Making an Entrance and Creating the Right First Impression
They say that you never get a second chance to make the right first impression, and when it comes to the presentation of your home, never has such a saying been so true. For it’s believed that people make up their mind about your home, and whether they feel comfortable and safe in it within the first 11 seconds of entering your hallway. Without a doubt what this tells us is that the hallway – that often neglected, misused and overworked space in your house – is actually the one space where you need to concentrate effort when transforming your house into a home. It’s the hallway where you need to focus attention to ensure that it’s a welcoming space. And according to the rules of feng shui, there are many ways that you can ensure the positive energy charge – or chi – that enters your home and affects your life balance as it makes its way from your hallway and into your property, is correctly balanced.
Couple impressive and appropriate décor with these principles of feng shui, and you not only have an entrance designed to give the chi a clear and positive path for its charge, but you have a space that immediately impresses and enchants a visitor. Of course one cannot forget the fact that many a hallway has a practical function beyond providing passage to the rest of your home – in some houses the hallway is for storing coats and shoes, in others it’s a shared space leading to multiple accommodation units – but none of this means that you cannot have a de-cluttered and clean space that creates the right first impression.
Understanding that the hallway is a window to the rest of your home is a great starting point when designing it or planning the decoration of it. Then, accepting the practical uses of the space and combining them with the basics of feng shui, and also considering the overall character of the property should guide you when making decorating decisions. If yours is a period home, bring out the best period features in your hallway, if the rest of your house is all about clean lines and sophisticated living space, ensure there is minimal clutter in the entranceway. Make sure paints and fabrics used are hardwearing, especially in communal and family hallways where there is a lot of daily traffic, and finally, ensure the space is tasteful and clean, welcoming and uplifting.
Feng shui consultants suggest hanging inspiring artwork in your hall, or using a mirror to open up a narrow space, they also advise that having a rug laid in the direction in which you would like your visitor to enter your home is good for providing the right path for the positive chi to travel. And whether you believe in the principles of this ancient Chinese system of aesthetics or you simply want to make the very most of your beautiful home, one principle transcends all others, and that is keep your hallway open and free from obstacles and clutter.
According to Oliver Clarke, Sales Manger at Barton Wyatt, specialists in selling luxurious homes: “from a practical point of view a hallway needs to provide free and easy passage into and out of your home – for you, for your family, for visitors and for energy flows. Think about the decoration of your hallway from an emotional point of view – who wants to see muddy shoes and a vacuum cleaner when they walk into your house, i.e., who wants to see reminders of activity and labour when they return home after a day at work? Additionally, think about the decoration of your hallway from an aesthetic point of view, wouldn’t you rather enter a property where care and effort has been taken to ensure that the first impressions given are those of a serene, safe place where there is prosperity and positivity?”
Oliver Clarke certainly knows what he’s talking about, after all Barton Wyatt have a range of stunning homes within their sales prospectus at the moment – and the one thing that each of these very different properties has in common is having an impressive entrance way that creates the right lasting impression for any would-be buyer. Take the newly built and the renovated series of exclusive homes for sale on Wentworth Estate close to Virginia Water for example. Each multi-million pound property is unique in terms of external and internal design and specification, yet features a magnificent entrance hall that almost literally speaks volumes about the rest of the incredible home. One is marble lined with a sweeping staircase and chandeliers, another has a galleried landing above it, and yet another has a large and impressive, welcoming fireplace in it. To view these stunning properties, be inspired by their heavenly hallways or learn more about the homes that Barton Wyatt are offering for sale, please contact Barton Wyatt on 01344 843000 or visit www.bartonwyatt.co.uk.