Easy Entryway Solution

 I don't know about you, but my home isn't exactly sprawling, and doesn't exactly have a formal entry. My husband works at a very dirty job all day every weekday, and when he gets home I really like him to have a dedicated space to sit down to take off his filthy boots before he tracks all manner of grossness through the house. This is not because I've probably recently cleaned and don't want him to mess it up, but because I never have time or energy to clean and don't want him to add to the dirty atrocity that is our floor. 

A while ago I was on the hunt for the perfect shelf and hook system to fit the small space of wall by our front door, so that we would have a place to hang keys and other items. I finally found one at HomeGoods, probably for less than $20 (although I can't remember exactly) because I'm sure I wouldn't have budgeted more than that for some hooks on a shelf. It really isn't perfect, because the hooks used to hang it to the wall are those little triangular hinged picture hangers, and they're down far enough on the back of this shelf to cause the whole thing to tilt slightly forward when it's hung on the wall. Quality craftsmanship right there, but it was cheap and coordinates well with the other stuff in my home. I threw an oversized basket (stolen from my mother - ok, I didn't steal it, she was getting rid of it anyway) under the shelf to corral shoes, which is what the basket has been doing for years at my mom's house. 

Before: No seating. :(

It's been working this way for over a year, but there never has been a proper place for my husband, or anyone else, to sit down and remove his shoes. An old leather armchair (another hand-me-down!) on the other side of the front door has served this purpose and become increasingly filthy after being caressed repeatedly by my husband's work pants. So I began The Hunt for the Perfect Small-Entryway Bench. Let me tell you, there aren't a lot of affordable options out there. You might think that looking for a smaller item to fill a small space would mean a smaller price tag. You would be right, relative to the cost of larger things, but not relative to the cost of my unreasonably low budget. I scoured the internet for tutorials on easy DIY entry benches, but didn't find anything I felt I could effectively build by myself in an afternoon. Are you wondering why I didn't just ask my husband to build me one? You must not be married.

The hunt continued and I finally started to give up on finding the perfect bench, which in my case does not mean I abandoned the idea of seating in general, but started to get creative about considering alternatives. Instead of a bench, I thought, why not a chair? Well, then the possibilities widened considerably. There are far more cheap chairs out there than benches. But if we're going for cheap we might as well look for free, right? And I happened to have a pair of nice, wooden, very free folding chairs standing in my garage. BAM. Problem solved.

After: Free chair! :D

Is it perfect? No way. Was it free. Heck YES.

You may have surmised by now (if you've been following my posts) that I'm all about a broader learning experience when I tell my stories. This experience was a great reminder for me to be creative, utilize my resources, and ultimately be content with what I have. I don't need the most beautiful entryway ever. I don't need an expensive storage bench for seating and shoes. I had a free basket, and a free chair (and a $20 shelf). My entryway is functional, pleasing to my eye (which is the only eye that really needs to be pleased by it), and didn't put me in debt. What more could I ask for?

What about you? Have you completed any projects like this using hand-me-downs or garage sale finds? Share your photos in the comments!