One of design’s most challenging tasks is turning an odd-shaped space into one that is livable and exciting. To learn about making a daunting space dazzling, we consulted industry pros from area showhouses. From entryways to landings, small spaces to sizeable ones, these designers turned obstacles into inspiration.

personal welcome As the first and last impression a home offers, the entryway must be brilliant. And for the Kips Bay Decorator Show House, Randall Beale and Carl Lana of Beale-Lana Interior Design, New York, made sure this one was. To outfit the 48-foot by 20-foot space, the duo started at the top. “Once we figured out where the center point was for the chandelier, it all fell into place,” says Beale. The designers’ advice for anyone creating an entryway: Don’t be afraid to make it look personal. “That’s the problem with grand spaces,” says Beale. “People just don’t know how to personalize them.” But with four centuries of art and furniture-including an Irish Rococco mirror and 18th-century marble statue from the pair’s collection-that certainly didn’t apply here.

New York Spaces, Volume 4, Issue 5, 2007