A little facelift {for my hallway bench!}

I wrote last year about finding the perfect narrow hallway bench seat for our wonky little cottage.

We didn’t have to look very hard, as I found the perfect small hallway bench with storage from GLTC.

The Abbeville storage bench is SO useful and a master of disguise.

It works well as a little reading nook.

Or as smart storage for a child’s bedroom or playroom.

But — after much deliberation — we decided that it was a perfect hideaway. Particularly for the mountain of shoes that seem to accumulate by our front door.

It’s roomy baskets offer plenty of storage; perfect stashing things away neatly.

Plus, it doubles up as a bench seat, thanks to the comfy cushion on the top.

It’s the perfect place for the little ones to put their shoes on. Or sit and gaze out of the window.

It’s so versatile but also, when you’re short on room, it’s diminutive dimensions mean it’s perfect for small spaces.

But best of all Great Little Trading have cleverly designed their baskets and boxes. They perfectly fit the recesses of this neat little hallway bench. Which gives lots of scope to update the look of it.

Particularly if you’re a bit fickle (like me) and like mixing things up regularly.

Previously, we had charcoal grey rope storage baskets. Plus a pale grey cushion patterned with white stars. But I’ve just changed these in favour of some two-tone baskets in ivory and natural; plus an Abbeville Storage Bench cushion in natural.

It changes the look of our hallway bench completely!

A couple of little changes and it feels like we have a totally different piece of furniture.

The Abbeville is such a great size, we’d struggle to find a better small hallway bench with storage. But the ability to change the look and feel of it so simply, just with some new accessories, means that I’ll give it houseroom for many years to come.

I’d perhaps like Great Little Trading to produce a lovely cushion cover in a ticking-stripe fabric. Maybe in charcoal grey or cherry red (hint!).

And, if I’m feeling crafty, perhaps I’ll update the baskets with pom-poms (as they’ve done on their blog). Which will tie in nicely with my gorgeous summer ‘market basket’, that I picked up in The Hambledon last month.

But facelifts, pom-poms and ticking-stripe aside, our little hallway bench still makes the very best place to sit and look out of the window.