Foyer fabulosity Part I and a Stylish Blogger Award!

I start this day with a prayer for Japan and for the recovery and restoration process to be swift and successful and for the people to remain strong and determined. May God light their way.....

I was extremely grateful to receive the Stylish blogger award by not one but two absolutely amazing blogger friends whose blogs are two of my top favorites! Thank you so much Amy and Luciane!! I am honored and grateful for the recognition. Please visit them at their blogs (both incredibly great)

Click here

Click here

One part of accepting this award is passing it on....so here is my list of  blogs I feel deserve special recognition and a shout out for doing an awesome job! They are each worth visiting as there is always beautiful eye candy and interesting tidbits of information (Click on blog to visit) And thanks for what you do!

• Long Island style                              
• Pretty Pink Tulips
• Quintessence
• Chic Coastal Living
• Design Chic
• Flipflops and pearls
• Splendid Sass
• Kelly Market
• Belgian Pearls
• Preppy Princess
• Party Resources
• Renee Finberg

Good morning........I preface  this by saying this is going to be part I of a two part post. I have a large collection of foyers and dont' want any of them feeling left out so today is part I!  (Part II will follow one day next week) Foyers are one of my favorite rooms in the house. They are the first to give you an impression and hopefully a lasting one. Think about the first time you visit someones house or apartment, your very first opinion or take on that respective home is based upon the minute the front door opens.........

Do you see a bland space that underwhelms you or an interesting space with beautiful flooring, lighting, maybe a beautiful chest or console with a lamp or interesting objects of art. Maybe there is a painting, mirror or collection of books perched atop a table. The foyer is your first chance to wow someone coming into your home. It can set and should set the tone for what is to come. Because it is typically small or smaller than other rooms in the home, it is often a "doable" room to complete and unlike a living or dining room, you don't have to wait until you can afford to get everything you need. So here are some foyers that I think have successfully created that WOW factor and get you at "hello".

Hendrix/Allardyce designed this fabulous and very grand foyer using antiques and allowing the gorgeous tall iron doors to create drama and elegance

I love this beautiful and quietly dignified foyer complete with center table, ample seating and lots of natural sunlight...the architectural elements add a lot of visual interest

Gorgeous breathtaking foyer with dramatic black and white marble floors, gorgeous architectural elements is all you need, Cullman and Kravis

Ashley Whittaker created this beautiful and stately space, love the floors, the blue and white and the stair runner...they all work fabulously together

Scott Snyder chose gorgeous inlaid wood floors to create a wow factor for this elegant Park Avenue apartments foyer...very opulent

A stately home went simple and classic in their foyer, understated and elegant

Thomas Pheasant designed this understated, classic traditional foyer in Paris

Vibrant metalized wallpaper is sometimes all you need for the wow factor

An all time favorite, very French looking, the paneled door, flooring and iron balustrade make it!

Love this elegant old world feeling foyer, Mary Evelyn McKee

Darly Henault used a dramatic inlaid stone floor for extra punch in this traditional foyer

This has a neat, sleek and elegant vibe. The stone walls add a lot of interest as does the dark framed door....nicely done.

Alexa Hampton designed this spectacular New Orleans foyer complete with columns, intricate marble flooring and a fabulous iron door, keeping the furnishings simple and understated

Kay Douglass designed this European influenced foyer with Belgian stone floors and a rustic center table, love the floor and the beautiful antique lamp

J Randall Powers created this symmetrical foyer with a pair of chests, mirrors and stools

Jan Showers designed this glamorous old Hollywood feeling foyer

Ned Marshall kept this dramatic space sparse and simple...the dark dramatic floors take center stage, he went with a silver striped paper and played off the color in accessorizing it 

This surely has the wow factor, the gorgeous bright chinoiserie panels and zebra covered benches add much drama to this foyer, Maison 21

Barbara Westbrook used rich warm woods to decorate this pretty and casually elegant foyer

Wow talk about drama! HGTV dream house chose to paint the walls and molding aqua with gold accents....dramatic and lively

The less is more principle is at work here, and very effectively..quietly elegant and sophisticated foyer, Nathan Egan

William Hodkins designed this grand space, keeping it monochromatic

Pretty monochromatic wallpaper sets the cool elegant tone for this neutral foyer..beautifully done by Thornton Designs

Black and white checkerboard floors always make a statement, House Beautiful

Michael Berman kept things simple and streamlined in this transitional feeling foyer

Elegant tropical feeling to this large, grand scaled foyer complete with fireplace, House Beautiful

Sometimes just a few very dramatic objects is all that is needed as shown here, Decorpad

Jonathan Adler kept this all white foyer simple and used purposeful pops of color for drama on the chair, and black console table

So you know I love to know if you have a favorite. What are your favorite touches in a foyer? Some things I love are over sized mirrors, tall branches in a blue and white jar or some other pretty container, a few books or picture frames adds a warm touch. Flooring and lighting of course are very important and set the tone for all the decorating elements that follow. Have an enchanting day!