Living in a small space can be a little bit demoralising when it comes to decorating – all that amazing inspiration you see in magazines or on Pinterest most often relies on big, open plan spaces and can be a little unrealistic for a small apartment or dorm room.
The challenge, therefore, is how to take inspiration and make that work in your space. Work what you got, as they say! Take for example, the ‘entryway’. I’ve been populating my Entry board on Pinterest for a long time, and naturally I plan to dedicate at least 2000 square feet to it in my someday (currently imaginary) home. But, back in the real world, we don’t have an entryway at all – you literally open the door into the dining room, and with a quick 180 degree sweep of the head you’ve seen every room in the house. Unpeturbed (I mean, things have been worse, we used to live in an apartment where we could put our arm in the kitchen lying in bed), I wondered, could I fake one? Given there’s no actual space in which to put a cabinet or other entryway accoutrements, I was going to have to get smart about it. And so, the hanging entryway was born.
DIY Hanging Entryway Organizer
After much pouring over Pinterest I decided that the key elements of most entryways are a mirror and places to store your hat and bags. Knowing this, I worked out it was totally possible to fake an ‘entryway’ with the right DIY project. All you need it s little bit of blank wall. It’s super easy so you’re going to want to give it a shot!
You need:
1
Start by gluing two flat back hooks onto the back of the mirror. Let these dry overnight.
2
Hammer two hooks on nails into the wall where you want your organiser to hang from. Make sure they are spaced currently to reflect being a few inches in on the dowel.
4
On one end I put the slit closer to the end, and on the other I put it a few inches down, this is so that the leather would cover the hook. Fold in half and push onto the hook - do this for both so you've got two loops on the wall.
5
Push the dowel through the loops and let it hang on the wall. Check that it's hanging straight.
6
Slip two leather loops onto the back of the hooks on the mirror. You've got a hanging mirror! To attach it to the organizer. Pull one dowel out of the loops on the wall and slide it on. Then you will want to add other leather hooks, by cutting more leather straps, making holes in the end and passing them over the dowel, then adding s hooks in the ends so they can hold hats and bags.
If you want to make your entryway organizer even more organized, you could also add a little shelf for holding keys, using this tutorial. We didn’t need it because the dining table is literally *right there* and I preferred the aesthetics of no shelf. That said, I have been changing what’s on here every few days (I’ve got another version of this I’ll be sharing with you soon!). Also, even if you do have a big house, this little organiser would be nice for a bedroom beside the door, or anywhere you want to make some storage space out of the wall.
I’ve been experimenting with the styling for the entryway… Trying out minimalist colours, and then perhaps an oriental rug thrown in there too. It’s a work in progress but I guess that’s what I ike about this project, you can change and adapt it all the time to suit your space and your tastes. Which, if you’re like me, change all the time!
Here are more ways to utilise your wall space! Hanging Leather Shelves | Copper Clothes Rack | Jeans On Hooks