The Flat- Entry Way Before/After

The Urban Flat has been one heck of a ride in renovation. After giving tons of love to the inside, one part of the apartment stood unloved and quite frankly. . . ugly. As the last part of the renovation, the stairway that led up to the hip flat was the last to have a makeover. What made this space challenging was the large wall space that was unbearable to paint by myself due to the height of the walls. Standing in the middle of the stairs coming up, the ceiling reached almost 20'... not a task for myself. Here's some before photos of this space... I started painting the walls a white and as you can see, the huge difference it began to make.

At the bottom the stairs, where you first entered from the street was the front door. There was a plywood board that covered an opening above the door and curiosity struck over me. I began to ply at the opening and eventually ripped off the wood that seemed to be covering something. Ideally, I was hoping for a huge window opening but I revealed something way cooler!

Once the board was removed, there was an opening. Not for a window but from a huge door that was replaced at one point. Hinge marks came all the way up to about 1' below the opening. I couldn't believe it. A huge 10'ish door at one time?! Woah, talk about cool! Here's what was revealed.

I decided since our new front door was already ordered, that I would cover the hole back up with horizontal shiplap. This gave that hole space some texture and interest.

We hired out the paint job and the whole entry got a fresh coat of white paint, really making the space feel bigger and fresher. We installed new black and white tile in the entry and the top landing. Visually, it gave the space some character and an old time feel. I painted the stairs with Sherwin Williams black.

After everything was installed, it was time to accessorize! I snagged two cute vintage hooks from Hobby Lobby, bought a faux boxwood tree for the top landing and finished off the stairs in a cool farmhouse/industrial touch...

I even took a photo of a old Millersburg map from back in the day, turned it into a black and white version and hung it in the entry for a cool historical touch. I wanted the hallway to feel like a modern farmhouse vibe with the historical attributes.

Painting the brown stairs made a huge difference in the look. It no longer felt unclean and rundown but added a sleek farmhouse look.

Replacing the front door made a huge difference too. I love how everything came together and complimented everything very well! We kept the old long hand railing just the way it was. I love the character and charm that now accompanies the stairwell and it is now a great way to enter the flat.

Let me know what your favorite part of the new stairwell is below!! 

Hugs, Alyssa