Many homeowners use the garage as one of the main entry points to the house. You’re pulling your car into the garage anyway, and it’s usually easier to just go into the house through the garage than to walk around to the front door. And if you’re having people over, leaving the garage door open and having them come in that way can also be a lot easier. But if you’re going to use your garage as a main entry point for yourself and for guests, then you definitely want to make sure that you’ve taken the time to make your garage inviting, just as you would with your foyer. Take a look at a few changes that can help improve your garage’s appeal.
Spruce Up The Door
You probably make sure that your front door is clean and free of dents or marks, and you update the paint on the door and trim when it starts to look worn. The door in your garage leading into your home often gets more use, but because it’s an interior door, it’s easier to ignore its condition. True, this door isn’t exposed to the elements like your front door is, but that doesn’t mean that it never needs a fresh coat of paint.
If it’s been awhile since you’ve really looked at the door inside the garage, now is the time to take a look. Check for dents, scuffs, fingerprints, dirt, and peeling paint. Even if it looks OK, you may want to consider repainting with a fun, inviting color. Choose a bright color that you don’t mind looking it when you’re working at your garage workbench. You may even want to stencil a sign or image onto the door – it doesn’t have to match the rest of the house, like the front door does, so it’s OK to be a little creative.
Decorate Your Unused Space
Even a utilitarian space like a garage can use a little bit of flair. If you don’t have floor-to-ceiling pegboard and shelves, you might want to think about hanging some art on the garage walls. The garage is a good place for art that you like but your spouse does not (assuming that you use the garage more often than your spouse) or for pieces that don’t fit with the décor in the main part of the house. If you don’t have any of that, you can still brighten up the walls by putting some of your children’s masterpieces into unused frames, or by picking out some inexpensive art pieces at local craft stores or art fairs.
Don’t have any wall space? You could always put a small sculpture in an empty corner or a decorative lamp on your workbench. These little touches are enough to show that someone cares about this space.
Refinish Old Surfaces
The garage is often the place where things that still work but are no longer pretty to look at end up. For example, if your refrigerator has become rusty, stained, or dented, but still works, you might buy a new, attractive refrigerator for your kitchen and relegate the old one to the garage to hold any overflow.
You can easily turn that refrigerator into an attractive spot in your garage. Try sanding down the rough spots, cleaning the surfaces thoroughly, and painting it over with chalkboard or whiteboard paint. Now it’s an attractive and useful surface. You can apply the same logic to anything from old deep freezers to beat-up file cabinets.
With a little work and creativity, youcan make your garageinto a place that you’re proud to show off to guests and that you enjoy walking through. Of course, it all starts with organization. To find out how Garage Envy can help, contact us for a free design consultation and estimate.
{{cta(‘4e0ca529-46da-44c8-acce-dd815d6ec4bc’,’justifycenter’)}}
