Foyer, It’s All For You

Alright folks, let’s get down to some nitty-gritty home remodeling posts. This week I’ll be sharing the transformation of our front entry and hallway, and holy crap is it ever dramatic. Not dramatic enough for me to create another soap opera post though (that thing took hours to put together!).

Before I dive into the Before and After photos, let me set the scene so you can better understand the depth of my excitement.

Our foyer had paisley wallpaper and blond faux-wood paneling that extended 20 feet into the air. It was like a monument to the victorious reign of 1970s home decor, and now, decades later, it was desperately clinging to its deteriorating stronghold. And we were the determined soldiers who whooped its ass. Ooh-rah!

We gutted the foyer only two months ago, but it’s been without electricity for a year now (we sliced through its old knob and tube wiring when we demoed the hallway one year ago). Which means the only light filling the space has come from the sun. Those dark days are over now, which I’ll get into more when I post the hallway Before and Afters on Wednesday.

Come, my friends…let me show you how our house has changed. It’s magnificent.

Here’s how the foyer looked when we first moved in, two days before Christmas.

Let’s take a closer look at those lovely walls…

It takes your breath away a bit, doesn’t it?

And the overwhelming sea of paneling…

I am now happy to report that our home is paneling-free. I’ll give you a moment to applause.

Thank you! Thank you so much. You’re such a kind audience.

Here’s how the Kingdom of Paneling and Paisley was destroyed:

Whoo hoo! It was a freeing experience to pry that crap from the walls and ceiling, exonerating the brighter-than-the-sun yellow paint that had been trapped behind it. But then we yanked that crap down too because we had had our fill of out-dated and out-of-place decorating. It was time to claim that foyer as our own.

Once it was gutted, Cheerio Steve ran the new electrical wires and we insulated the walls. That is not a fun job. I did not know the true meaning of ‘itchiness’ until I worked with insulation. I would’ve killed for a back scratcher to stick down my throat because even my esophagus itched (despite the masks we wore).

The we suffered through Douchebag Jeff before finding the treasure that is Drywaller Bill.

And then! We did something incredibly unexpected and spontaneous. We paid a company to spray texture, primer and paint onto the walls. This was the first time we hired people to complete a project for us. Needless to say, it was the fastest any project in this house has ever gotten done. It was weird to see progress happen so quickly and at such a steady pace. Things like that don’t usually happen here.

Fueled by the dramatic transformation, we tore the carpeting off the steps, ridding the foyer of any remaining drabness.

Oh beautiful, beautiful foyer, how I love thee. You are no longer a monument to disco-era decorating. And now, thanks to the wonders of electricity, I can see your glory any time of day. That’s right, folks. We have switches and lightbulbs and they actually function!!!

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