Sorry but the desk is just weird in that spot. I loke the lower cabinet but IMO the book shelves and the desk need to go to the office .Please DO NOT start another post on this sibject you will get ingo here for sure on reworking the pices .

You need to show us more of the room and from different angles. It doesn't look like fine cabinetry... I wouldn't be too attached. I'd certainly try to save the drawers.

Thanks so much for the feedback. I am trying to add the other photos but having trouble adding more than 1 at a time. This is to the left when you walk in.

Another view with the dining room…

Last pic with the desk

I love the built-in bookshelves...stunning... they add so much character. But the desk...I honestly thought this was a motel conversion lol.

The shelves and counter provide all the functionality you need for an entry.

I would paint out the accent color above to match the rest of the room.I'm not sure the shelves need to be painted...they go with the rest of the house.

Once the desk is gone you will be amazed at your new open and welcoming entry hall. And you won't have to worry about the door clunking into the desk...what a pain. That alone should be enough motivation to remove it.

You could add a chair or bench as is customary in an entry.

Do you have any photos with your furniture? It's kind of hard to see through the odd staging of the realtor photos.

I love the book cases, and no, I would not paint them. Leave them as they are. I agree 100 percent, that desk has to go. Looks like it is mounted on a board on the wall, so just needs to be unscrewed and moved out of there. If your hubby likes it that much, maybe he can find another place for it. That certainly is not a good place for it.

Those are built from low quality plywood based on the pictures (look at the wild grain from the circular cut veneer). Obviously if you love them fantastic but they are not precious or beautiful. They are just there. They are awkward in the space and limit how you will live in it.

I agree that the desk should be relocated to elsewhere in your house. As for the bookshelves and cabinet/drawers -- it depends on what's behind them if you remove them -- especially at the corner where they wrap around. It would be nice to have an entry closet in that area for guests' coats, etc., and maybe a small table but, again, it depends on the size and shape of the area after the shelving is removed. The shelves could be relocated along with the desk since they "go together." I would not paint them in any case. They look pretty good.

Do you have other places in the house you could use these pieces?

If not, I would remove the desk and put a substantial sofa, like a chesterfield. right into the space, right up against the cabinet drawers you don't want any. Area rug on the floor. Private library look. I'd put lamps on top of the cabinet surface and consider putting a sconce on the outer pillar of the built-in shelves.

sofa type

some kind of rug runner

this to the left of the front door with a small table or floating shelf

library type lamps on it (this might be too tall but you get the idea)

Did by any chance the chairs convey with the house?

That is funny... Well... I am super lazy, so i would probably just put a lamp on it, and a silver bowl for my keys. I’d use the area as a library, and an office sometimes.., And maybe have guests sign in!!!

Any chance you could pull out the lower 4 shelves of the book case facing into the living room and remove the backing behind them to create a closet that you could close off with a door?

Also, If I executed my idea for a little lounge library in that corner, I think I would use a strongly curved sofa in the living room, in an arc from the window, oriented toward the fireplace, and put a large swivell chair pretty much in the center of the archway to the dinting room.

I am a reader, so I love your beautiful bookshelves. Bookshelves are not trendy right now, but I think yours are very nice. We had a planter in our entryway that took up a similar amount of space as yours does. My husband turned it into a long bench, with seating, and underneath there is storage that we put some of the storage baskets from target into (13 x 13 ish). We put shoes, gloves, hats, etc. into the storage baskets. I am(I am in bed, snuggling my cat with about three minutes until I have to get up and get to work, so I will try to find some pictures, put them on this iPad, and send them to you.)

It is now a much more usable space Although it can be a bit of a clutter magnet sometimes. The nice thing about sizing it for the storage baskets is that those can be changed out and add different colors and patterns as well. We also put the cat’s toys in it, and then we find him digging into the boxes to get it to his

Place a backless bench with shoe drawers underneath where the desk is. Maybe a tall cabinet at the wall, as a keydrop counter. Then paint or fabric wrap some foamcore to press in place to cover the shelf backing. That's low cost, without the commitment of painting cabinets, which is a bear of a job.

I would kill for all that space at the entry!

This is a cool house. It may take a whole to figure out how all the open rooms could interact. Disassemble and store the desk, empty the bookshelves, and enjoy the open space for a while.

First thought was a mud room where stuff is stored behind cabinet doors, but that may not be what you need there.

Live with it empty for a while, and see what you need and use it for. You might need a place to sit, a charging station, a countertop level surface (I always need those), a place to leash the dog, a place to store purse stuff, etc. Or you may just like the empty space. Or you may want something pretty to come home to, like a giant floral arrangement or a photo or art gallery.

The bookcases don’t have to stay there. But you don’t have to move them yet.

What would you put there if everything was removed?

Our home is a five room b&b with a small owners apartment. I love this desk! But, obviosly, that is based on my particular circumstance. 😂😂😂 🏠

I would probably remove the desk, cabinets, and the bookshelves over the cabinets (I really dislike the style of the "short" bookshelves with your window and sloped ceiling). Then, I'd angle chair in the corner by the window with a small table/lamp beside it, place a mirror between the window and door, and put a large, square piece of art on the wall between the chair and the remaining bookcases.

Looks like a well-made suite of items. I would move the total suite to a home office. I would not split them up and it would be a sin to paint that wood.

Do you own a lot of books? If not, good-bye bookshelves. Use them as storage in a closet, basement, or donate them. Do you have children that like to play hotel? If not, then good-bye desk. Will you use this entry often or come in and out of a backdoor or garage? This seems like prime shoe, keys, umbrella, coats area if you will enter here often.

Think about this. If the door could open 180 degrees to the right (as you enter), you will have doubled your usable space.

I love the bookcases! But the drawers underneath are out of place. I would remove them, and try to fill in matching bookcase to the floor. Then add a comfy chair, and you have a library.

I don't know if this has been suggested already but one fix might be to remove the desk and put up a paneled wall/screen that matches the built in wood finish and extends across the opening, leaving just a door-width one can walk into at the left of the front door. On the living room side this new paneled wall you could hang an artwork. Inside the alcove itself it could be fitted out a guest closet-mudroom, or use it as small office/library, but one with cozy privacy.

https://www.naturalhandyman.com/iip/infpaneling/infwallpaneling.html

I couldn’t get my pictures to upload, so I am going to take one here. I did just change my settings to allow both the camera and access to all photos on my iPad. Let’s see if that works better.

Hallett is correct that some of the the vertical surfaces (e.g., the back of the bookcase) are made from wildly grained plywood, but the horizontal surfaces and the drawer fronts look like better quality wood. It's hard to know without seeing them in person. If the whole assembly were moved to a home office or library and the shelves were actually filled with books (as opposed to knick-knacks), then the wood grain would not be so visible. Keeping the bookshelves as bookshelves would depend on how many books you have or plan to have in the coming years. Worst case scenario if they are of such poor quality wood throughout, or do not fit your lifestyle -- they could be used in a storage room or garage. There are then several possibilities for the resulting space.

I think even keeping the bookcase right there looks awkward so I’d suggest finding a new location for them. I’d redesign the space and add a closet to hang guest’s coats. The other part I’d use to add a console with a mirror above it.

Is the area with the fireplace your main/only living room, or is there a family room elsewhere? That would greatly color my notions of what could/should be done here. But my first instinct is definitely to move all the cabinetry to an office upstairs!

I agree with the commenter who suggested moving bookshelves, cabinets, and desks to another room or space to be the home office and do something else here. Maybe tall cubbies and a bench, or, fancier, console table with wall hooks and baskets.

Or, move desk, leave counter and shelves, and add comfy chair, small rug, and hat rack… hmmm… maybe that’s not what they are called. I’ll go get a pic off the web. Anyway, this plan is for a warm entry scene and at the same time, a reading nook.

This

Inspo pics

Think about your main floor as a whole. It's hard to tell from photos how large these spaces are, and we don't know how you plan to use your house.

It makes a difference whether this is your only living area. From the photos it looks small, and split in half with the front door. Have some of the walls been removed to make the plan more open? Doesn't seem to be enough wall space to place furniture.

You could put a closet here,. But maybe your main entrance is elsewhere, or front door entry closets are not needed in your climate.

You're not wrong that this is a weird item in this spot. And your husband isn't wrong about wondering what else to do with this space.

I would remove the desk now (if there is finished flooring underneath) and the two wall hung bookshelves over the credenza (which I would leave.) Repurpose the shelving in the basement, garage, hobby room? Then chill. Because the entry door, the garden window and the arch into the dining area bother me almost as much as the desk does.

Or leave it alone for now. You just bought the house. As is, that area is ready made work from home space. If .that is a possibility now or in the not too distant future, you could easily make do with it while planning another space in a quiet, private area of the house. And possibly repurpose some of the fixtures into that room.