RSVPstyle

Solution: Even in small spaces, you can create a sense of entry. You do not have to have a grand foyer to welcome your guests.

By simply placing a console table behind the sofa and a few accessories on top of it, we gave people coming in something to stop and look at before taking in the rest of the room.

Things we had to consider: first, the height of the sofa. We did not want a table that would be taller than the sofa, because then it would be visible from the seating area and from the front of the sofa. We looked for a table that was about the same height or a little shorter.

Two, scale: The console table is a little smaller than the sofa, yet doesn’t feel too small.

Three: accessories. These had to be kept simple and low-lying—we didn’t want them to interrupt the view plane straight to the beautiful art glass focal point at the far end of the room. We chose a line of white glass votives that tie in with the small white pendant lighting. Keeping the plant small-scale and low-lying means that anyone sitting on the sofa won’t appear to have tall flowers growing out of their head.

Four: style and color. The Asian lacquered table helps carry the secondary Asian style the Agenas chose to complement their primary contemporary theme, and the black ties in with the dark ebony stain in the floating shelves.

The resulting sense of entry is subtle and inexpensive, but a dramatic difference—and a lot better than walking into the back of a sofa!