Front of House

Do you have a phobia about terrace houses? The double-reception room crisis with that dead room at the back that you never quite know what do you with? Then there is the hallway dilemma. What to do with that narrow, windowless space sandwiched in the middle of a home.

For many city dwellers like myself, approaching the hallway of a traditional Victorian terrace sometimes seems like entering a tunnel. I visited an interior designer’s home last week and she had widened her hallway at the expense of the sitting room, but with its Purbeck flagstones it had the air of entering something grander. I guess structural changes are sensible if you have a blank canvas.

Adding a little bit of your own personality to hallways can hint at what’s to come and reveal the character of the owner. My husband goes straight to bookcases but I think the entrance can be just as telling.

Hanging decorative plasterwork in entrance halls is atmospheric, maps make for interesting walls and murals are entertaining. Ben Pentreath often uses maps in interiors and he chose a magnified version of Rocque's 1746 map of London for the staircase in Bridie Hall’s home, where guests may linger finding the field where their house now is. 

Murals are a great source of incredible imagery.  Surface View collect images as others collect stamps. It then uses sate-of-the art print technology to create wonderful pictures for a dramatic welcome and unique service for personal touch.

Alternative Flooring chose the ‘Greater Flamingo’ from a 19th century coloured engraving in Audubon’s ‘Birds of America’. I don’t know what this bird says about this cool brand, but it suggests a flamboyant character. It certainly brightens up this hallway with its cheery pink runner and cobalt blue console.

It’s time to refresh your hallways to celebrate the start of British Summer Time. If you’d like a chance to win a Fair Isle runner designed by Margo Selby for Alternative Flooring then pay a visit to their Facebook pages, where the competition runs from Wednesday 1 April and closes midnight Sunday 12 April.  Good luck!

www.facebook.com/alternativeflooring

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