old doors

Meredith’s Faux-Paneled Doors

Written on February 3, 2010 at 8:43 am, by Shopgirl

If you read Do It Yourself magazine, you probably know Shopgirl. She’s our go-to gal for tips, tricks, tools, projects, and hefty doses of DIY inspiration. Meredith Ladik is one of our creative lasses behind Shopgirl, and here, she shares a beautiful repurposing project she did in her own home. Enjoy! – Team DIY

To lighten the look of my 1930s cottage, I’ve brushed many a gallon of crisp white and soft neutral paint on cabinetry, furniture, trim, picture frames, and floors. Chairs and sofas, too, were slipcovered in downy white canvas. Nevertheless, something dark and unnerving remained, lurking throughout my house’s corridors: dark-brown varnished slab doors!

Rather than replace these original, nothing-wrong-with-them doors with beyond-my-budget raised-paneled doors, I decided a fresh facelift with leftover paints mixed with a little creativity was a fun and affordable solution.

Here’s what I did:

For ease, remove your door from its hinges, placing it atop a pair of sawhorses. Remove varnish using a methylene-chloride-free citrus-gel paint remover, followed by a light sanding. Prime then paint door (I used a pale-gray color in a satin-finish), allowing it to dry and cure thoroughly. (I’d recommend a week.) Rehang door.

Plot out the size of your door’s “panels” using a tape measure; a T-square or carpenter’s ruler for straight lines and corners; a pencil; and easy-release painter’s tape.

Essentially you are taping up pairs of parallel lines that become individual “frames.” The “channel” between the two pieces of tape is where you brush on paint in a lighter color such as white and in several light coats. I used leftover high-gloss white paint that surprisingly catches light for nice highlights.

When the white paint is thoroughly dry, carefully remove the painter’s tape.

DIY Tip: As you pull off the paint, slowly and gently pull it up vertically, keeping your fingers—and force of motion—close to the door’s surface. This will hopefully prevent pulling up the paint you want left on the door.

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