The sunny weather last weekend made me realise we need to crack on with our plans for the downstairs spare room. As I mentioned in my post a few months ago we’ve decided to put French doors in this room so it would be good to get it all done and dusted soon so we have new access to the garden during the summer.
This brings me on to the subject of the post; patio doors. There are many things I love about our house but the plastic windows aren’t one of them. However we have a lot of frames and already have four sets of patio doors (both the living room and kitchen have them out to the patio, the dining room has a set leading to a tiny courtyard and we also have a pair in our bedroom opening to a Juliet balcony). I found a very old article in The Telegraph by Christoper Howse claiming ‘Plastic window-frames will rot your soul’ which seems a tad OTT but I get his point. Some of the cheaper styles aren’t particularly pretty and the ones we had in our previous cottage were double glazed but highly inefficient at keeping in the heat.
I can’t ever imagine we’ll be in a financial position to change the uPVC windows to wooden replacements but it’s on my long term wish list to take the windows back to their original glory even if it’s just the ones on the front of the house. I’ve seen many people put the old frames on Gumtree as I know there’s always someone in the market for recycling uPVC windows for various projects. Sometimes,late at night I look for inspiration on sites like http://birminghamdoubleglazing.uk/ I’m always surprised to see what people are doing these days.
Anyway back to these patio doors. I’m wondering if I can get away with something a bit different for this room or if I have to stick to the same design as the doors we have in the rest of the house.
Bi-folds aren’t required as the opening will be too small, and the same goes for pocket doors and sliding ones. Obviously the dream would be to have aluminium Crittall style but who am I trying to kid? Let’s all have a look though just for some inspiration. That stunning image from Homes and Gardens with the planters above it suggest you can bag yourself an alumininium set for around £10K, which is a shame as that’s my budget for finishing the entire house.
Current options are the following:
Mirror The Existing Doors
Getting another set of uPVC doors will keep the look consistent and keep the budget on the lower side. Here are a few instagram snaps of the current doors and back of the house. In the image with the tree and pergola, the window to the right will be replaced with doors.
French Doors
We could move into more of a french door style territory and get a set of white timber doors with a panel at the bottom that wouldn’t look out of place with a decadent cremorne bolt. Then I can pretend I’m ever so slightly Parisian but look out over a shed rather than the Eiffel Tower. Although that panel at the bottom isn’t going to offer heaps of privacy I think it might be a better option if this room will be used as a guest room.
We could also get roller shutters for my business made for the outside at some point similar to the image below from Canada Custom Shutters. Rather than the minty green louvre doors we would probably go for the same paint colour as the new fence.
Colour
With the french doors above we’ll stick to white wood, however one option that I did consider would be to use a coloured door frame set against the same coloured backdrop. I love this image from Remodelista and think it really highlights a separate living space away from the rest of the house. 
There’s a really helpful article on Houzz if anyone is looking for advice on the pros and cons of uPVC, aluminium and timber as well as all the different styles of doors available.
What do you reckon? Stay in keeping with the current doors or try something a little different? Do you have any experience in shopping for patio and french doors and how did you reach your decision?
The French doors with the panel at the bottom look amazing! I’m on maternity leave and have literally just discovered the joys of Escape to the Chateau. All the interiors inspiration!
I think my fascination with Dick and Angel is bordering on being a bit obsessive Jennifer. James suggested going on one of their tasting weekends but I declined as thought I’d turn in to a total fan girl!
I’ve done so much research on wooden and UVPC recently. We got quotes for wooden windows but you really need them without spacer bars (so a separate pane rather than a single pain with the astrical bars stuck on) and the cost is insane. £12k for 4 large windows and a bathroom. We almost DIED. The issue for us however was maintenance. Wooden windows need repainting 18 months or so – and that doesn’t work with our lifestyle. We did some research and found timberlook flush sash. I honestly can’t tell the difference. They are more realistic (and therefore expensive) than standard plastic smooth UVPC because they are foil finished and the joints are hand finished too so square rather than diagonal (I mean, who the flip notices? ME!)
I’ve become obsessed with window spotting in period cottages and have been known to knock on the door of fancy houses in Wilmslow, Prestbury and Knutsford to ask if they’re wooden or wood effect UVPC.
Most companies do French doors in the same profile.
Our cottage is white rendered and we’ve gone for Farrow and Ball French Grey with white insides.
On the timber points from Houzz, we spoke to A LOT of joiners and they said that Acacia, which is the wood most cheaper wooden frames are made from is untested. It’s supposed to be designed and manufactured to cope with the Danish railway industry and they say it comes with a 50 year guarantee but it’s not been around for 50 years so no one can say that!
Rebecca this is really helpful. Thank you.
I love that you’ve been knocking on doors!
They don’t need painting that often. Every 5-10 years if done right. We paid around £400 per window for our double glazed panels mads to exactly match the existing frames which saved on having the frames themselves replaced. .
I would personally never get upvc. It will need replacing in 25 years and the just sit in land fill. Wood will last 100 or more. In fact the windows we took out where perfectly sounds just not double glazed.
You can get excellent upvc wood effect that you would not tell if it is real or not. I’d never go for real timber – it’s not worth the cost and upkeep. As surveyor I have managed lots of estates and window repairs and replacements are the biggest hassle.
Slightly bias as I work for my dads double glazing firm but there’s no comparison to UPVC. The upkeep of timber and cost is a nightmare! UPVC is not only more secure, next to no upkeep, energy efficient and stylish 🙂 We do ‘A’ rated triple glazed glass, you can pop internal glazing bars in (rather than the stuck on ones people assume), there’s now flush sashes that give the appearance of timber plus you can have any RAL colour your heart desires! PVC all the way for me 🙂
Victoria and Cat, so good to get this point of view. Thanks for this.
Although I love the shutters, I’d tend to go for something more practical and easy to maintain and clean. Thank you for your suggestions, it really helps when making choices.
My husband and I are about to start our flat renovation and extension and we are trying to find a cheaper alternative to Crittal – I wondered if this exists or do I need to rule out this style altogether? Any advice much appreciated!