How to paint interior doors black
March 15, 2017
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As some of you know, I have painted most of the doors in our home in black. I haven't started upstairs yet (I know it's going to look so good!) and I thought I had finished them all on our main level and basement.
I keep forgetting about a couple -- one in our powder room and one in the basement laundry room. I'm determined to get those done before I move upstairs.
I'm going to try spraying them when the weather gets nicer, but of course this week we have temps in the 20's and snow when the past two months were 60's and 70's. 😡 So...I had to work on it inside.
I think this makes SUCH a big difference and it's not a hard project at all, but it does take some time. I've shared how to paint your doors (interior and exterior here) and you MUST find out if they are painted with oil or latex paint before you start. Most doors are painted with oil so if you paint without primer, it will come off later. Sometimes it will flake, sometimes it will peel. But it will come off and really annoy you. ;)
So I always prime our doors first:
I keep forgetting about a couple -- one in our powder room and one in the basement laundry room. I'm determined to get those done before I move upstairs.
I'm going to try spraying them when the weather gets nicer, but of course this week we have temps in the 20's and snow when the past two months were 60's and 70's. 😡 So...I had to work on it inside.
I think this makes SUCH a big difference and it's not a hard project at all, but it does take some time. I've shared how to paint your doors (interior and exterior here) and you MUST find out if they are painted with oil or latex paint before you start. Most doors are painted with oil so if you paint without primer, it will come off later. Sometimes it will flake, sometimes it will peel. But it will come off and really annoy you. ;)
So I always prime our doors first:
The great thing is there is no need at all to sand -- just clean it well before starting. And I don't take mine down when painting by hand -- there's no need. (You'll need to tape around hinges if you will see that side of the door.)
I go into detailed instructions on how to paint a door in that link above, but this is the primer I use:
Because I go dark I have this tinted to a gray. This primer is awesome and is my favorite -- it's super thin and easy to apply, but watch for drips. A small quart of this will last a very long time, you don't need much. It also dries incredibly quick so that speeds up this process a bit.
Our doors are all painted in Graphite, it's a very dark gray instead of super black. I have it mixed in Sherwin Williams paint just because I love their stuff. This enamel paint is what I use for our doors:
I use eggshell or satin but most prefer shiny doors, so the finish is your preference.
One coat of primer, two coats of black and some touch ups and it was done:
I am totally in love with the look of black interior doors. Every time I do this I fall in love with them all over again! LOVE!:
Here's more about the powder room makeover and how I planked these walls (that's what us old folks called it before "shiplap"). We went with hardwoods in here to work with the rest of the main level and I have loved them.
I used a piece of art our son painted as the inspiration for the room -- the accent colors all come from that art:
The white door looked absolutely fine, but after some time I knew I wanted it to match the rest of our interior doors. Black doors are a classic and will never go out of style:
Have you painted your doors a color? I love any color on a door -- blue and gray are another favorite of mine. They add dimension and interest to your home for very little money!
If you'd like to see what this contraption is behind that black door, you can see it here:
I've never tried painting my doors a different colour. I think I'd like to do mine grey though!
ReplyDeleteCharmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI love your painted doors! I am thinking of starting that project this spring - 17 doors! I am wondering if I should go with a greige color - my carpet has flecks of tan and dark brown.
You made me laugh when I thought back to my aunt and uncle's house and their laundry chute. I used to imitate my aunt and call my cousin by yelling into their metal laundry chute. He was downstairs in their playroom and would coming running up the steps saying "ma'am"? I did that all of the time!
Anyway, I want you to know how much I enjoy reading your blog, as well as checking out your Instagram as well. I look forward to your posts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Thank you for sharing your beautiful home!
Melanie
The black door looks amazing!! What a beautiful bathroom. Could you share with me where you found the wire shelf above the toilet? Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteYes, please share! I was wondering the same thing. - Cathy
DeleteI love your black doors. I'm sure you've mentioned in the past but what hardware and knobs do you use with them?
ReplyDeleteLove the laundry shoot! We discovered we had one when we moved an old piece of furniture the previous owners left behind. Yours is much nicer though -- ours is framed wood, and literally just that. There's no actual walls to the chute. We've ended up using it as a convenient way to get internet to our second story from the basement. However one day I would love to make it the real thing!
ReplyDeleteSooo... when you first started painting your doors, how long did each door take, front and back, primer and paint? I'm trying to figure out how long it will take to paint all 19 of my doors. :-) Thank you so much for the tips and the pictures, it will help a lot!
ReplyDeleteI love this look so much! When we build our house, this is on my list!
ReplyDeletexoxo, SS
Southern And Style
All my doors in our fixer upper I had painted Wrought Iron. I get constant compliments on them.
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteHow has your Ikea vanity held up after all these years and are you still happy with it? What is the width of yours (to gauge its size with surroundings/mirror)?
Still a beautiful room!
I love the look of a painted door, and your's look great! Such a difference it makes. Thanks for sharing, Cynthia
ReplyDelete