An Entryway Update

Thank you for allowing us to talk about the brands we love and use as we work from room to room in our home renovation. This post was sponsored by Lowe’s Home Improvement but all designs, thoughts and product selections are my own.

We’ve been getting after the entry way and a lot has changed since I shared the design board. We’re really close to the end with just some doorway work, a few painting projects and adding some shelves in the closet different space. But let’s back up.

The Demo

The project started with the 1970s paneling coming down. What we found underneath was two layers of vintage wallpaper. It reminded me of the many lives this home has lived and the design decisions that have come before us. We received so much feedback on Instagram about keeping the wallpaper. If it hadn’t been in such bad shape and if the goal wasn’t to get down to the studs to reinsullation, it definitely would have been a charming way to keep the home’s history intact. I saved some pieces of it and plan to frame it and display it in this room when everything is done.

Tearing out the plaster walls to get to the insulation was a messy but surprisingly quick job. Austin and his dad spent two afternoons working on it and somehow it was a blank slate to get built back up. My stepdad helped Austin get the space ready for insulation. They added the Rockwool insulation and stapled plastic sheeting over it. Austin built new walls with plywood. It was mind blowing how quickly we went from paneling over plaster to complete gut job to building the space back up.

Shiplap

The entry is 9 feet tall. We wanted to use vertical shiplap on the walls and the 8-foot shiplap we found at Lowe’s was on sale one evening so we bundled up 200 square feet of it and brought it home. We knew ahead of time that we’d need to place piece of trim 3/4 of the way up (it’s the same trim we’ve used for baseboards in all of our renovated rooms). We both really liked the look we so in inspiration photos and love it even more now that it’s up. It gives more interest to the room and distinguishes it a bit more from the old paneling that was torn out.

Austin found the center of each wall and installed the first piece at center and worked out the the corners. He used a pneumatic nail gun to make things quick and secure. After the shiplap was installed, Austin cut and put up the crown moulding and door/window trim.

Custom Entry Bench

I designed the entry bench to use two upper cabinets on a base, with a seat (a butcher block countertop cut lengthwise) and a storage cubby. The cabinets came in a pretty green/grey color which meant we didn’t have to paint a single part of this project. Austin built a base out of 2x6 boards, anchored the cabinets to the wall on the sides and back, attached the storage base in the gap and then attached the seat. He had already treated the seat with 3 coats of clear, matte poly so it was ready to go. The cabinet line also had a coordinating toe-kick which we added to the front of the bench base. Once the bench was securely installed and level, we covered it with contractors paper and got to work painting.

Getting Paint on the Walls

The painting projects are always exciting to me because it’s when I get to join in more. Handling a toddler (yes, she’s a toddler now!) while doing home improvement isn’t easy so we just know that it’ll be taking turns working on the space or working together during nap and bedtime. The noisy projects like reno and rebuilding are best done when Hyler is awake so I hang with her while Austin and sometimes our dads work on the projects. So when painting started, I was excited to get after it.

The painting was a little more involved than we originally planned. The shiplap that we purchased was pre-painted. In my mind, I thought that would make it easier to paint but once it was installed, we realized it was coated in a way didn’t allow paint to stick. It’s a good design idea if you’re planning to keep it white and are able to install it with minimal nail holes but that wasn’t what we had.

After spackling, we added two coats of Valspar Bonding Primer to the walls to get it paint-ready. Thankfully, it didn’t take too long. We used a brush to follow the grooves of the shiplap and then a roller to cover the main surface area. Since we already planned to paint the trim to match the walls, we applied priming bonder to the trim as well.

We went to Lowe’s and found a light taupe hue (Valspar Quail Egg) we both really loved paired with the greenish gray bench color but felt like the color itself was too dark. We had them mix it at 50% saturation and took it home to test out. It was still felt too dark for the small entry. We decided to use that color for the entry closet walls and went back the next day to get the paint mixed at 25% saturation. It is the perfect airiness while still being a color.

I started in the entry closet while Austin worked on the main entry room and painting the ceiling. It the perfect set up so we could both feel productive. Plus, once the painting in the closet was done, it meant that the closet organizers could be built and tools no longer needed for the project could be put away.

The entry got painted, hooks were installed and I cleaned up and spray painted the storm door. We even have hooks on the walls and a new light fixture. Now things are in the final stages of small projects and finishing details. The entry is so so close to being done and I can’t wait for the big reveal!