I had been itching to paint our front door ever since we had our exterior trim painted back in May. I picked a color (Farrow & Ball De Nimes), and we applied for HOA approval (it’s a long process and one we’ve had to do a lot…) that finally came in a couple of weeks ago! I ran to Lowe’s to grab my paint (I color-matched the Farrow & Ball color to Valspar Defense Exterior Paint, and they nailed it) — as well as ALL of the other supplies I needed and got to work.
I sanded and painted the door opened INTO our house (as opposed to standing on the front porch), and let me just say — I absolutely loved it while I was working on it. I couldn’t stop raving about it. But then I shut the door, and… you could hear crickets. It’s just not giving… what I had in mind. The moody blue just didn’t go as well with the trim color as I imagined.
I repainted the door the same color as the trim, and I wasn’t crazy about that either. I couldn’t believe it, but I really missed the black! I’m a big fan of a “pop of black” in every room, and it feels like the front of our house needs this, too! Take three: Back to black.
Isn’t she lovely??? I ordered a new brass kickplate, and I couldn’t be happier.
My go-to painting supplies
The moral of the story? It’s JUST paint! This is such a quick, impactful project that completely changed the facade of our home. If you’re looking to paint your front door, there are a few supplies that are must-haves. One of the most overlooked areas when painting is prep… our door was cracked in several places so before painting, we used a putty knife and some heavy duty waterproof patching compound to fill those in. Here’s everything else I used:
- Lint Free Mini Rollers $6 A mini roller is key for painting sections of a paneled door! Make sure to get the ones marked for smooth surfaces to get a really even finish.
- Valspar Defense Exterior Paint $25 One quart is plenty to paint a door, and I went with semi-gloss because even though my front door isn’t super smooth, I still wanted it to be a little glossy!
- Orbital Sanding Discs 180 Grit $9 I’ll be honest, our door is not in the best of shape… I used my orbital sander to smooth as many imperfections as I could before painting. I used 120, 180, and 220, starting with the lowest number first.
- Nylon Paint Brush $13 This 2″ short-handled brush is my go-to for cutting in.
- Handy Paint Pail Liner $4 My Handy Paint Pail is an absolute must have for painting projects! These liners make cleanup a breeze.
Other supplies I used:
- ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape $5
- FrogTape Painter’s Tape $18
- Drop Cloth $8
- Disposable Paint Tray $2
- DEWALT 120-Volt 3-Amp Orbital Sander $84
- Orbital Sanding Discs 120 Grit $9
- Orbital Sanding Discos 220 Grit $9
Hi Julia! We named our kitchen vault after you because we have your Edie Island Chandelier hanging there. Anyway, just wondering what brand/ paint color you used for the black door. Is it semi-gloss finish? Agree with the back to black, looks wonderful.
It’s a semi-gloss coat of Tricorn Black by Sherwin Williams!
What’s the trim color? I do have a red brick house and I would like to use that color on my trim around my doors and windows!
We painted the windows and trim Cromwell Gray by Benjamin Moore.
Can you share more about the hardware set you have? Or a round up of some your recommend please?!
More to come on that!