If your keys always land on the kitchen counter, pay attention to where you put your bag when you come through the door. That spot is a better starting point than the console table you saved on Pinterest.
Walk through with the door open
Open the front door as far as you normally do. Carry a grocery bag or laundry basket through the hall and see where you turn sideways. Mark the footprint of any piece you’re considering on the floor. Include the baseboard, handles, and enough room to open any drawers. Keep the route and exit clear.
Give the things you bring home three places to land
Set a shallow dish for keys on a surface you already pass. Give mail a slim tray with room for a week’s worth, then move it when the tray fills. Use a shoe mat for the pair you wear most. If those three things solve the pile, you can leave the rest of the hallway open.
When a shallow cabinet makes sense
If shoes keep spreading into the path, a tilt-out cabinet can move them off the floor. IKEA’s TRONES is one example. Check how far the front projects when open and follow the wall-mount instructions. If you can’t mount it in your rental, keep shoes in an existing closet or use a low tray outside the door swing.
Can you close the door, put down your keys, and turn toward the kitchen without moving anything?
See IKEA’s small-hallway layouts and photos and the TRONES dimensions and gallery.
Recommended products
IKEA TRONES shoe cabinet (003.973.07)
For an entry where you have permission to mount storage to the wall. Tape out the footprint and check the clearance with the compartment open.
IKEA BAGGMUCK shoe tray, 18 × 14 in. (405.737.56)
For a floor spot outside the door swing. Measure the space available with the door fully open.