I would consider having them closed up and painted to match the surrounding walls -- they are both too formal for your style and a little random for most people's decorating approaches. Second choice, find three paintings that work well together and hang one per niche.

Unless you have stunning art to showcase, I would fill them in with drywall.

whitewashed barnwood shelves behind your bench would look great and are easy to put in and configure....then fill it up with all your homey or farmhouse odds and ends.....

If it were me, I would fill them in, add your bench and art above, a rustic chandelier and a nice runner. Will be more impactful yet simple.

What a missed opportunity - doesn't have to be stunning/ly expensive. Any similar pieces, made of wicker, rattan, wood - what farmhouse looks might you like there? Make that a hallway of whimsy!

You could paint it a deeper neutral of any shade to accent the piece there. In a sense the niche/ different color becomes a frame for your item.

Only wallpaper and a bit busy - by itself - or add very simple shapes with:

the light fixtures and flooring really doesn't look rustic or farmhouse to me.

I wouldn't even care if you had painted lattice flush with wall surface/ used LED tape behind to light it up - it seems a place for you and yours to put your stamp there. What about vintage photos, personal shadow boxes..... seems each family has a bit of that. The ones that look drab but have interesting frames.... could use modern paint color behind.

I should mention that the flooring is being changed tomorrow and I would consider changing the light fixture.

lovely flooring and definitely more rustic looking :)

Close it up instead of buying things to fit these niches, which doesn't seem to fit your farmhouse/relaxed style anyways. As in, I don't think there is a way to make these look like they make sense, unless you have special art to exhibit.

lovely floor, close it in or shiplap it ;)

love your new flooring. what is it? and those nichesare a great spot for some art. Or, how bout doing some photographs? 3- 11X14 (or even 16X20, depending on how big your framing wants to be), black and white photos, matted and framed in either a black and white or white matted and rustic wood frames. All three would match in symmetry. photos of your kids, family, pets, etc. Perfect spot and keeping it black and white would lend to the rustic theme.

I realize these photos aren't framed, but you get the idea.

Another option would be to line the insets with some reclaimed wood, or even shiplap, and then do a simple black framed photo on top.

use a burlap matte and white frame?

You could also jazz it up by painting a bold color (just the back part) and doing a white framed black/white photo. Or painting it a charcoal gray for a little drama.

Honestly, there so many options for those. Wallpaper, shelves, mirrors,,,,

this one is almost identical to yours and they did something very different..

I think they're nice and unique. Why have an entryway everyone else has? Be different!!

Ovchincovv, Eugene is a spammer. He's all over the site today :)

A completely different idea from those listed above -- if you have a collection of anything, use these insets as display cases! These can hold small shelves with miniature figurines, framed coins, travel memorabilia, or even Lego minifigures. (Had to throw in an idea for any grown up boys who still love the plastic bricks!)

Ask yourself if you would have purposefully added these cutouts to your hall. If not, then fill them in with drywall and decorate as you please to match the rest of your house.

I think you could use these to your advantage

carved wall sculptures

Oh PLEASE no!

buddha carvings

Even worse, lol.

Just another spammer posting their irrelevant stuff.

You should call your dry wall guy in to have them removed. They aren't necessary and they're causing a problem. Your wall would be better without them.

You don't need to decorate someone's bad idea. Just make them go away.

If you do decide to keep them at least paint them the same color as the rest of the walls. Don't highlight them!

I'd drywall over them. An old church pew would be a nice piece there.

Why not just paint the same as the wall and ignore them? If you can afford to, though, and you have no art of any kind or family photos you can enlarge that would go with your style, close them up.

Love all the ideas and there are so many different things you can do!

I say keep them, you could add hinged doors to 2 of them, adding old hardware so they look like unique closets. It is more of a visual than a function. Use your flooring for the doors.

Leave the middle one open for pictures/unique collage.

Here is a door I made out of old barn wood and added unique iron accents.

I'd take a few of those floor boards, make frames out of them. Add some artwork in each, framed from the flooring. I'd hate to see you fail in those niches!

I'd hate to see you fill in those niches!

I love white shiplap.... It may cost less to day shiplap them and display some cool baskets, white dishes, vintage window or mirrors or things that bring the mood you like in. You could always try and shiplap one and if you don't like it drywall over them.

I vote for wallpapering them and adding art; you could highlight (and add more light to the hallway by placing wall lights above each opening:

Paint them one of the colors you have in your house and add art:

Oh don't get rid of them. They add character to the home. That wouldn't be very smart

It depends on the style of your home. Niches were a thing back in the 80s90 s, not so much now. Do you like them? I would not spend a lot of money to make these work, if you could just drywall them.

To be honest, if those were filled in - and it was another OP - they'd ask "what should I do with this long expanse of wall?" At least they set 3 spaces for you to use. Seeing the arch shape - maybe you could use rounded / oval shapes within niches.

Just one wp idea:

Called Bohemian, but I love the color options:

I've seen this in a restaurant.... less 'fussy' maybe than last one?

wallpaper would be so fun!!

Many like vintage maps - from your interests, 3 in a row.

Started on this last month. I like how it's turning out!

Are you going to put those smaller items in all 3 cutouts? I would go for more of a wow factor, but that is just me.

I realize this is an older thread, but I'm seeing it for the first time. How about some actual old farm/garden tools? One or three large pieces in each niche. If you don't want them to look old and rusty, clean them and spray paint in the color of your choice. A really bold color would make quite a statement and would make them both antique and modern at the same time.

Consider the shape and size to get the right layout and balance.