Post a 2D floor plan with all rooms and measurements to get real help

I would do custom molding in the entire hallway and disguise the doors in the molding.

Sometimes a congested 'look' is an honest response to the functional arrangement of spaces.

Without a floor plan it is about impossible to offer much int he way of advice.

Thank you for taking the time to comment everyone, i appreciate your time. The layout of the spaces is not going to change. I guess I was hoping for something along the lines of the advice from Lawrence, which i think is great! Thanks again!

I love the suggestion from Lawrence R. The fact that the walls, molding and trim are all the same color is crucial to the success.

Yes but that paneled look is not cohesive with the style of your home. Will those doors and trim always stay wood or will you paint them? Having the wall painted the same as the doors and trim will help create an envelope feel and would help to visually calm down the space. Here is a warm cinnamon wall with a wood door (switches would have been better in a dark brown)….how you start and stop this concept is best determined with an overall plan so posting one isn’t necessarily to suggest architectural changes but to try to find a creative way to answer your question.

I’d paint the walls, doors, and trim the same color. It will make the doors disappear and reduce the visual congestion. I have a smilar hall of doors and did this and it really helped.

I think Lawrence’s idea will make that small space look even more crowded. His inspo pic is so a very open, two story space with lots of light, and a curved wall. You have none of these things going for you.

Paint is your ally. Walls in flat finish, doors and trim molding SAME color, satin finish.

It looks congested due to high contrast of walls, and doors/trim.

UNIFY the flooring. No matter the choice. Only the bath need be tile. Whatever the flooring in the kitchen........go all the way: )

In addition - consider changing the pantry door.

Wow! Thanks again for the ideas! There is A LOT of wood trim in the house and I didn’t plan on changing it, however would door trim need to be the same as window trim?Thinkdesignlive that would be an excellent option!

The painting suggestions so far I believe refer only to the alcove in question...not necessarily applied to the entire home.

I do like wood trim and would not change it in the rest of the home. But in this small hallway, go for it.

Window and door trim do not need to match, depends on the situation and the look you want.

Yes..... I referred only to the congested area for paint unity.

If you post a photo farther back we can see what the ceiling does. If there is a cased opening or a soffit that breaks that ceiling area from the open area then even better to do this as all one color. Can’t tell what the door on the right does in relation to the open space.

The flooring change is what is throwing the monkey wrench into the works. Unify the flooring and I doubt that the door will bother you.

The area is much too small to pull off what Lawrence suggests--which also would be out of character for the rest of the house.

Painting the entire area in the same colour with different finishes (matte walls - satin woodwork & doors) would unify the area so that it doesn't look so choppy. Of course if the same wood flooring continued in that area would be better but without more info and budget you can start simply with a paint job.

Here is another view of the space. The long wall to the right will remain but frig will be getting enclosed in cabinetry, soffit going away. The long wall to the left will remain unchanged.

Hi!

I would recommend working with colors if you are on a low budget - you can make sure the doors and the wall have matching color tones. If your budget allows, alternatively you can use modern panels like we did in one of our project, where some of the doors that need to be invisible have a simple push-pull opening systeem, versus those that open up to different areas of the apartment are identified by a different color (image below):

In alternative, with a project that is still under construction, I designed a curved wall where every opening(/door) becomes the opportunity to display a light fixture.

I hope this is helpful, if you need more ideas, feel free to reach out to giorgia@olbosstudio.com

Add really nice doors/hardware, paint choice will make a difference, and adding a runner will also help break it up. Maybe add a glass door on mud room to allow more light to filter in.