post a few more pics because I can't tell what's what from that angle.

what exactly is the question? yes to painting that trim and yes to painting the doors. and doors are cheap. look on craigslist and you may luck out w/a new front door and that side door. there are also things you can do a flat door to add trim molding and paint it.

Entryway from hell?

Where's the dog?

loo,,you mean Cerberus? cmon,,it's not that bad.

Yes, that's what I meant, no multiheaded dog, no hell :)

oh they are so cute! that bull terrier!! lol

Awww, they'll just lick all comers!

that is a cute ass pic. you should have that blown up and hung somewhere.

ok,,now post a photo of the area from another angle so i can see what you have. You also have the low ceiling in the other room you want to paint. are you doing the entire downstairs?

This is probably beyond your project scope, but I’ll toss this idea out... if your front door opened the other way—with the hinge on the garage door side—maybe you could embrace the garage door nook as a mini mudroom since it wouldn’t be the first thing you see upon entry.

Yes, paint the garage door to fade into the walls. With better pix we might suggest a way to eek a "mudroom," or at least a drop spot, out of this space.

Beth...you r too funny !!

Actually, blow up the dog photo, write under it in big letters,

Solicitors- don't even think about it!

And put it outside the front door.

hah. that's funny. or maybe group the two big ones together and get them to 'look mad'. impossible for a bull terrier, but maybe the pittie mix can look mean.

Is there room in the garage for coats, boots etc, I would look for a new front door and paint the other one the same as the walls and painting the trim the same color as the walls would also be my choice since it not really pretty.

My son's house has a similar situation. However, the garage door is on a different wall, but they both open onto the living room. I advised him to paint out the garage door and trim to match the walls. The front door would then be painted a contrast color and the door casing would remain white (as is all the other base and case in the house). He was dubious at first, but took my advice. It worked like a charm...the garage door virtually disappears, leaving the focus on the front door.

It's hard to judge from the pictures, but I think what this space would benefit most from is some brightening up: New windows, a front door with some glass to let more natural light in, and then a chandelier and some sconces and some bright paint and tile \. Best of luck!

I tend to agree with Benjesbride on the reversal of your front door opening. My reasoning is that when you enter the living space you don’t want a door blocking off whoever is in the main room....(I’m assuming LR). Creating a nook or niche with the garage door area gives you somewhere to focus on utilitarIan needs, particularly with the laundry room right there. So I’d embrace that.

if you omit the short wall at the entrance you could keep congestion down at larger gatherings and create a more gracious and inviting entryway IMO. Table for keys, flower vase, art, candles.......I use and antique library table in my craftsman entry as there is nothing shaping a formal entry. Play with furniture ideas before building that wall....I think you could have a lot of fun with that area if you did!

Could you put a small divider furniture piece, like a small bookshelf between the two doors? I would paint the panel door white with white trim and maybe trim out the other door.

Why a 1/2 wall? Can you do a full wall or is That too dark? I think I would close this off as much a possible and go full mud room on its a&$. You live in MN. Nothing is more welcoming in a climate like that than an area in which you can comfortably stamp your boots and put on slippers, hang up all the gear.

TLynn I can see why you wouldn’t want to lose that space. Is the closet a coat closet? Could it be repurposed as an entry niche/mudroom kind of thing with hooks and a cute bench? In otherwords, remove closet door and even trim and create a mini room....or entry niche. Is the laundryroom close enough to incorporate a place for snowy boots and drippy umbrellas? (In my head I see a laundry room almost directly across from the garage door...is it?)

When end I lived in Alaska we had Arctic entries which were wonderful for this situation. The square footage in you project doesn’t allow for that but I just wonder....if you opened up that closet...maybe even on the entry side...I think you’d have a nice coat, boot, hat solution and still save your hallway. (My thought on THIS change would be to take out the wall to the left of the garage door and to Sheetrock the current closet door closed on the hallway side. Let me know if that doesn’t make sense, I’m trying to use my “words.”

Heres a couple ideas...

https://hookedonhouses.net/2012/03/06/before-after-transforming-a-standard-coat-closet-into-a-charming-entry-nook/

https://makeit-loveit.com/turn-a-coat-closet-into-the-perfect-mudroom

IMO closed off hanging space should NEVER be taken for granted. It can store 10x the stuff some hooks and cute baskets can handle. But with kids some hooks , a boot tray, a cubby, would be a wonderful addition to the hallway

How much room do you have in the garage near the door? Could you put a bench and an Ikea Pax wardrobe there along with some coat hooks? That would give you a mud "room" and you'd be able to treat your foyer like a main entrance.

Because you have 2 steps up from the foyer to the living room, I would not reverse the front door swing. Doing that would mean that people entering will be crowded between the door and the steps.

Tlynn-yes I would be more for enclosing it and making a cozy, comfortable place to sit, disrobe, etc. for starters forget the 1/2 wall-perfect spot for a cubby!!

TLynn I totally get it. Cute closet open...for five minutes.....then.....dun Dun Dun.....a mess appears from nowhere.

So I’ll leave that side and still support no knee wall....a moving cubby piece meaning not built in...with seating on top. And switch the door from rh swing to lh swing. My thinking on keeping cubby or whatever piece you choose mobile is it offers options now and in the future without ripping the place apart again.

I totally get the idea of using flexible/modular units for a temporary fix if you don't have the time/money for built-ins. BUT. nothing can compare for a cohesive look in an otherwise cluttered room. Furniture becomes part of the clutter. I would put together a dream plan that tuns it in to a beautiful working, living mud room. No matter how messy mine gets it is one of my favorite rooms in the house and I am always proud to have people come through.

I can see something like this in lieu of the Half-wall-also I did brick in mine and I love it

Pax wardrobes can be great; if you choose one with sliding doors you don’t need to worry about door swing. Here is ours in our garage entry. We have it filled with sliding shelves (with felt mats) for footwear, glass drawers for mitts, gloves, etc, rods for jackets. It has lights inside (kind that go on when you open door) which is also great for darker mornings or evenings. You will probably have to click on my photo for a more accurate scale - it will likely stretch out.

Also, FYI, we have a “closed” front entry in the sense that while our garage door enters into a mud room, and our front door enters in a front entry, that front entry is walled off and is a more like a hallway (entering into the width of it). I actually love it. It’s private and protects against icy winter blasts (live on Canadian prairies). I am not one who likes people walking into my living room etc and it works great to keep shoes and such out of my view while trying to relax!

Love your dogs! Lucky you! :0)

I vote for the cubby with a bench.....

following...

@TLynn, does your laundry room share a wall with the garage or, better yet, the garage and the foyer? If so it might be an idea to move the garage access to the laundry room. This could be done in a couple of ways:

1) if the laundry room does not abut the foyer, then the garage door would need to move. You may not have space for that.

2) if the laundry room shares a wall with the foyer, then move that wall over past the garage door. i.e. extend your laundry room into the foyer. This would make your formal foyer half as big but would fix the issue of mess at the front door.

This isn't a cheap and easy fix, but it may be worth it for the decrease in daily irritants.

When i originally suggested you change the door swing, I meant the sidelight would change sides as well. If inside facing the front door, the hinges would be all the way to the right side of the opening and the sidelight would be on the left.

this is not a minor project, that’s why I said it’s probably beyond the scope. You’d have to change light switches, doorbell, exterior light, etc.

But worth it benjesbride....I am surprised the original builders didn’t situate it that way to begin with.

idk-you could have a serious three stooges moment opening the main entry while someone was coming in from the garage if the door opened the other way...

also-the thick velvet drapes like at a restaurant? not the worst idea I have ever heard. that entry looks small and people pile up coming in from the cold, meaning the door gets left open while the caravan makes its way through the entry (MUD ROOM!). I could really get in to some fabulous, thick drapes on a rod that you can remove in the summer if you want, or pull back with ties. of course the rod would be attached to your new cubby wall on one side. I think you could continue the cubbies/cabinets on to the wall where the dresser is now depending on clearance to the hall.

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