Hi all! Thanks so much for joining me again! Today, I am sharing a project I did a while back. It’s been so useful for about a year and a half, so I thought I’d write about it.

Almost from the moment we moved in to our house 4 years ago, I knew I wanted board and batten in our entryway. It was a big diy project for us (see here), and I was nervous about tackling it. SO, I decided to tackle a smaller area to see how it went first. This is the tight little doorway that goes from our kitchen to the garage. It’s the door we go out most of the time, so it’s a great spot to hold all MY stuff for getting out the door quickly!

Here’s how it looked before…unassuming and plain. I wouldn’t call it an eye sore, but definitely not the efficient use of space it is now!

So, I did some research online on installing board and batten, and after my husband told me we could pay someone to fix it if I messed it up, I had the confidence I needed to tackle it! I mean, I needed a safety net what can I say?

So, we bought some primed pine 1×3’s and went to town. I made sure each board was nailed in to studs or anchored them just to make sure nothing got ripped out of the wall because of a heavy purse or crazy kid climbing the walls. Here’s how it looked mid-project. I was inspired late one night and couldn’t wait to put up the wall decor!

I also made sure to cut the bottom of the boards at a 45 degree angle in order to meet the baseboards. I was nervous this would look weird, but I don’t notice it at all. (Don’t mind the beat up baseboards.)

Finally, I painted it all the same color as our baseboard trim and picked up some hooks from Lowe’s.

And here’s the finished project…

The black rectangle is a magnetic chalkboard I got on Amazon. I usually keep coupons, etc to remind me to use them. The metal envelope is from Hobby Lobby and is useful for receipts I need to hang on to for returns and sunglasses.

And I love my “last looks” mirror that was a last minute addition.

I also ended up painting the door, because the white was just too plain.

Like I said earlier, it’s been there for about a year and a half now, and it’s still one of the most useful projects we’ve done. I mean, I use it everyday!

I hope this inspires you to find inefficient spaces in your home and make them more useful and beautiful!