I’m sharing how I remodeled our boring inside doorways by including paneling. I like the end result of this carpenter-assisted DIY venture.
My household moved into a brand new, modern-style residence in 2021. We selected the house as a result of the situation was excellent, and it checked so many bins on the lengthy listing of issues we have been searching for. However the fashionable new development felt like an enormous, white, personality-less field. At some point, it hit me: the builder-grade doorways and cheap-looking doorknobs wanted to be modified.
I believe that doorways are an typically missed design element. Give it some thought: you’ll be able to doubtless see a door from practically wherever you stand in your house. A flat-panel door isn’t including something to the design of a house.
The Inspiration
Decided to discover a method to improve the doorways, I began researching and realized that purchasing new doorways can be an enormous, costly venture. A designer confirmed that ranging from scratch would doubtless price about $1000 per door by the point they have been painted, put in, and had upgraded {hardware}. Given the truth that we now have 20 inside doorways in our residence, I shortly realized that spending $20,000 on this venture was out of the query.
For the reason that current doorways are strong wooden, I switched gears and regarded into including paneling to our current doorways.
After a lot analysis, I discovered a method of paneling that I appreciated. Pre-assembled frame-style molding could be bought on-line. The type that I appreciated price $93 per facet of a door. Not wanting to make use of my time to put in molding and missing confidence in my means to do this work, I employed a carpenter to construct customized molding as a substitute. This price $166 per facet of the door for the molding itself and the set up. It turned out higher than it could have if I had accomplished the work, and the carpenter was capable of regulate the scale of the molding primarily based on the varied door sizes.
The Course of
Whereas a carpenter added the molding to the doorways, I painted them and swapped out the doorknobs. I used enamel paint since it’s further sturdy, and our doorways expertise quite a lot of put on and tear, particularly within the hallways. I had by no means used an enamel paint earlier than, and I need to warn you that it’s a bit onerous to work with. It didn’t look good after the primary coat, however after the second, the paint regarded nice. I like the semi-gloss end and the delicate gentle blue coloration I selected for the entryway.
As soon as the molding was added and the doorways have been painted, I added new doorknobs. (I did take away the outdated knobs earlier than portray the doorways). I selected Emtek knobs and I shortly discovered learn how to set up them on the doorways.
The final element was to make use of Rub n Buff to color the hinges, turning them from matte chrome to brass satin. Utilizing Rub n Buff was a lot simpler and extra inexpensive than swapping out the hinges. I used the “Gold Leaf” coloration and it was a close to excellent match for the satin brass knobs.
See the Entryway Earlier than and After
The Closing Outcome
After I pitched this concept to my husband, he thought it was pointless. He couldn’t visualize the plan. To him, the doorways simply light into the background. He didn’t even discover them. In my view, the flat doorways weren’t including something to the design of our residence, and may very well be improved. Whereas Charles didn’t perceive my imaginative and prescient, he trusted me.
Now, the doorways make a sublime assertion. I really consider that they elevate the look of our residence. And sure, my husband is pleased with the end result.
The Value (for 9 doorways)
Customized Door Molding and Set up: apx. $2000
Doorknobs: $155
Paint (Sherwin-Williams “Little Boy Blue” Semi-Gloss) & Paint Provides: $166
Rub n’ Buff: $13.16
Per Door Whole: $259.35 whole *
*This whole contains 4 closet doorways with Dummy Knobs (which are available units of two). Moreover, we solely added one facet of paneling to the closets. This introduced the typical price down.
At this level, the 9 doorways on the house’s first flooring have been up to date. We have now 11 extra doorways to replace. The whole price will come to about $5,187. This isn’t a small amount of cash, however it’s considerably lower than shopping for all new doorways. We plan to reside in our residence for a few years to return, and to me, that is an impactful improve that offers my residence a extra refined look.
A Warning:
After I was researching this venture, I noticed so many individuals who claimed that including molding to doorways was a fast and simple venture. Maybe including the molding isn’t too onerous, however the technique of making ready the doorways to be painted and portray the doorways took three days.
