In my own house I’ve only ever painted the internal woodwork white but I love the idea of painting walls and woodwork exactly the same colour for a modern, seamless look.
However at the moment I’m really into the contrasting style and I’m in the process of painting the skirting boards and door in our main bathroom with Farrow & Ball’s Manor House Grey. (The above image is Adam’s bathroom painted in Farrow & Ball Down Pipe).
At my house both the new wall and floor tiles are plain white so I wanted to add some colour to stop the space seeming too clinical. After seeing this glorious image from Pomeli I did consider a blush hue such as F&B’s Calamine but in the end I settled for a cool grey instead.
The skirting boards were finished yesterday and then I’m going to crack on with the door. Statement internal doors painted in all sorts of beautiful colours seem to be all the rage right now but I’ve got myself in a bit of a quandary about the best way to paint mine.
All the doors in our house are oak veneered and I’ve decided to keep the fronts of them this way. This will mean all the doors leading off the landing stay uniform but there’s an injection of colour on the side that sits in the bathroom.
Last year I painted one side of the doors in our living room white and when my Dad, a veteran painter and decorator came round he advised me to get out my paint brush again. According to the expert I should have painted the outside edge too so that when the eye looks down the open door it flows seamlessly.
Becky and I thought it would be helpful to highlight my Dad’s advice with an image which has turned out to be one of the most confusing things we’ve ever attempted to illustrate on RMS. If anyone had tapped into our video call they would have thought we had lost the plot. Here goes:
The long and short of it is, if you’re painting a one-sided statement door and want to paint the hinge side and the outer edge then you jolly well should. Some rules are made to be broken.
If anyone’s interested then I’ll be painting the back of my door and the outer edge (with the lock in it) and leaving the front of the door and the hinge with the oak veneer finish so that from the hallway you’ve got no idea what delight hides inside. In terms of painting technique, I’ll be using eggshell and following all the tips highlighted in my painting furniture feature given the surface and paint are both similar. I may use a stain blocker prior to painting to stop any of the oil from the wood knots seeping through.
Please don’t ask me about the door frame. I think in this instance I’m just going to paint up to the door stop (the inner frame that runs all around the inside of the door frame) and hope for the best. Sometimes you’ve just got to go with what your eye tells you.
Confused? Yes, Becky and I were too. Here’s a nice gallery of painted doors so you can treat your eyes and ease the confusion. This includes a sneaky little gander at the upstairs of Leoma’s gorgeous house which is coming up very soon.
Anyone else painted a one-sided statement door? What are your tips and tricks when introducing a colourful door?
I’m in the process at the moment of painting all the woodwork in the new kitchen in f&b purbeck stone, including the doors, so this is pretty timely. It’s encouraging me to think a little bolder for other rooms in the house.
I wonder if it’s one of those things that when you start you just can’t stop. I’m already thinking about other doors that need the treatment.
Purbeck Stone is going to look dreamy Rebecca. x
My friend Stylish-Susan-from-the-office has painted the internal bit of her front door in the same colour as the Pompeli image and it looks 👌
I want that whole door in my life Lisa. Do you know what colour Stylish Susan used?
I have painted all my upstairs doors in FB Skimming Stone, with strong white on the walls. I have done the banister in skimming stone too, with elephants breath on the hand rail. It looks lovely! It’s a subtle way to make a change but it is really quite striking.
Subtle and striking are always winners in my book Charlie.
Hi Lauren,
I feel so big headed answering your question as though I am confirming that I should be referred to as stylish Susan, but, I used Calamine. It’s the perfect pink and still makes me so happy! (Thanks Lisa for the encouragement to just do it).
I painted the outside in stiffkey blue, but did it the “wrong way” because I felt the outside of the house should be prioritised if that makes sense. So although the door opens inwards, the outer edge is blue.
I’m so tempted now to paint the skirting boards in our lounge a dark grey….
Oh hi Stylish Susan!
I think that’s why Becky and I got ourselves a bit confused because there are definitely situations when you need to prioritise the colour of the outside edge. I think my dad would definitely concur when it’s an external door 😉
Excellent combo of colours too. Let me know how you get on with the skirting boards x
I keep having my eye drawn to coloured skirting boards at the moment. I think I have been put off before as I remember family members having peach and green skirting boards in the 80’s/90’s, but now I really like a coloured skirting. I suppose it is an easy way to make a statement without it being to obvious.
No doubt we’ll look back in twenty years and think we were all crazy but it’s my new favourite thing Claire x
I have slatted pine doors cottage style and am desperate to get them painted. Is it possible to paint doors while they are hung? They have lots of knots and some of them are varnished. I had a quote from a decorator which was reasonable however we could spend that money elsewhere… Lots to do in the house.
Hi Anna, yes it is possible to paint them while they’re hung but it can be a bit fiddly around the hinges.
That pink door is so fabulous I wish I would have seen it before I painted 95% of my bathroom, or I would have gone and painted over It.
Thanks so much for your helpful tips. I had no idea which color to paint along the edges. I have heard different things in the past, but yours makes the most sense for what I’m painting now.
Hey Lauren,
Such a beautiful door paint ideas. I really got impressed with all these stuff. Thanks for sharing such a helpful information
I’ve just painted my living room door Hague blue , walls are earthborn (which is lovely paint for lime plaster) Toms bakery. I’m definitely doing the other doors love the look . Always like your style. Thanks for sharing Emma x