What can be a built-in hallway?

The hallway is exactly the room that meets and escorts everyone who comes to visit you. And the hallway also has a functional load - you can put a lot of necessary things in it, despite the small area.

Unfortunately, in many modern apartments, the hallway is usually small and has little light. Therefore, sometimes the help of experienced designers is required to correct or literally change the design of the hallway: expand the walls, raise the ceiling, think over the lighting and change the texture of the walls.

One of the best options is to equip your small hallway with a wardrobe built into a niche or into a wall. At present, almost everything can be “built in” - from sliding wardrobes to hallways or dressing rooms.

The advantages of such a built-in hallway are obvious: space saving due to the use of existing niches, the possibility of increasing the cabinet itself - from floor to ceiling. The number of shelves can be set as well, depending on your preference, and sliding doors will save additional space.

One of the inexpensive and very popular options for arranging the hallway can be wall panels made of MDF or plastic, imitating marble or wood. These cabinets are convenient and do not require special maintenance, they are easy to clean.

If you have high hopes for your hallway, use decorative stone for wall decoration, and let the cabinet doors be mirrored.

A hallway made of natural wood is much more expensive than the previous ones and looks great in more or less spacious rooms. An alternative can be furniture made of veneered plates, which outwardly does not differ in any way from natural wood. True, it is much more expensive than a laminated product.

In cabinets, you can use decorative elements made of metal, plastic or glass.

A built-in hallway in a small space requires special rules of "location". The main requirement in this case is minimalism. For example, a cabinet is no more than 45 centimeters deep. And best of all is a wardrobe without a back wall, in which you can easily arrange various shelves and all kinds of hangers.

Baskets and drawers located at the bottom of the built-in furniture will help you to place various necessary little things and accessories there. It is recommended to place a mirror in a small hallway, this will make your room cozy and original.

It might be a good idea to combine the cabinet with the side wall of the hallway, as a result of which one of the cabinet panels can become the door to the next room.

The built-in wardrobe will also look great in the spacious hallway. Volumetric, with sliding doors, it can become a "center" figure in interior design. A free-standing mirror will ideally fit into a large hallway, into which anyone leaving the house can look at full height.

Many of us often doubt about the color of the built-in hallway - which one is better to choose so that the room does not seem small and fits the interior.

Choose light colors or natural wood colors. Built-in wardrobe doors can be decorated with photo printing, made of colored plastic. Mirror doors with a sandblasted pattern or colored matte are very popular.

A sand-colored bamboo facade is a good solution for any small hallway. Stained-glass doors can be a stylish solution - different colors that make up the main pattern will add mood and match any wallpaper color.

There is no specific design style for the hallway - everyone has the right to choose the one that they like. But experts still recommend decorating the hallway in the same styles as the rest of the rooms: you can change the color scheme, but all rooms should be designed in a single interior or complement each other harmoniously:

• If your hallway is very small, there is no time for luxury: minimalism or hi-tech would be the best option. And, of course, a lot of built-in furniture and mirrored surfaces.
• In some cases, or rather, hallways in "Khrushchev", an ascetic setting is welcomed: a lot of hooks for clothes, a small shoe stand and preferably built-in shelves or a bench where you can put various little things.

• The minimalist set of furniture can also be used in country style: light wall decoration, built-in small wardrobe in wood color and dark flooring.
• Walls painted in white will also create a cozy interior, which will emphasize the built-in options of light-colored shelves.
• The Provence style hallway assumes “aged” furniture with metal fittings, white or beige cabinets.

• The Art Nouveau style, which will give your hallway an unforgettable look, is an original design, natural colors and many floral ornaments.
• In the classic style, built-in wardrobes with mirrored doors look perfect, which will adequately decorate a long hallway with a corridor.

A special decor for any built-in hallway is doors, sliding or swing, from floor to ceiling, decorated with various decorative elements. The pattern on the cabinet doors can be made of gold or silver foil. Bright fittings, vinyl sticker, photo printing are used as decor.

Corner patterns add flavor to your built-in furniture, as does stained glass for a unique decorative effect. And the very location of the cabinet, for example, a corner or pencil case, can be a decoration for your hallway. Radial cabinet with frosted doors is able to smooth out all the irregularities and imperfections of your living space.

Well, and, of course, lighting, which in some cases "dictates the rules." Usually, there is no natural light in the hallway, with the exception of country houses or cottages. Therefore, only ceiling lighting is not enough, you need to "illuminate" some other area, for example, near the mirror.

The abundance of light will never be superfluous. In the case of a narrow corridor, the light should be directed towards the walls and not towards the ceiling.

If the walls in your apartment are not high enough, the light must be directed to the ceiling, visually "pulling" the walls. If the amount of light is not enough for you, install additional lighting in niches or under paintings.

If there are niches in your hallway, then lighting in them is the perfect solution. The sconces or original lamps located in them will add charm to the room.

Furniture in your built-in hallway is selected depending on the style, and, of course, square meters. Depending on the size of the room, you can put in it not only a lot of different convenient devices, but also the most necessary amount of furniture:

• For example, a sofa is a very comfortable piece of furniture that fits perfectly into a spacious hallway. Ottomans in front of the mirror, a comfortable shoe rack will create a cozy atmosphere in the room.
• It is necessary to install compact and functional furniture in a narrow structure. Moreover, light shades to "expand" externally the footage. You can also use cheerful shades - bright yellow, olive, striped.

• The main element of the narrow hallway is a built-in wardrobe. You can try to install a shelf for shoes in it, in addition to standard hangers. The doors of such a cabinet should be translucent or with mirrored inserts. If the wardrobe does not fit into the hallway, built-in shelves for hats and shoes can be an alternative.
• As hangers, you can nail originally decorated, stylized clothes hangers to the wall.
• Built-in shelves can be installed under the ceiling if the number of free square meters is close to zero.

Even a small hallway can be divided into several zones, which can serve as additional rooms and perform various functions. For example, a place where only shoes can be stored so that they are not conspicuous.

You can adjust the location of the zones with the help of furniture: around the corner of the cabinet you can place an area for changing clothes, behind the chest of drawers you can place a shelf for shoes. Thus, you can select a small area for a dressing room - a built-in small corner wardrobe is quite suitable for this purpose. In this case, sliding models are ideal: the same shelves for shoes can be folded.

If there is no room for it, then install a curbstone - it will come in handy in order to sit on it, and the drawers built into it will be an ideal place to store some of your things.

In old apartments, an additional room has already been taken out in the hallway - a storage room. If it is not there, then installing it would be a reasonable solution. If there is already a niche in the hallway, then you can install built-in shelves there and install a door.

In the case of a long corridor, you can fence off the pantry with a plasterboard partition with a door. As a last resort, a built-in wall storage is suitable, where it is convenient to store blanks for the winter.

In addition to the necessary furniture in the hallway, do not forget about the little things:

• For example, housekeepermounted on the wall is a useful and very convenient thing. Made in an original style, it will become a bright spot in the design and will keep your keys in order. Some key holders can be equipped with separate shelves for correspondence. Key holders with mirrors are a wonderful housewarming gift.
• Ottoman, which is necessary when changing shoes - a great addition to the interior of the hallway. Many products are equipped with a reclining top, and inside the pouf you can store removable slippers or shoe polish.

• Compact basket for clothes or various accessories will complement the appearance of the hallway. These baskets can be used to store seasonal hats, garden items and much more.
• Very comfortable umbrella stand Is a wonderful accessory for your hallway. Made of various materials, such a stand can become a "stylish" gadget and very useful in rainy weather.

And a few more useful recommendations:

• In order for the hallway to have a complete look, be sure to lay a door rug in it. It is an indispensable element of decor in winter and autumn. The rug can be replaced with a mat or tiled floor, which is very easy to clean.
• If the shoe rack does not suit you for any reason, install wooden trays with rims for shoes. So, your room will not look untidy, and the floor covering will avoid dirty stains.

• If your apartment has a very small kitchen, then you can use the meters of the hallway, for example, put a refrigerator there. However, remember that it needs a heat sink, so this appliance should not be placed very close to a wall. And so that it does not "stand out" too much in an unusual environment, you can disguise it with a vinyl film similar to wallpaper or furniture in a single color scheme.
• If there is a small chest of drawers in the hallway, then its surface can be used to store many necessary things: keys, letters, hats or cosmetics.

If the hallway room seems to you dull and gloomy, "revive" it with the original color of the door, for example, yellow. Such a bright spot will become the "center" in your interior.

Books can be placed on the shelves of the built-in pencil case, which will significantly save space in the hall or living room. Not enough shelves and space for them? Take advantage of the furniture built into the "Khrushchev" with a do-it-yourself mezzanine. A small cabinet under the ceiling with separate shelves and doors will harmoniously fit into any interior.

It is not necessary to order it in the store, you can do it yourself - cheaply and with imagination.

What is needed for this:

• Chipboard or plywood;
• various fastening elements;
• small wooden blocks;
• drill.

After you install the structure under the ceiling, you can decorate it with various decorative elements that match the color background of the room.

How to make a mezzanine with your own hands, see the next video.