Thank you so much for all your kind words about my biggest DIY disaster of all time.
I love sharing my DIY adventures, the good and the bad, with you guys. If my epic fails can help at least one person to not make the same mistakes that I’ve made, then my misadventure wasn’t a waste after all. I am so grateful for all your support and comments. In just one week the post already has more than 90 comments and over 2k+ pins on pinterest. Crazy town. I’m glad my stupidity has gone viral. All press is good press though, right? Even if it’s a post about me looking like an idiot. Haha.
Well, along the same black-door lines, I painted another door black. Except this time it ends with good news, not epically horrendous news.
I’ve been threatening to paint my front door black for 2 years now. You guys have been supportive and encouraging along the way. Every time I flash I picture of my front door I get at least one person kindly suggesting painting the door black.
Well, I finally did it. I finally painted the darn door black.
I painted the door the same day I painted all 10 doors in my house. I didn’t do anything different. I used the same paint. I didn’t prime first. But I got lucky. The door is not peeling. I think it’s because it’s wood and was stained instead of a oil-based painted MDF door like all the interior doors.
I am seriously so digging this black door. I should have stopped being lazy and just got ‘er done two years ago. What an improvement, and it only took me like 20 minutes to paint it. I can’t believe how much better the glass detailing looks in the middle of the door. I have hated this ornate door since we moved in, but now that it’s black the whole shebang looks so fresh and classy. The door has really grown on me.
On a side note, here’s where I talk about the sticks and glass vase. And here’s a step-by-step tutorial for creating the skeleton key shadow box art.
I made the skeleton key art over two years ago and I still totally love it.
Oh, when I said the post ended on a good note? I totally almost forgot to mention this. There is a little bit of bad news with the door. We had a driveway BBQ over here last month with a bunch of friends (and loads of kids) and at some point during the evening someone {ahem, a kid, ahem} broke one of the glass panels in the door.
Here’s a better close-up of the broken glass.
When I hear the phrase “broken glass” I start singing that Victorious song in my head. Every.Single.Time. Dang you, Robbie! (Side note: Victorious is the best kids show to ever grace television.)
I’m thinking someone ran a scooter into the door, or threw a bocce ball into the door. Or it may have been the boomerang. Who the heck knows. My kids’ lips are sealed. No one will fess up to the broken door caper.
It’s all cool though. I try not to let stuff like that upset me. What’s done is done. The party was fun and was worth getting the door broken, if that was the cost of hosting a party with our favorite friends. Doors can be fixed.
So, back to the point; my front door finally got a coat of black paint. I only painted the inside of the door though. I will paint the outside of the door too but I want to buy paint that is better suited for outdoors.
Do you prefer the wood-color stained door or the black door? Have you painted your front door?
*The black I used is called Francesca by Martha Stewart. I got it in the Glidden primer-and-paint-in-one in a semi-gloss finish.
I’m more nervous that the glass on your door could break like that at all. You should really look into replacing it with something that is more safety proof, so that any type of bad guy couldn’t try to break in. I can’t imagine any doors or windows in our house that are able to break like that. Just thinking of your safety over appearances! All the more reason to have the door replaced soon and not have to look at the crack. 🙂
Julie, thank you so much for your concern. You are very sweet. I do think that the large window next to my front door is more of a threat than the 1″ crack in the door. Or the full panel of glass in my back door. Of course, every window in the house (that are made from regular ol glass that isn’t shatter proof) is a great way for burglars to enter the home. The small 1″ crack in one of the small 50 panels in my door is the least of my concern. But I do plan on getting it fixed as soon as possible.
I lived with an ugly stained front door with glass sidelights for 8 years before I painted inside and out black this summer. It’s amazing the difference it makes. The previous owner had replaced the door and sidelights right before selling and I’ve always hated them until I painted. At the same time I also painted the main floor interior doors black. Black doors make me so happy!
I bet they look awesome now!
Looks great! Good job on it. : )
I painted ours black last year, and I find myself still walking by on purpose to check it out. Love!
I do the same thing! I love my black door.
I think it looks great!
I am so loving black interiors doors right now! They make such a difference in the look of the room! Great job!
Leslie
House on the Way
I have all the supplies to do this to my door, too. Maybe Sunday? FINALLY? LOL, just how these things go I guess!
I’m the ultimate procrastinator, so I hear ya! Plus, hello, you have a life – work, school, etc. Me? What’s my excuse? I don’t have one. Except I’m a mom. I guess that counts.
It looks like a COMPLETELY different door – love it! What a fabulous transformation!
Looks awesome!! Few questions- did you leave the door up to paint? Do you have somethig to frost the side windows? We have windows all around our door and it worries me that people can see right in but haven’t come up with a good solution for it!
I just painted the door while it was still hung. I was really careful around the edges but I didn’t tape anything off either.
So glad the front door at least worked out! It looks great!
Robbie!!!!
I just love how you displayed your skeleton keys. Beautifully done!
Thanks Bella!
This is stunning!!
I absolutely love the black door! I think it looks way better than the wood. It really pops against your yellow paint in the hallway. And I totally love the window. In fact, I’m probably going to replace my front door with something very similar, except a rectangular window because it will go better with our windows and garage.
I absolutely love the front door black. And, that it didn’t peel on you 😉
I love the Black door! it’s fabulous – made me gasp in amazement when I scrolled down.
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
Love the black door. It’s always amazing what a difference a different color can make.
Sweet!
I love the door! I am wondering whether I should paint mine…I painted it orange on the outside to coordinate with my navy blue farmers porch and shutters but I never thought of the inside being much other than white….hmmmmm maybe I should consider that!
LOVE the black!
I have to paint both the front and back metal insulated doors here in the freezing North East. I painted them both long ago when we installed them–about 23 years ago!–and they have faded and the rear one has peeled–a LOT. Partly due to blistering afternoon sun and partly due to a phenom we call “Stupid Dog”. Not only did he scratch the smithereens out of the door he ATE the pressure treated lattice work on the back steps AND the treated stairs. And the molding on my bathroom doors. Not “gnawed”–ATE.
So now I have to decide–what COLOR and KIND of paint to use!!!!! House is awful pea green–you notice I totally luuuuve this house—and has some black “shutters” still attached–the ones we resorted to simply nailing to the framing as otherwise the wicked wind here on top of our mountain ripped ’em off. I love the idea of black—grew up with 200+ year old black oak door and remember it fondly. But—will it FADE? We plan on selling the place in the next few years and don’t want to have to do these chores all OVER again!
You would THINK–my hubs is the WINDOW and DOOR expert for a major home improvement company. So–we got the doors for FREE as outgoing models so I certainly can’t complain. But—I don’t really like ’em! Too late now! Moving South in plans not coddling this not so old house along any more!
AS for the ground floor windows and doors being an access point for intruders–if they want to get in very sadly they will find a way. That does not mean you have to be a sitting duck tho! Could you etch the side light–and would you WANT to?
When we moved here a friend gave me cuttings as there was NOTHING planted. Former cow field. So since it was Fall I planted. And boy was I SHOCKED when in the Spring I had suddenly HUGE THORNY BUSHES, The friend had given me some sort of–barberry?–cuttings that were to DETER burglars!!!!! I have now spent 23 years grubbing those stubborn things OUT! But–if any burglar was THAT determined–they would die of blood loss before they would get to my windows!
I’ve painted my front door – several times. Well, DH did the actual painting of it. I wanted the doors on the house and the barn to be a certain burgundy color. I couldn’t find what I wanted, so I took some skeins of DMC embroidery thread w/ me to Sears and them mix me Weatherbeater paint to match the threads. At least it looked like them matched. DH retired years before I did, and he was painting the outside of the house while I was at work.
When I came home (after dark) he said “I don’t think the doors are the right color.” Now, he is color blind, so he could be right or he could be wrong, and I could not tell looking in the dark, but he had not stopped after painting ONE door and coming to that conclusion, he had painted NINE doors – 7 regular exterior doors and two big barn doors! Ans he was correct – it was not the right color, it was PURPLE! I had NINE PURPLE DOORS! We left them for a couple of years, and got a lot of comments, mostly positive. We live in a tiny hamlet, have by far the most colorful house.
The next color turned out to be a sort of bright lipstick red. Too bright for what I was looking for, but more acceptable to me than the purple. this last time we finally got it right! I havem y burgundy doors, but the HOUSE isn’t the color I started out wanting, a blue spruce color. Fortunately, I like the color it turned out, a sort of Caribbean blue/teal. And we are still the most colorful house here. When we moved into it, the house was painted gray and brown. Drab, drab, drab.
The inside of the kitchen door I painted bright yellow, The inside of the front door is varnished wood and a white linen curtain, and looks right for that hallway, and I haven’t done anything yet to the inside of the door to the cellar/dining room.