Decorating a dark hallway

6 years ago

We are about to decorate our hall stairs and landing and want to make it bright without being completely white, particularly as we have 3 kids under 6, nothing stays white for long!

The floor is dark wood effect karndean and the stairs will be dark wood treads, newel posts and bannister, with white risers and all other woodwork. We have a dado rail and a picture rail and quite high ceilings (house is c.1910).

I like the idea of something quite simple, but stripes would prob be a no-go as I don't think we have a straight floor or wall in the house.
I like natural colours - greys, creams, light blues & greens, but the space is quite dark so I don't want it to be too busy.

Any ideas for a busy family home that needs brightening up would be appreciated!

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Comments (4)

honeypoppet
6 years ago
Hi Laura,

I'd go for a grey if I were you, it doesn't get dirty nearly so easily as white, plus if you buy a durable paint like Dulux Easycare then it should clean up really nicely should any mishaps occur! I've put some ideas below, my guidance would be to choose a slightly darker colour for below the dado rail, it creates a really nice effect, plus that is the area most likely to be bashed/kicked etc.

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Hope this helps!
PRO
Kerry Bryan Interiors
6 years ago
Hi Laura, You're right saying white doesn't stay white long... I know the feeling.

I agree that Grey would work better, as it would be striking enough to provide an elegant yet sophisticated look to the house. Your children shouldn't be able to get the painted walls dirty too easy and of course with paint, you can use a wipeable one. Whereas, wallpaper can be damaged and never quite look the same again. However, that being said a wipeable Darker Grey Paint below the Daedo rail and a light patterned wallpaper above would look very in keeping with the house. Also, children's hands seem to keep below a certain point, so this may be a nice option, if you can keep them from touching walls so much.

I've attached an image below which displays, how I would design a hall. Keeping in mind your needs, and the circa of the house. However, this adds a contemporary yet, modern approach.

I hope this hopes, I'd love to help you out with the design if you need any tips!

Kerry
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Hi we specialise in period detailing and panelling and staircases particularly in oak. I will attempt to give you some suggestions from our point of view. //Panelling// My first thought is to keep all of the panelling but to add a bit more style to it which could easily be achieved by adding a simple mouding around the panel as shown below, you can easily source mouldings from a local hardware shop. You could also add a Dado moulding and run it along the top rail of the panelling that goes up the staircase this would make the panelling look really nice. I would then prime and paint all of the panelling in a light colour to give the entrance a lighter feel. create a coat rack area in the porch with a small bench for taking of shoes and it would look like a really inviting entrance hall! //Staircase// Again I think the staircase would look really good painted or stripped and whitewashed like a scandinavian style pine floor, this would lighten the whole area. I really like it when staircases are painted except the handrail however It would need to be stained and polished to look like a contrasting dark hardwood. If you were thinking of installing a new traditional style staircase there would be a cheaper option which would be to clad the strings and posts and replace the hand rail and turnings for oak versions. However I personally would be painting it or whitewashing it and adding mouldings here and there if you need to. good luck!! Applied panel mouldings White washed staircase A recent project of ours with painted panelling with a dado top moulding
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I remember when the modern WM collection came out and thought they were stunning. I can't really see upstairs walls properly as to suitability for wallpaper but the one to the left of the stairs on the ground floor would look great. You could consider applying decorators varnish (polyvine) over the top to protect the paper from getting dirty? Test a piece first though. Also choose a scrubbable paint for the other walls, something like Little Greene intelligent eggshell is great (although the slight sheen will show up any plaster Imperfections but it will also bounce a little light). I like the rugs although do see Sonia's point re the ground floor one 😂 Great idea for books/display. Just thinking as you're decorating anyway you could install downlights and keep the pendants rather than run other lights off it? I'm not a huge downlights fan but they do serve a purpose! Maybe run them off a separate switch to the pendants?
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laura_hewitt26
Original Author
6 years ago
Thanks for the ideas both, really appreciate the advice. I think I like the idea of going slightly darker below the dado, then either a lighter paint or wallpaper above, but worry about it being too dark.

i do like the wallpaper in the last pic, nice pattern but also simple.

Thank you!
PRO
Kerry Bryan Interiors
6 years ago
I'm glad I could help, I look forward to seeing pictures! :)

Decorating a dark hallway

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honeypoppet

Kerry Bryan Interiors

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Decorating a dark hallway

Comments (4)

honeypoppet

Kerry Bryan Interiors

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laura_hewitt26Original Author

Kerry Bryan Interiors

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laura_hewitt26
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