16 Ways to Seriously Upgrade Your Old Doors This Season
Doors are so much more than practical features that provide privacy and keep out the cold. From screen doors to French doors, the right materials can create a striking, decorative feature that is a delight to behold. Even larger portals such as a garage door or a barn door can become statement projects. Whether you’re renovating a dilapidated door or creating one from scratch, you will find plenty of inspiration below.
1. Add paneling to your hollow core doors
Turning a drab, flat, hollow-core door into an elegantly paneled masterpiece is surprisingly easy and cost-effective. Hometalker Thrifty Artsy Girl spent under $20 per door applying trim that she cut down to size with a miter box and saw. A little precise measuring and gluing later, and she had two delightfully stylish paneled doors, complete with spray-painted doorknobs for that finishing touch. Get tutorial here
2. Get inspiration from your favorite season
Little says more about our homes than our front doors. Hometalker Heather Brown used Fall as the perfect excuse to give her porch door a makeover. The dark red-orange paint provides seasonal warmth, while the family used planters and textured fabrics to create a host of accessories that deliver a real fall feel. Get tutorial here
3. Hang a barn door to save space
You don’t need to own a tractor to benefit from the convenience of barn doors. Hometalker Deeply Southern Home used her modern, transitional interpretation of a barn door to replace awkward, space-wasting French doors with a beautiful alternative. The sliding barn doors had the added advantage of opening and closing silently, as well as looking fabulous. Get tutorial here
4. Turn an old sliding door into elegant French doors
Ordering a pair of plain French doors and customizing them to suit the style and color palette of your home is a great way to add a unique touch of class. Hometalker Brocante Elegance focused on a custom-designed crown and outer trim to make these beautiful French doors really stand out. Get tutorial here
5. Say goodbye to bare glass panes
Front doors with bare glass panes in them mean that anyone at the door can see directly into your home. Hometalker RebD adapted three floor registers to add privacy, whilst also creating a more stylish front door. The spray-painted metal grills are held in place with nails rather than glue for easy removal when the glass needs cleaning. Get tutorial here
6. Make a difference with a doorknob
The right doorknob can make all the difference to a door. Hometalker Susan turned a dated side door into an inviting portal with this aged bronze, lever-keyed entry lock in just 15 minutes. Removing the tired and overly fussy outer frame brought simplicity and class to the finished project – a perfect example of ‘less is more’. Get tutorial here
7. Give glass panes an uplift with etched film
Why put up with boring glass panes when you can add style and privacy with some etched film? This Hometalker shows here how a plain piece of film can be cut to different sizes for a stunning final effect. All you need in addition to the film is a knife, a ruler, and a cutting mat – simplicity itself. Get tutorial here
8. Brighten up your front door with decorative glass
Decorative glass can do wonders to transform the look of your front door, while also allowing more light into your home. Hometalker Sue used a jigsaw to cut a panel out of her fiberglass front door before rehanging it and adding a decorative glass pane and a fresh coat of paint. What a beautiful result! Get tutorial here
9. Add some farmhouse charm with a knotty barn door
Sliding barn doors are such fantastic space savers! Hometalker Noting Grace used wood stain and antiquing glaze to achieve the perfect finish for her boards when she built this sliding barn door. A pneumatic nail gun made for a quicker and cleaner installation than screws and helped achieve this wonderfully modern farmhouse feel. Get tutorial here
10. Create a unique design that's all your own
Creating doors from scratch isn’t too tricky if you have the right vision and the right tools. This Hometalker used a timber 'X' to create four quadrants, then added the pattern one quadrant at a time. After screwing the pattern in place and sanding the door, all it needed was a final coat of paint. Get tutorial here
11. Add elegance with a mirrored door
When Hometalker Debbie needed to save space, she opted to make a sliding barn door for her bathroom out of a decorative arched mirror and some MDF. After mounting the door, she framed it out and added trim and molding on the sides for privacy. The result is a stunning, cathedral-style piece that adds elegance while also saving space. Get tutorial here
12. Use a pop of color to achieve a striking effect
Whoever said front doors had to be dull? The right splash of color can transform the look of your home, as this Hometalker proved with this stunning turquoise front door, which pairs beautifully with the red brickwork and black screen door. She recommends a semi-gloss finish and to steer clear of a satin finish, as it marks too easily for a front door. Get tutorial here
13. Beautify any door with a stained glass window
Cutting a hole in your front door may seem like a daunting idea, but it’s an easily achievable project. Hometalker Adele and her husband did just that in order to add this gorgeous stained glass window. She made a mount for the glass and sanded it before staining and installing it. What a wonderful way to brighten up a front door! Get tutorial here
14. Try a double barn door for smaller spaces
These double sliding barn doors from Hometalker Cindy look simply stunning. Reclaimed wood and frosted plexiglass cut down to size made for the basic doors, which Cindy then installed on a sliding rail above, with a guide on the bottom. Discreet handles and a hook to lock the doors together were the finishing touches. Get tutorial here
15. Distress your doors
This Hometalker wanted a sliding barn door with a vintage distressed look. After making a door out of new timber, she took to it with a hammer and a hand saw to rough it up. She avoided a pre-stain treatment in order to get a more natural result when staining the wood which, after installing the new sliding piece, resulted in a really beautiful finish. Get tutorial here
16. Add some aqua for a fresh finish
Colored French doors can become a real feature in a white room. This Hometalker turned two reclaimed French doors into a beautiful entranceway to her master bedroom, painting them aqua for an eye-catching finish that both brightens up the room and adds a touch of cool coastal style. Get tutorial here
