Shea McGee Shares The Key To The Perfect Festive Entryway

The holidays are quickly approaching, and it's time to ready our home decor. Whether you plan on having guests over or have holiday trips on the calendar, turning your home into a festive wonderland will prepare you for your seasonal activities. The first place you can start is the entryway, as this will give your guests an impression of what the rest of your home will look like. If you're not sure how to get started, interior designer and co-host of "Dream Home Makeover" Shea McGee has provided a few easy tips (via Homes and Gardens).

She and her husband, Syd McGee, own their interior design business Studio McGee, as well as an online store called McGee and Co., where they sell their own home decor, per Studio McGee. With Shea McGee's design experience and expertise, she has created two simple methods to create a festive foyer in a very non-stressful way.

Lighting has always been a powerful decorative tool — especially for the holiday season. "Illuminating your space is key in creating a cozy, inviting atmosphere," McGee told Homes and Gardens. She believes even adding a few candles can create a festive atmosphere and ambient lighting. However, if you'd like to take it a step further, McGee advises adding layers to your lighting by adding lamps and some sort of statement light to create an eye-catching entryway. The type of mood you'd like to set in the space is also important, whether it's cozy, sophisticated, or classic, per Wolfers. Adding a dimmer to your lights will help create whatever ambiance you'd like at any time of the day.

McGee is also big on textured baskets converted to storage systems in your entryway. "The holidays mean lots of hosting and entertaining at our house, so it's important that the entryway welcomes our guests with form and function," McGee noted. These baskets can simply fit underneath your foyer table and stay out of your guests' way while also functioning as shoe storage. She also believes homeowners should introduce a few decorative bowls on their entryway tables to store aesthetically pleasing items.