Entryway Table + FINISHED Front Room! ⋆ Growing Up Kemper

I cannot even begin to explain how happy that title makes me feel! I FINALLY found the perfect table to fit our nook inside our front room and finish off this space for good. If you were following along on my Instagram Stories, I attempted to build an entryway table out of scrap wood in my garage. It was sturdy, sort of like what I imagined, but it was missing character that I was looking for.

Next, I purchased a table online at Walmart that failed to live up to its great reviews. Return…

I took one more stab at building the table again with a different style and I couldn’t get the height and the width ratio to look good. At this point, I threw my hands up at building the table and went back on the hunt.

And then it happened…

I found the table I had been dreaming of.

Storage…check.

Small enough width that my kids wouldn’t smash into the corner as they’re blindly walking (okay…running) down this part of our house….check.

The character and charm that I was looking for to compliment the trimwork in the room and match the black stair railing and accents around this area…check.

So today I’m sharing FINISHED photos of our entryway and sharing the final piece that pulled it altogether! I’ll source everything at the very end so you can snag some of the pieces that made this room all come together like I had dreamed it would!

When we did our remodel in 2018, we had to carve out this little nook when we relocated our main level half bath and added in our coat closet. It’s roughly 3′ x 3′ and sits directly in between our front door and our garage door. Obviously, this needed to be a space that could hold our “things.” A drop zone for keys, wallets, mail, the works. I needed to add a bit of storage to this drop zone that could house these pieces and made more sense than just the decorations I had there before.

So yes, I did plan to build something here. And yes, I failed two times in doing so. But each time I purchased or built, I realized what I was needing more and more. I was narrowing down my scope and really thinking through EXACTLY what I was looking for. And then I found it…

It’s the Kendra Hall Table by Breighton Furniture and I scored it at just $119 (originally $149) on Target’s website last weekend. It stands at 31″ tall and is 24″ wide. The perfect compact size to fit in a nook, as a bedside table, or as an entryway table to drop those keys, wallets, and generally “things” that crowd your hands as you walk in the door.

Each drawer is functioning, as well as the storage shelf below. I was able to fit this darling jute basket I found on the shelf. Want to know what’s inside it? All three pairs of my kids old shoes that they wear when they ride their plasma cars outside. Put that blanket on top and no one has to know. 🙂

Now full disclosure, the pulls for this entryway table were not gold. These come in a dark charcoal color which did match the accent on my mirror above the table; however, I wanted to keep the continuity of the gold that I have with my frames and lighting nearby. A little Rub ‘n Buff Gold Leaf and five minutes of time, these pulls were turned this gorgeous gold tone that matches the delicate gold around the rooms. I’m a huge advocate of painting something if you don’t love it. This is a perfect case in point. It wasn’t perfect so it gets a little color.

This was the final touch to this front entryway. Check out my posts for a tutorial on my DIY Board and Batten or to read about refinishing my table and creating this DIY Bench Seat and cushions to see how this all came together. The before and after is dramatic. When I showed my husband the photos of what this looked like before, he thought it was immediately after our remodel 4 years ago. Nope, babe. That was just what it looked like in August. It’s warm, it’s inviting, and it’s got the storage and the functionality we were craving. It’s now a lived-in room that I am oh so in love with.