Alternate post title: Paint Me Like One Of Your French Girls. Yes, much like Rose once begged Jack, the dusty blue back of our front door was just begging to be painted (ok, so Rose said “draw me like one of your French girls” but it’s close enough).
The new paint color of choice? The same happy teal tone that’s on the front of it.
There’s no hard and fast rule about carrying the color that’s on the front of the door back around to the inside of it (in our last two houses we chose bright colors on the front and plain old white for the back) – but for the first time ever we have sidelights and we want to draw attention to them. So bringing that color into the foyer via the back of the door is a fun way to make that door-and-window-combo into a nice little focal point in an otherwise neutral/classic space. We’re going for something like:
- this (oh how my heart siiiiiings for that old Domino pic)
- this (those dark floors, those light walls, oh man)
- this (this door’s subtler, but there’s more color on the walls/runner than we’ll use)
- this (there are no words except holy cuteness, batman)
You guys get the idea, right? White sidelights + a colored door = true love. And just as you might have guessed, the painting process was extremely romantic. Picture me and the door, just staring into each others eyes – er, panels? At one point there was steam on the sidelights and I slid my hand down it like this.
Here are some painting tips for anyone else who’s planning to show their door some love:
- If your door is super shiny/glossy (either sealed wood or semi-gloss/high gloss paint) you’ll want to use a liquid deglosser to wipe it down before priming and painting, but since our door was chalky and matte to start with, I could skip right to the painting step because we used the same self-priming quart of paint that we used on the front (Benjamin Moore’s MooreGlo paint in Blue Lake with a semi-gloss-like finish called Soft Gloss).
- Whenever I paint the front or back of exterior doors, my favorite method is to start in the morning so the door can be open (just cracked) all day and has time to dry before you have to close and lock it at night.
- I like using an angled brush to paint the entire door – although John loves a foam roller, so it’s a different strokes for different folks thing.
- I have a certain order that I like for painting doors: first I paint the frames of each raised rectangle, then I paint the inside of each one as you see in the photo below. Then I paint the flat planks around and between them, always going in the direction of that plank (I pull my brush from top to bottom to do the vertical plank down the middle, then I go from left to right to get all of the horizontal slats, and at the very end I drag my brush from top to bottom to do those vertical parts on each side of the door).
- I wait for that to dry about an hour (or two if it’s super humid) and then I do the whole thing again, in the same order. Then I just give it the rest of the day to dry and lock it up at night.
- I prefer to remove the hardware over taping it off, but Clara was having an off day and I worried it would add more time than I had to spare (I wasn’t sure she’d nap for very long) so that’s why it’s taped off this time, even though we took it off when we painted the front.
When the pheremones cleared paint dried, the back of the door was looking pretty fiiine. Admittedly it looks a little crazy with the yellow walls and the brassy fixture, but we’re just getting started in here, so we’re holding onto some serious faith that the other dozen to-do list items in here will make more sense of things as we go (remember this old saying?).
It’s definitely a more welcome sight than this before picture though. Ah. We can breathe. And weirdly enough the ceilings feel about a foot taller.
This is my favorite after shot, just because there’s a certain man and child that I adore in the background. And those dark doorknobs and hinges aren’t half bad either.
Next up? More painting! We have to pick a color for the walls (we’re sifting through swatches as you read this) and still have to finish painting the vanity in the half bathroom as well as – you guessed it! – paint the blue spindles on the stairs. Among about a million other blue-trimmed-and-wallpapered rooms that are on the list. So our fingers might grow around our paint brushes, but they say beauty is pain, right?
As weird as it sounds, the more sweat we pour into this house, the more it feels like love. It’s sort of like when you go through a harrowing experience with someone and it brings you closer. All of this painting is pain, but it’s bonding us like Jack and Rose.
I’ll never let go. I’ll never let go…
Psst- Wanna know where we got something in our house? Just click on this button:
I never thought to paint the inside of our door the same pop of color as the outside. I am going to dig through our paint stash today to see if there is any paint left over from when I painted the front of the door!
Maybe if I turn on the sprinklers in the front lawn the kids will be occupied long enough for me to paint!
We also have a long way to go before our entryway is done but every bit of progress is something to celebrate!
http://www.timandmeg.net/2013/07/02/contractor-is-done/
Ooh, sprinklers = genius.
xo
s
It looks great! And the ceilings really do look so much taller! You guys are doing such a great job making that place your home! :)
We just went under contract on our townhome yesterday!! So I’m super excited to be able to love on a new house soon, too!! :)
Shannon
Congrats Shannon! That’s so exciting!
xo
s
The ceilings do look much higher! I LOVE all of the chunky moldings in your house. If I could have one carpentry skill (you know, without actually having to LEARN it), it would be trimwork.
The door color looks great too!
Love the color. Looking great!
Question for you about painting doors — If you hadn’t painted the front and back the same color, what color would you have painted the sides? This always throws me for a loop. Where does one color end and the other begin?
Thanks!
I just look at what’s done there before, so for example in our second house, the front and side were wood but the back was white, so when I painted the front I did the side as well so I covered all the wood :)
xo
s
I had this problem when I painted my front door. The outside was dark green and the inside was a creamy white.
I honestly just picked the dark green for the insides simply because it hid dirt better.
I painted a lot of frontdoors (moved a lot) and every time I was undecidive about this.
My uncle, who was a carpenter, learned me the following: if you’re inside the house and the door is open, the side you’re looking at, belongs to the inside of the house. And so is painted in the same color as the inside of your door is. If you’re standing outside and the door is open, the side you’re looking at, belongs tot the outside of the house. And so is painted the same as the outside of your door.
This sounded ok with me, so since then I Always use this little rule.
So funny!
xo
s
Okay after seeing the inspiration pic with the aqua door I kind of want you to have full glass sidelights! ;)
It looks awesome! I like how you’re working on the entry way first (I know you’ve done other things in other rooms but it seems like your making it “yours” first by adding paint and stuff). Seems like the perfect place to start and then work from there.
Okay..you guys got me with the title today. I scrolled down to comment before I even read the post. It instantly made me think of this: https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/5287741952/h40ED1FE6/ which made me laugh hysterically…at my desk. Thank you.
The door looks awesome btw. That color with that white trim….me-ooooooow. Seriously. Great job. =)
Hilarious photo. That cat has the moves like Jagger.
xo
s
HILARIOUS!
Looks great and it does make the ceilings look a lot higher! Can’t wait to see some of your paint color choices in the new house… I need to paint my two story foyer and I am in desperate need of some additional paint color inspiration!
Now that you guys have painted the trim and the door, I have to say, I really like the way the yellowish color looks on the walls. Have you guys thought about doing a shade of yellow for that area?
We are considering just about everything (in a soft tone since we don’t want anything too bright/dark in here). It connects to four rooms as well as leading upstairs to that hallway (which connects to six rooms) so we think something neutral will win just so we don’t have to worry about any color that doesn’t go with something else we choose.
xo
s
I was thinking the same thing Traci! I’m not sure how it looks in person, but at least on the computer, that light buttery wall color really looks great! :)
I’m so glad someone said this! I have creamy yellow walls in my house and LOVE them–looks very similar to the pictures here–light yellow with crisp white trim. It makes everything fell light and bright and clean and warm…the best. It seems you guys go more for gray tones–more modern and look good–but I love me some yellowy warmth :) Though I imagine your issue with these “yellowed walls” is not so much the color, but more the fact that they are “aged yellow”? Old, splotchy and yellowed with age = not good no matter how much you like yellow!
Oh yes, they’re old with marks and stains and scuffs and stuff…
xo
s
That is a much nicer blue than the old tone. We have to paint our doors and we used a roller last time but it left a funky texture even though it was foam. I think we’re going to try a nice big brush this time and go with your tips!
Oh my gosh it looks so pretty! I need to use this colour on something in my apartment … I just don’t know on what though.
When we replaced our front door we went with the same color on both sides. It’s a deep red, and I love it! Our old door was very similar to yours but the new one is wider and has sidelights that have a glass pattern so you can’t peek in. ;)
However, we chose to have the sidelights also be the same color inside and out.
While I love the teal on the door (it makes it so bright and cheerful) I think the sidelights would look nice in the same teal. Maybe you’ll convince me otherwise once you pick a paint color. ;)
In your last house, you kind of patterned colors after Sue the Napkin. Do you have a color inspiration with the new house or are you continuing on with Sue the Napkin colors? Just curious…
We’re hoping to write up a post all about our color inspiration for you tomorrow with a bunch of swatches that have caught our eye. We don’t have an object like Sue, just some tones that keep sticking out at us and screaming “use us for this house!”
xo
s
It’s amazing to me that the walls haven’t been painted, just changing the trim made such a difference! Love the teal door :-)
What about orbing the light fixture? Or is it too ornate (can’t really tell from these pictures), or do you have a new fixture picked out already?
Oh yes, we’ve mentioned wanting to spray paint that for the time being and then possibly replacing it down the line if we see something we LOVE and want to upgrade later.
xo
s
What about something from your YHL lighting line!? If I designed something I’d have it out for display everywhere! Seems like an obvious solution to me!
We definitely want to use some of our lighting line somewhere- and we’re working on more stuff so that’s exciting too!
xo
s
I love it! Not that you’re asking, but my vote is to paint the light bright red, like someone said in a past post. Your foyer is already so happy and bright – keep up the great work! (And go get a hand massage – your fingers must need it!)