Beautiful Before and After 2 Story Foyer Remodel with Trim Molding

I LOVE this Before and After 2 Story Foyer Remodel! Here’s how I used DIY trim molding to turn this boring foyer into a BEAUTIFUL entryway.

2 Story Foyer Remodel with DIY Trim Molding

Our 2 story foyer had tons of potential when we moved in 9 years ago. Tons! But, it was definitely in need of some major work.

Our foyer is actually huge, it’s probably 15′ wide x 12′ deep. That’s a lot of space for a foyer or entryway!

But, it’s open concept meant that the space was almost completely empty because there just wasn’t any wall space for furniture or wall art.

Before and after photos for a Two Story Foyer converted from open concept to a white two story foyer with trim. — Don’t forget to save this before and after two story foyer makeover.

And the stairs in the entryway were beautifully made, but boring. It needed some work to turn it into the feature that a stairway in the middle of a foyer should be!

Instead of just telling you about it, let me show you what I mean. Let’s get to those amazing Before and After 2 Story Foyer remodel pictures!

2 Story Foyer Remodel with DIY Trim Molding
- Our Open Plan Foyer Wasn’t Working
- Closing Off The Foyer Made It Feel Larger
More Before and After Two Story Foyer Remodel Pictures
- More Foyer Remodeling Photos
- A Few More After Photos
How Much Did This Foyer Remodel Cost?
Are Two Story Foyers Out Of Style?
Where to Find Similar Décor from my Foyer

Our Open Plan Foyer Wasn’t Working

Here’s the before view from our Family Room through to the Foyer. You can also see the Dining Room just past the foyer. That old open archway was about 10′ wide.

Here’s a before photo of that archway I got rid of, taken from the Family Room. I removed the archway, framed in the opening and drywalled both sides before building the wall to wall built ins in the Family Room.

That huge archway between the Foyer and Family Room made that wall unusable for furniture on both sides. I wanted to close that wall off and turn it into usable space, in both rooms.

And, I wanted to make that Family Room more private while also reducing some of the noise in our VERY open concept home.

Grey Blue Built In Entertainment Center in a Family Room. — Here’s a look at that same wall, in the Family Room, now. SUCH a huge improvement in style and function.

You can see MORE of the AMAZING Before and After Family Room Makeover On A Budget pictures in another post. I made some huge changes in that room too!

Here’s a view of the old Family Room from the Front Door.

Once we had kids the toys that we kept in the Family Room always found their way into that 2 Story Foyer.

I really needed a Family Room that wasn’t visible from the Front Door. And, a wall to keep toys from ending up in the entryway.

Closing Off The Foyer Made It Feel Larger

The 2 story foyer was already kind of GRAND. Or, at least it had the potential to be grand. The stairs had some nice molding already that I decided to carry across to the new wall.

Painting all of that molding in the 2 story foyer white brightened the room while also adding instant class!

White 2 Story Foyer with trim and molding around a staircase. — Adding that wall and that beautiful white trim made the foyer feel larger and like the GRAND entrance I always wanted.

I have a post about How to Remove an Arched Doorway in a Wall that shows detail pics on the demo and framing in that old opening.

Check out How to Cut Drywall & Hang Drywall – 15 Beginner Tips to find some helpful tips for anyone new to drywall. You can see me drywalling this wall in that post.

I continued the lines of the molding already on the stairs across the new wall. That meant that I had to cut strips of plywood to size.

Plywood and Trim around stairs, before painting. — Here’s a look at the plywood and trim I added to the new wall.

And, I added trim molding along the plywood that matched the existing stairway molding.

I am SO IN LOVE with the way this trim molding accents the height of this traditional style foyer.

White trim molding finish carpentry in a large foyer with stairs with a black railing. — Look at this amazing change! You can find woodworking build plans for that DIY Console Table with Drawers on this site too. That beautiful dark teal paint color pops against those white walls.

More Before and After Two Story Foyer Remodel Pictures

This 10′ high molding on that newly added wall was such a huge improvement. Even from the 2nd floor the style of this area is so much better.

Before photo of the view down the stairs. — Here’s a look at the view down the stairs from the 2nd floor.

Those white walls make that black banister really stand out too! If you’re loving that cow wall art, here are some beautiful options on Amazon.

View from the 2nd floor in a home down the stairs. — I LOVE this view!

How about a look at that foyer stairway makeover from the bottom of the stairs now??

Before photo on a foyer makeover. Foyer has blue paint and a baby gate on the stairs. — This was taken about 4 years before this 2 story foyer makeover.

Check out my DIY Baby Gate Hack for Stairs – No Drill! to see how I installed that baby gate without putting any holes in the walls. That thing was totally unshakeable for 4 years, against 2 toddlers.

Does this even seem like the same house?? The whole vibe is changed by closing off that wall, adding the trim, and going with white paint!

More Foyer Remodeling Photos

White foyer with stairs, looking up the stairs. — Does this even seem like the same house??

That’s our sweet cat Fluffy, by the way. We adopted her at the begining of 2021 and she’s absolutely taken over the house, and the blog.

Check out these posts for cat owners: Do Claw Caps for Cats Work? I LOVE them! OR Easy DIY Cat Tree Wood House OR How to Hide A Kitty Litter Box in a Cabinet.

And, here’s a view from the middle landing on those stairs.

White foyer from above with light tile floors and a natural fiber tan and blue rug. — Hi again, Fluffy!

I took those photo for a post about how using a light paint color on the walls is improving every room in my house.

View looking up at a 2 story high foyer with light walls and stairs. — Can you see that extra chunky crown molding up there??? One of the reasons we bought this house was all of the custom molding that was already here.

Here’s that same view BUT with the wall closed off and even MORE molding and trim. You can see more of that ceiling and a few other nice ceilings in my home in the Best Paint Sheen on Ceilings post.

Large 2 story entryway in a home with white trim and molding everywhere. — I’m so, so happy about this foyer makeover, guys!

Have a seat at my Dining Table, before and after the Entryway Makeover.

View of the foyer 5 years. ago. — This picture from the Dining Room was taken about 4 or 5 years ago.

View through an archway of a white foyer with board and batten walls. — This view from our Dining Room table is one of my favorites.

A Few More After Photos

Image of a traditional white home entryway. Looking down from the 2nd floor of a landing that overlooks the foyer in a home. — View from the 2nd floor into the foyer. I made that artwork to the left of the door in the How to Patina Paint Faux Metal Finishes post. And that paint finish on the mirror to the right is in DIY Weathered Paint Effect with Chalk Paint.

View of a stained wood door in a white 2 story entry of a home. — I might even refinish my little Easy DIY Upholstered Entryway Bench to put under that mirror again. This room feels large enough to handle another piece of furniture now.

White 2 story foyer makeover after picture. — Can you tell that cat really wants to eat that plant? I normally keep that thing up to high for her to reach.

Siamese cat reaching out to a plant on a Console Table in a foyer. — And, another attempt at the plant. Taking these photos while trying to keep her away from that plant was a little bit challenging. Those Rust Colored decor pieces on the Console Table are actually a Rust Paint Makeover from another post.

A cat in a white traditional foyer with board and batten. — I LOVE this photo of that 2 Story Entry.

How Much Did This Foyer Remodel Cost?

Since I did all of this work myself, I saved thousands of dollar on labor for this Two Story Foyer Remodel. My best guess is that I actually only spent somewhere between $400 and $500 on the changes in this entry.

I spent money on materials to frame in the old archway opening, drywall for the framing, and the plywood and trim molding that I added to that wall.

Then, I really only had to buy small things like screws, brad nails, caulk, wood filler, and paint to finish that wall off.

That’s it! I already had all of the decor items from that foyer. Can you believe the huge improvement I got for that amount of money. That’s why I LOVE DIY.

Images of the before and after on a foyer in a traditional home with white finish carpentry and a black banister on the stairway. — Don’t forget to Save or Share this Before and After.

Check out Do you use Caulk or Wood Filler on Wood Trim? for tips on DIY’ing your own trim, molding, board and batten, feature wall, plywood plank ceiling, or other wainscoting projects.

Are Two Story Foyers Out Of Style?

If you want an inviting GRAND entryway, I still think a Two Story Foyer is the best option. But, I think you probably need at least 2500 square feet in a home to design the right layout for a 2 story foyer.

And, Two Story Foyers are great for letting a lot of light into an entryway, as long as you have a large window on the 2nd story.

Two Story Entryways are also a great way to show off a beautiful staircase. And, if you have that 2nd story window, that means your staircase will be well lit too.

A dark stairway in a home always makes the home feel dated, closed off, or poorly designed.

I also think an open, 2 story foyer that has the staircase in it helps the 1st floor and 2nd floor feel more connected. Instead of having the 2 floors mostly shut off to each other.

Unless you have adult children living upstairs, you want to still feel like your kids on the 2nd floor are part of the daily household activities.

I will say, that even though I love a two story foyer, I am not a fan of our two story Living Room. It’s a huge waste of space that ends up costing us more money to heat and cool that large room.

Plus, a two story Living Room really makes our home feel too noisy. Any conversations or TV in that Living Room carries through the whole house.

Check out the 14 Best Ways to Renovate A Living Room on a Budget, this Before & After DIY Home Living Room Makeover post, or this 16 Great Ways to Repurpose an Open Formal Living Room to see more of my Living Room and Family Room.