Entryway Options (Am I On The Right Track?)
I didn’t have time to read all of the comments on yesterday’s post about my new floral wallpaper mural in the entryway, but I was able to read most of them. But evidently, my mom had time to read almost all of them. She stopped by yesterday, and when I asked her opinion of what I needed to do to finish out this wall, she said that her favorite suggestion from yesterday’s comments was to remove the wall sconces, use table lamps instead, and then you wouldn’t have to hang anything on the wall between the sconces.
My immediate response was, “Well, it’s too late for that. I’ve already cut holes in the wallpaper for the wires for the sconces.”
But of course, keeping the sconces meant that I would almost certainly need to hang something on the wall between the sconces for them to make any sense, and whatever I hang there (even a round mirror) would cover up my favorite reddish pink flowers in the center. As I showed you yesterday, the only round-ish thing I had on hand to test out this idea was my sunburst mirror. It would need to be hung higher on the wall, and you can see that anything that size, like a 36-inch round mirror, would cover up those flowers.
But the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if there was any way I could repair the wallpaper where I had cut the holes out for the sconce wires. As someone rightly pointed out yesterday, I really should have junction boxes in the wall for the sconce wires. But I can say that this is one time I’m actually really glad that my sconce installation wasn’t up to code. 😀
I removed the sconces so that I could get an idea of what it would take to repair these holes in the wallpaper. The wallpaper under the sconce on the right has a hole that’s about 1.5 inches high and maybe 1 inch wide.
The one on the left is a bit bigger. It’s about 2 inches high and one inch wide.
And then I thought I might run into another problem if I try to cover over these holes. While my lack of junction boxes for these wires doesn’t meet code, burying wires inside a wall is most definitely not up to code, and can actually be quite dangerous. So I thought I might have to actually add junction boxes and then use those solid junction box plates to cover over these holes so that the wires are still accessible.
But then I realized that’s not necessary. As long as I completely disconnect these wires from the light switch, they can be buried in the wall with no problem. As long as they’re not connected to any electricity, and there’s no chance that someone will accidentally flip the switch and send electricity through these wires, there’s absolutely no harm in having them buried behind the wall.
So that’s what I’m going to do. The switch will have to stay, and I’ll paint the switch cover so that it blends in better with the mural. But I’ll disconnect these wires from the switch completely, push them behind the wall, and then repair those small holes in the wallpaper. And thankfully, this mural is really busy, so I think once those holes are covered over and I do a little painting to blend those areas into the mural, no one will ever notice them. And those wires and the switch will still be there if I ever decide to use sconces again.
With that decision made, I started playing around with items that I already have to see what this arrangement might look like. First, I borrowed the music room lamps. To be clear, I won’t be using these lamps in the entryway, but I only have three matching sets of lamps — these white ones from the music room, the orange ones from our bedroom, and the navy blue ones from our previous bedroom. I thought these were the best option to test out this idea because I think these are the best size to test out.
I didn’t really have anything to test out for the middle of the console table. I wish I had something like a long, large dough bowl, but this was the best I could come up with using what I already have. I also removed the baskets from the bottom shelf of the console table, as several of you suggested.
And then I wondered what it might look like if I had something long and low to lean against the wall. I didn’t have many options for this among the items I have on hand, so to test out this look, I used one of the arched mirrors that I had previously used on this wall. Of course, if this look works, I would find something better. This mirror is just a stand in to test out the general idea. I like the idea, and I think whatever I use there could even be a little bit taller. I don’t like that this mirror height is pretty much even with the bottom of the lamps shades. I think something a little taller would look better while still not covering up those flowers.
And then I thought I could even do a layered look. Again, I’m just using what I have to test out the general idea, so I used one of the bird pictures that was previously on this wall. I’d obviously use something different, but I wanted to see what a layered arrangement might look like. I think I’d need more than one item layered on the mirror, but I only had six of the same size. I’d need some varied sizes for a nice layered look.
But overall, I really like this direction. Starting with table lamps instead of sconces makes all the difference. With sconces, I feel like I have no option but to hang something on the wall between them. With the table lamps, I don’t feel like I need to hang anything on the wall, and I can let those pretty flowers show.
Now I just need to find the right lamps and other items to create the look. I think I like the general idea of white lamps, but maybe something in a simpler shape. And of course, the biggest challenge with this will be repairing the holes in the wallpaper. I might have to cover over the holes myself and then call in my personal on-call artist (i.e., my mom) to do the painting to make them blend in with the wall mural. This might be a team effort. 😀
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Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
I think a thin gold lamp would work on either end of the entryway credenza! That way you don’t block any of the beautiful colors of the wall mural. Keep being my inspiration!!
Is there a way that you could reroute the sconce wires lower to an outlet that is still controlled by the existing switch?
Oh, that’s brilliant! I’d love to have those table lamps on a switch! I don’t think I could do that on my own. I’d have to have an electrician do that for me. But I love the idea!
This looks absolutely gorgeous. That view from the music room towards the wall is my favorite angle of your house ever. The table lamps are definitely the direction to go in, and, dare I say, would be best in white so they pop against the mural. I absolutely love this new direction.
In the future……when cutting holes for things like this in wallpaper, slice a “v” in the wallpaper and pull the point down to open the area. If you want to close it again, just flip it back up!!! I’ve done this many times and it works great!!! I do it for picture hanging nails (small v). Then I don’t have holes in the paper when I change my mind!
I actually tried to do that, but the wallpaper was wet with the adhesive, and I guess my blade wasn’t sharp enough, so it ended up tearing the paper instead of cutting it. I gave up and just cut (or rather, tore) the holes.
The lamps look great! I love the sconces. Where can I find a pair?
Glad you are working through it. It looks great sconces or not. Honestly I would’ve kept the sconces their scale was great, color too (not the shade). Is there a rule on this I feel oblivious to seeing what you are seeing, it seems to be creating one-too-many-decorating-boundaries. The lamps and shades you use here, are more distracting because of their bulk/scale than the sconces you got.
Busy yesterday, but a funky creative idea for the sconces…likely mentioned…a wall picture ledge and empty frame no backing framing the flower. Like the frame on the peephole in Friends.
There are no rules. It’s all about what looks right to your eye, and that’s different for all of us. To my eye, if I use sconces, it looks strange unless I hang something between them on the wall. The table lamps give more flexibility and don’t require anything on the wall between them (again, to my eye). Since they’re not connected to the wall, they stand alone much better than sconces.
Maybe dont put anything on the wall between the lamps. You’ll loose the big flower and that looks like a beautiful focal point to me.
I like your plan! I would suggest cutting pieces of wallpaper to cover the holes rather than paint. I think a large plant would be nice between the lamps along with some two items of various heights such as a sculpture sort placed in a layered way.
It will have to be both wallpaper and paint. I’ll use wallpaper to cover the holes, but then those pieces will have to be painted to match the pattern. Since this is a mural and not regular wallpaper, there’s no repeatable pattern, so none of the pieces I have left will match those small squares that need to be filled in.
Just wondering if there might be a section from the mural you did not us that could patch those holes.
I don’t think so. I’ve already looked for a portion to cover the light switch plate, and there’s nothing that matches. That’s one of the challenges with using a mural that doesn’t have a repeatable pattern.
Yes!
I really like the contrast of the white lamps against the dark mural! Super pretty!
I would look for an area on the panel leftovers that could color match and also match the direction of the strokes as closely as possible to piece into the areas. Your mother may have to paint on the pieces to more perfectly hide the patch. Putting a piece of the mural over the areas would also duplicate the texture and the mural layer rather than painting on the wall without a mural piece there. The wallpaper design is a plus because it has a quality that should be easier to disguise this way.
Personally I prefer your 1st incarnation. Just the table lamps and the books/plant in the middle. The paper is the star and it shines through. Adding more just takes the eye away from that gorgeousness but it’s not my home and I’m sure you’ll find something that works for you.
I like the direction you are going. Just some thoughts: 1) yes, try patching the holes with the wall paper; 2) really, really like removing the baskets, 3) what about some lower, horizontal profile art objects on that lower shelf; and along with that, keep the objects between the lamps to a little lower profile. Might take some experimenting to get the right height perspective, but it could allow more of the wall paper to show? Anyway, as always, what you said, it’s about personal perspectives and tastes. Do what makes you happy!
Instead of leaning the mirror, make it part of the buffet like the one in the link. Given your DIY skills, I know you could make the perfect mirror for your buffet.
https://www.rejuvenation.com/products/vintagetraditional-sideboard-with-low-mirrored-backsplash-in-tiger-oak-c1900s/?catalogId=84&sku=9367726&pickuplocation=ST:%7Bstore_code%7D&cm_ven=PLA&cm_cat=Google&cm_pla=Vintage%20%3E%20Vintage%20Kitchen%20%26%20Dining%20Room%20Furniture&cm_ite=9367726_14334675725_pla-1959508511895&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=14334675725&gbraid=0AAAAADtoK0QO_1ADlo7s5nELjS1pXdrNC&gclid=CjwKCAjw-dfOBhAjEiwAq0RwI-sbNaKl2jO7eSJ_gcnC3efEbrZne1cyL2zkBnLHo7b0s2F0JsLf1RoCPvIQAvD_BwE
I like the idea of a long wooden bread bowl. You could add a bit of seasonal decor. In my mind the mural is fairly busy and adding a lot of items to the table isn’t necessary.
Some ideas I found on Amazon here! https://a.co/d/0b5xC20p or https://a.co/d/0dMPkD9X might work! And here’s a tray you may like: https://a.co/d/07GtvyNW .I think skinny lamps would be better, so you see more of the mural. And I love the shape of the shades! The tray is big enough to place a vase, a candle and a trinket box on it if the vase isn’t too wide!
Sometimes less is more – the white table lamps actually look great just on their own – they allowed the wallpaper to feature as it should… the more you added, the more you took away from the mural. But in the end you will find exactly what makes your heart happy – it looks lovely so far
Are there any portions of the mural that you cut off that are similar to the areas to be repaired? Might be an easy fix
If you want a long, thin mirror to lean against the wall or attach to the back of the console, this one could do the trick
https://www.amazon.com/Mnanatee-Skinny-Mirror-Entryway-Mirrors/dp/B0FGCM5RF3/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3V14MKLZHUUAY&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5XL-DHhDZxf2vt0oWhgknxNK_tigcpBLCp7RJ4zYFA8ps0k7jrwSycJWdMp5I7hOpZU5lcYkT_mlQRP5-u2dPUDaun5s-x26tk-FY5rFa7pnbe9patjjbG_bcaVzxL8wde7NpRkbkJH4UUWWT_cpwoI55qulcf-ksCz_mcgqoqTG-2HfURYJx8iattjKI47v1xfjWXbNmJ_FxhQfIv4CfnTA9smFMXqXVIr60pPMQdpu80QcD7g3y6wEochwghshHRRhafk0kn8nBWz9fMUbaSWmVJD-S133cF-EeJfan4A.S9m57QgJ3ANrnmEsbQ3jfRFj9VJiHdOoFgHro5C_LvE&dib_tag=se&keywords=long%2Bskinny%2Bhorizontal%2Bmirror&qid=1775665802&s=home-garden&sprefix=long%2Bskinny%2Bhorizontal%2Bmirror%2Cgarden%2C159&sr=1-3&th=1
Also want to say when I saw the photo with the white lamps, the white flowers on the right and other light flowers in the mirror immediately “lit up” for me when looking at the mural. Funny how that works! I like the idea of white lamps with a narrower base for this reason.
I love the mural so much more without the sconces. Just a suggestion…cover the covers with wallpaper.
I’m glad you’re re-considering the sconces although I know you could make it work somehow. Wet and lift your paper and slip behind it a portion of your leftover paper that’s similar. It’s a better way to patch than going over the hole. If you could find the exact match you could double-cut through both layers but I’m guessing there’s no match in a mural.
I know symmetry is important to your eye, but you might try just one lamp on the left (but closer to the center than what that one is currently; you don’t have to decorate the whole surface of the console). Having just one lamp gives you the freedom to go bigger/chunkier if you want and you won’t be covering any of the flower on the right. The white is gorgeous. Anything else placed on the console should perhaps be light colored as well.
Perhaps it’s different when you’re in the room, but the mirror reflecting things looks very busy and distracting to me.
Hi Kristi: Removing the sconces makes a positive difference. That mural looks great in your entryway and I really love the pink flowers so please try not to hide them too much. The cascading flowers to the left of the credenza is a great accent too! It’s so awesome that you and your Mom have the skills to make this work. It looks great and I really like white or gold lamps on the table. I look forward to seeing your choices. I know it will look great!
To patch wallpaper, (might not work with this mural), you find a piece that matches pattern-wise and place it over the hole. Then using a new, very sharp blade, cut through both layers (what is on the wall and the new patch) around the pattern — NOT in a straight line. It should be curvy if possible and follow the lines of the pattern, even if it is very irregularly shaped. Then the patch is exactly the right size. Take off the part on the wall that will be covered by the patch. If wallpaper has a dark background, use oil pastel (or something like that) to paint just the edge (ie the white thickness of the paper). Then use wallpaper paste to paste in the patch on the wall. It will not be noticeable at all.