Sophisticated Entryway: Design Inspiration

Houzz

This room (or should I say hallway) is sexy... to me, it's a slinky dress, dirty martini, smudged red lipstick kind of sexy.

Am I right, or am I RIGHT?!

Between the dim lighting, smoky mirrors, and animal print, I'm all about it.  It's really pulled together and tailored, but very masculine at the same time.  From the cubist modern framed prints, to the dark wood chest of drawers, to the angled lamp and tribal accents... it says "manly" to me.  While there are aspects of this that I really love, I don't know if I'm brave enough to have a space like this in my own house. Unfortunately, the original room was featured on Houzz.com and I can't find the original page now, so all the details are lost!

Anyway, enjoy an inspiration board I pulled together for this room.  I'm sure there are so many more (and better) furniture and accessory options if you dug around in thrift shops, antique stores, and flea markets, but working with the instant gratification of online, here is what I came up with...

Zebra Chairs: Wayfair
Apothicary Chest: V&M Curators
Angled Lamp: World Market
Antiqued Mirror: Bronson Design
Driftwood Charger: World Market
Vase: World Market
White Stone Sculpture: Etsy
Wall Sconce; Lamps Plus
Jute Rug: Rugs USA

What originally drew me to this room are those fabulous chairs!  I'm sure they are quite costly (even custom), and as I discovered, pretty much impossible to find online.  Above, I found a pair from WayFair for around $700 for both.  Not shabby since accent chairs can run up the bill quickly.

Aside from those chairs, a staple in this space is a sturdy dark wood chest of drawers, that really reminded me of an apothecary chest.  As a side note, while I was searching for the perfect apothecary chest online, I could not stop thinking about that one episode of friends, where Rachel gets an apothecary table from Pottery Barn... anyways... if you haven't seen it, please do yourselves a favor and watch this clip.

Back to the inspiration - several of the table accessories came directly from Cost Plus World Market - they are great for the worldly, tribal, or eastern influenced accessories, and unless you are looking for an original piece, they are pretty cool.  Speaking of, I just saw some really cool globes there, and I'm seriously thinking of picking one up.  Where it will go in our apartment is beyond me, but I just loved spinning it around in the store.  Etsy is also probably a goldmine here - support the small business owner!

Moving onto the art - it's totally subjective.  In the original room, they went for cubist art (a la Pablo Picasso) but you could go for black and white photographs, old maps, whatever.  The floor looks like it's possibly inlaid wood, but I also included a jute rug for a bit of texture - an old faded tapestry esque floor covering would also look pretty amazing in a space like this.

Finally, the lighting should be ambient - I wouldn't try this space in a really bright area of your home.  It's all about moody lighting, so go for low wattage bulbs to bring the warm tones in the paint to life, and create a bit of mystery.