouldn’t require any hardcore renovation.

Samrudhi started with a high-impact project: adding some pattern to the stair risers. To do that, she scoured Etsy for peel-and-stick stair riser decals. “I wanted something that contrasts the warmth of the wood so the black and white colors were perfect!” she says.

While the color scheme is simple black-and-white, the mix of patterns makes these stair risers a little whimsical. “If you plan on going the peel-and-stick route for stair risers as I did, measure your stairs risers!” Samrudhi advises. “If they are anything like mine, not all the stairs will be the exact same dimensions.”

She found that the easiest way to do the project was to buy the decals slightly larger than needed; then, once they were applied, she trimmed the excess with a craft knife.

Once the stair risers were done, Samrudhi added a few other small details, including a boot tray that she DIYed with decorative rocks and a storage bench and coat hooks from HomeGoods at the front door.

A storage cabinet, some fresh art, and a new plant helped bring some life to the top of the stairs, too. Now, the entryway is not only more welcoming—it’s also more functional, too, with lots more storage.

“I absolutely love how this makeover turned out!” she says. “I don’t think there is anything I would do differently.”

Inspired? Submit your own project here.