If you've been reading my column regularly you'll know that my husband and I recently downsized to a condo. It needed a fair amount of updates which we've been working on for the past few months.
The condo was kind of stuck in the '70s, which is when it was built, so we had a lot of updates to do. One of the first things we did was have the entire condo professionally painted. This included painting out the dated, brown interior doors that ran throughout the space. The main hallway in the condo houses several of these doors and a transformation occurred when they were painted out in the same colour as the new trim we installed. We painted the walls in a warm, neutral colour (CIL Tawny Birch) which makes the white doors and trim really shine.
The doors themselves are inexpensive, light-weight interior doors and were very porous so the painter had to prime them and give them a few coats of paint before they looked like new again. As a side note, our painter advised us painting the doors might make them swell, which they did. After a few months though, they once again fit the openings properly. Just keep this in mind if you're going to paint your doors. You may have to adjust them afterward, but give them a few months of drying time before you start shaving them down.
After all was said and done, we were very happy with the outcome. The hallway, which was previously chopped up by dark doors (with unmatched white trim, no less) is now bright a spacious. We do plan to update the hardware when we find something that suits our tastes and budget. For now, we're happy with the outcome, which was easier on the budget than replacing all the doors.
Another idea I have is to possibly further enhance the doors with molding to create panels on the doors. This is on the back burner for now, but may come to fruition in the next year or two. I'll keep you posted.
If you find that dark doors are sucking all of the light and life out of your décor, try giving them a coat of warm, white paint. This can be especially helpful in a dark entryway. Even if you just paint the inside of your entrance door, it might brighten up the foyer and is an inexpensive and quick project.
Remove the doors altogether
Our front entryway to the condo had a large walk-in closet with floor-to-ceiling sliding doors. We found the doors made the entrance feel closed in and were a pain to slide to one side or the other to get at our coats. We decided to remove the doors altogether and create storage cubbies. One side of the closet houses a storage bench which is a great place to sit and remove shoes. It also has hooks for coats and hats and storage in the bench itself. On the other side we hung coat hooks (that I found at the thrift store for two bucks apiece) on which we hang our jackets. Below these hooks sets is an expandable shoe rack (another thrift store find) to hold shoes and boots.
We used the same wall colour in the closet as we did in the hallway to keep the look cohesive.
The entire entryway is open and airy and very functional now that the doors have been removed. Sometimes updating doors means removing them altogether. This might work in the kitchen as well if you like the look of open storage.
Other ideas for doors
In a hallway you want all the doors to be the same colour. Inside a room, on the other hand, you can have a bit of fun with finishes and colour.
Consider using chalkboard paint in a child's room on the bedroom side of the door. These paints now come in a variety of great colours and can make a child's bedroom a fun place to be. Painting a growth chart on the door is another fun idea that is interactive for you and your child.
Another fun project is to paint faux panels on the door. You'll need to practice this technique to get it just right but it can be a fun project that is easily changed in future with a fresh coat of paint.
Create a faux French door with mirrored tiles and decorative trim. This is a project that we did in the kitchen of our former house. It looked great and reflected light into the entryway.
Doors are a necessary but often overlooked facet of the décor. Have a look around and see if you can bring about changes that will enhance your space.
Connieoliver2014@gmail.com
