Makeover : our hallway decor

Our makeover is COMPLETE – sharing our character filled narrow hallway decor – complete with board and batten, large mirror, reclaimed wood shelf and more!

So this makeover is of an often overlooked space in our homes – our hallway!

Let me tell you – this makeover wasn’t very expensive, didn’t take a ton of time, and delivered HUGE results! It’s one of those projects that you complete and feel so accomplished. It makes me want to tackle all the little spaces in my home and add character to each and every nook!

Here’s what our hallway looks like today:

How this hallway makeover progressed:

To appreciate the “after”, you need to see the “before” and especially the “during”

When we moved in, the end of the hallway was a closet that was enclosed with metal bifold doors.

When we replaced the carpet with wood floors, we had the bifold doors taken out. We didn’t want to have to work around a metal track on the floor, and didn’t want it to be unsafe for the kids without that metal track on the bottom.

So we lived with the open look for a little while – but it looked terrible.

Finally, we realized that we didn’t even NEED that storage space. We were able to consolidate the items that had been dumped there when we moved, and relocated them into other place in our house.

What we did at the end of the hallway:

This left us with a blank slate – a little nook to make over. And if you know me at all, then you would know that little nooks are kind of my favorite things to decorate! They give such character and a personality to a home.

We were able to use a leftover piece of reclaimed wood (it was leftover from our previous kitchen – remember when we used it for our open shelving??) 

Please disregard the fact that i FORGOT TO PUT THE LIGHT SWITCH COVER BACK ON before I took these pictures!! Ah dang it – I was just too excited and missed the last one!

Mirror as part of our hallway decor:

First of all – I love this mirror because it’s a more inexpensive find for the size. It’s such a substantial piece and it fits perfectly in here!

Second – it helps serve a purpose. I love the fact that it helps bounce light into this hallway – which can become a little dark (especially earlier in the day when the sun is on the other side of the house).

If your hallway feels small or cramped – try adding a larger mirror! It’ll bring light to the space, but it will also give the illusion of a larger space.

Board and batten in the hallway:

This was the biggest change and it added SO much personality, dimension, and character to this little hallway!

I LOVE how it turned out, and the color was such a risk but ended up being so worth it!

If you’re reading this blog post at a later date…this project was done entirely during the quarantine of 2020. We were trying to use whatever we had on hand, and didn’t want to run to the store for supplies that weren’t necessary.

I mixed two paint colors to get this one – Sherwin Williams “Retreat” and Benjamin Moore “Salamander”. So – I’m really sorry I can’t give you a name for this paint!

I do love how it really changes colors throughout the day – I couldn’t be happier with how this paint color came out! 

I shared more about the actual board and batten process in my Instagram stories – I saved them to my highlights under “hallway” if you want to see them!

We added a runner that we used in our last house – and it helps up the cozy factor for sure!

I just love how this makeover added so much character to an otherwise plain space. I hope this can help inspire your own hallway makeover someday!

Here’s the sources for items I could link – some of them aren’t sold anymore: