Why is it driving you crazy? What do you not like about it?

What I am trying to do is create more of an entryway. I would love to have enough space to have a mudroom. The front door currently opens up into the living room in a very awkward way. As far as getting rid of the carport, this seems like such a waste.

Ideas

As Dar said, as long as that carport is there blocking the entrance, you will not have a good sense of arrival. Having said that:

1) Inside solution: make area just inside door (up to window) a small mudroom (or maybe there is even more room----would have to see picture of entire living room.

2) Outside solution: make the area that is now the little porch your mudroom.

3) Make the carport into a single-car carport. Use the right side of it as your entrance/mudroom.

Redirect the traffic in the house if you don't want to change the outside. Is that a china cabinet next to the door? Can you put a bench with cubbies and hooks for a mudroom OR have a built in closet made. Can we see a picture of the whole space?

Move the front door to the right of the window on the front wall. Use the same door as it is likely original to the home. Change the glass in the door to clear Bump out where the door is currently to be even with the wall behind the china cabinet. Remove the shelves/cupboard and have a new mudroom style bench/shelving/hook built in out of popular wood and paint it like your door is painted. Check Potterybarn for ideas of mudroom components. On the outside, put in a lovely curve walkway from curbside to your new doorway. I realize this sounds like a lot to accomplish, but just take one step at a time, and you will have several new features to you home that are super workable. You have a darling home. Good luck Sunflower Daisy. Cat Rowe ( a daisy lover)

Here are more pictures with a clearer view of the front door and the layout of the house.

And some more....

And here is the rest...

If you really need a mudroom, I would take out the china cabinet and desk and have or buy from IKEA closets as tall as the china cabinet maybe with a bench and cabinets up on top for storage and do the whole wall. I would also take out the curio cabinet. I know you didn't ask about rearranging but I think you can do better in this space. I hate my back to a door. I would think about what you really "need int he room" I am almost thinking that you should reverse the room. Put the couch where the TV is. You have alot of pieces in the room. Do you need all of them?

We bought the house recently and have my son and his new wife living with us. The garage conversion is their "apartment" and have not decided what to do with my stuff! In process of redecorating the home.

I would hold off on any changes until you decide what the permanent living arrangements will be, then contact a licensed contractor....in the interim you could buy a hall tree to help out....

I was about to type in excactly what Cat Rowe said a couple of posts up. Move the door to nest to the windo, and then bump out that space. To create your mud area. Or, you can use an upright narrow bookshelf sidewats and put it under the window to use as cubbies. And then make a pillow top for the bench.

The door needs to come to the front of the home so you can see where to enter the home. Be sure to have a light installed next to the new door placement

Sunflower, I very much like people to spend their dollars wisely. Thanks for the pictures. They help a lot. I have a couple of questions before I give more suggestions:

1) Do you simply not like the way the door opens to the living room lookswise or functionally, do you desire a mudroom or both?

2) Are you willing to change the carport area?

Ideas I am thinking of are

a enclosing the whole area, make a 1-car garage and making the right side the mudroom.

b Or, you could enclose the whole area, make it a 2-car garage and make the little porch area the mud room. You could leave the brick, which would be a charming, unexpected inside room.

c Or, you could enclose only the left side to make it a garage, making the right side a charming courtyard entrance. Then, enclose the front porch brick area

d Finally, you could move the carport area. Then, you could make the carport a really charming entrance courtyard.

Exterior door color I would go with black to give punch to this entry , have a wall decor on the side of it if possible since the light is on the opposite wall

[houzz=]


As far as the carport goes ,lucky you at least when it rains and you need to bring groceries in you wont get wet , This isn't your front door so it shouldn't bother you ,just add a little touch to embellish it and concentrate on other things .

Oh! I read your comment over and you said that this is your front door , in that case if you can extend the car port outward and add a sky light on it this will bring more light in and give you more room to move around ,on a nice day don't park so close to the door then :) I'm trying to save you money here :)) Moving the door to the other wall not only will be very expensive but think of the mess dust everywhere not for me !!

My understanding is that this IS the front door......or do I have that wrong?

Heres a thought. You could replace the windows in the carport with French style doors and close up the existing entrance. Put a patio in the carport. This will extend the living area inside and make it appear larger.

Thank you for all the suggestions! They are good ideas and will consider all of them. It would be great if I could enclose the carport for additional space, however I would need a contractor to look at it and see if this is structurally sound and the cost involved. In consideration too is as cdrdesign put it, I would like to spend my money wisely.