Challenging Space- A Narrow Hall

We've been blessed with a beautiful home.  I love the process of decorating and finding ways to creatively decorate a challenging space.  One place that may be a challenge is our front entry.  It happens to be a narrow hallway.  I see images all of the time of grande entries/foyers, and I would like to be able to decorate mine in ways that I have seen (a large pendant light fixture, a console table with a lamp and cute bowls for keys and other daily essentials, a mirror or painting hanging over the console, a large bench just to name a few).  Instead, I have a narrow hallway that can't be overdecorated because it would be too easy to get cluttered.  As I said, this is a challenge, and I look forward to tackling it and finding a creative and lovely solution.  I decided to create this post to help others with finding solutions for decorating a small hallway (as well as myself) because every home does not have large halls, and narrow halls need love too!

1. Hang a large image on the wall that is the longest and has no doors on it.  This is a way to make a big statement without utilizing too many items.  One large image and an eye-catching Semi-Flush mount light fixture can do wonders.  These two items together can take away from the lack of space by drawing attention to themselves.

2. Place a small storage bench on a wall that has nothing on it and put an over-sized mirror behind it.  We all know that mirrors add depth to a small space, so the use of mirrors can be your friend in this situation.

3. Create your own art gallery.  On the largest/longest wall, hang images up and frame them in multiple frames of the same kind.  This gives a cohesive look regardless of what you decide to put in each frame.  Also, the frames will encourage movement if they are hung like the image below.  As you walk down the hall, you and your guests will have something to focus on along the way.  This will also possibly lead to conversations based on what you have framed, so it's a great ice breaker!

4. Stripes, stripes, stripes! Add a few large stripes to the hallway in a shade or two lighter/darker than the main paint color and this will create a space that looks complete.  Hanging a few small items on the wall similar to below can finish the look off.  Smaller stripes may not work as well because of the headache factor.

5. Add a runner to the floor.  You can choose a heavily decorated runner to flow down the hall and place a few images on the wall and this space can look great!  Since it's a potentially high traffic area, a runner is always good with keeping your floor clean, and if it's heavily decorated or a dark solid, it doesn't need to be cleaned as often.

6. Let the hallway flow into the next rooms decor.  This image may be borderline overkill, but it actually works well in this smaller space.  The darker colors give this space a glamorous look if that's what you're into.  If not, you can switch the dark colors out for light.  We also know that lighter colors can open a room up.  It's also better in my opinion to use a few larger pieces in a room to fill up a space rather than lots of little things because the overload of small things can give a cluttered look/feel quickly.

Hopefully this will help if you are faced with the challenge of a narrow hallway.  It has given me a few ideas of how to tackle this space!  If you know of any other ways to decorate a narrow hall, please post a comment!

 Here is our entryway currently:

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Oh yeah, and I must not forget Independence Day!  Happy Birthday, America!  Also, thank you to all of the courageous men and women that risk their lives everyday to protect ours!