Something that was on our 2021 project list, was to replace all of our interior doors. But the truth is, they are actually really nice solid wood! So we went the more cost effective route and painted all the interior doors. I knew the moment we walked into this house that the orangey, knotty alder had to go, but it wasn't exactly high on the priority list. It has been pushed aside and postponed but could no longer be ignored, especially as we approach selling our house. I think the reason it hasn't quite happened before now is that it's quite daunting imagining painting ALL of the interior doors in our house. How do I choose a color? I knew white was going to be a little too boring, but did I want to go with accessible beige to match all the trim and baseboards? Who even knows.
It wasn't until we painted the basement family room in greenblack by Sherwin Williams (including the doors) that I had my moment of clarity. All-black interior doors would be timeless, classy, and would be the perfect compliment our modern cottage home. We have black accents throughout including all of our windows, the doors in the dining room, the stair railings, and some of the light fixtures, so these doors would look great from a hallway, and from inside a room. I matched the color to the stair railing, and came up with tricorn black by Sherwin Williams.
Instead of tackling this big project on our own, we decided to get a quote from a painter and for 17 doors, he said he would fill all of the knots, degloss, sand, prime, and paint, for a total of... $1,200. Done. We were a little bit concerned about our girls' sleep getting disturbed without doors to their rooms, but were so impressed that it only took him about a week's time to finish it all. He even used a satin enamel paint to give them a nice sturdy finish.
Railing, Gallery Wall, Sconces, Runner
This is a before and after view of our primary bedroom and closet, and I can't get over it.
Closet Sources, Bedroom Sources
This is a view of Greta's room, looking first at her closet doors, her bathroom door, and the entrance door into her room.
And the cutest little peak into the girl's bathroom.
The only doors that we didn't have painted were the closet doors in both Polly's room and Faye's room because we had just painted those when we did their room renovations.
I'm only just a little sad it took us this long to do. I think the future home-owners will love the aesthetic value they bring to this home we have loved so much.
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What color is the wall color and trim on the black door photo?
Where do you live that you found a painter this good...this AFFORDABLE? Never would have thought black doors could look this good! Perfect!
We live in Idaho!
Great job here! Bold move, courageous, and totally worth it.
These look perfect in your home. On a related note I would love to see a post about door hardware. I would like to make an affordable upgrade and don't know where to start.
When you shared a sneak peak of these on insta the black looked so natural and fit so perfectly with the rest of the house that I honestly couldn't remember what the doors had looked like before! This is the perfect cherry on top of your design sundae!
The inside of my front door and carport door are both Tricorn and we love it! The contrast is stunning. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! You just allayed the last tendrils of concern about trim and doors being distractingly TOO high contrast in color. Your black doors are PERFECT (kinda sexy even..?).
As a person who struggles with my own health I am so, sooo, SO very hopeful your upcoming move will positively affect yours. It has been a pleasure watching you transform this home as I am certain your next project will be as well.
Love them!! My front door (inside and out) is black and it’s stunning and one of my favorite things about this house.
I love a black door and tricorn is perfect! In one of our project we had a long entrance hallway and we did all the main doors white, but all the exterior doors and doors to the garage in black.
I painted the interior doors of my old house black, and I absolutely loved it. These look gorgeous.
Loooooove. Thinking about doing this though my doors a nice white now. We have gray window trim so think that would probably look better than black.
I have painted doors and $1200 is worth every penny! What a beautiful change to your home as well.
I am amazed as well! Fantastic price ! Definitely worth the cost. Did he spray them or rolled?
I live in North Carolina ! Greensboro..a little west of Raleigh. Less traffic and more rural areas. Winston and Raleigh have more culture and better restaurants. Goodluck and can't wait to see where you head.
$1,200 seems like a steal for that project. Good choice! And the doors look gorgeous. I’m especially wow-ed by the before and afters of Greta’s room. Whoa!
$1200 per door? Total cost surely couldn’t be $1200!
Do finger prints show more with the black?
$1200 for all the doors. These are enamel coated so really wipeable and don't show fingerprints!
Look great. You got a bargain for painting them! Can’t believe they only charged $1200 with all the prep.
Wow, what a great choice!
It looks so good!! Did you really only have 17 doors?! Seems like you’d have more than that with closets and everything. I just keep thinking how fortunate your buyer will be to have such amazing homeowners before them. You’ve taken such care to cultivate a cozy, lovely home!
You're dropping the mic on your way out! Simply STUNNING!
I luv it! I have thought about painting my doors black.
Were the doors primed first?
I did not think I would like this change, but I was wrong. Those doors really look great.
I would never have thought to paint the doors black, but it was the perfect choice! It looks so classic, even though I don't think I've even seen black interior doors before, ha. Curious why you didn't paint Polly and Faye's doors to match their rooms when you redid them? I think the black looks great, but so would matching the wall color. Would it just be annoying to have half the door black and half plum, for example?
Love it!! We painted our interior oak doors black as well. I used a Minwax stain that could be applied over a pre-existing finish and they look amazing.
Hi Rachael,
Can you tell me the the color and type you used?
I imagine she used Polyshades in Black - we used this on our stair railings we didn't want to take the time to sand forever and a day. I like it, but---it's kind of like a coating on top and it can strip with painter's tape, for example. If contractors in our area charged $1200 for 17 doors instead of likely $12,000 to actually sand and stain, I'd be all over that.
Oh wow! What a difference, and it was so economical versus replacing all these (high quality) doors.
Your doors turned out perfectly! I love them! I live in Idaho Falls. Can you please share the painter you used? I need some help with some solid oak doors.
Julia,
Frankly I can’t think of a better color to paint your doors ! These turned out amazing and also I love that you chose to do all the doors the same color versus to match each room. It really looks so good in all the bedrooms. This project is making me want to paint my doors now!!! Also did you change the hardware on your doors if so is there a link to them or do you have a roundup list of your favorite door hardware! Thanks so much
-Marissa
Beautiful job! I so want to walk through your house and just feel it! The black initially scared me, but you're 100% right, it's classic and a great cottage feel.
Hi Julia and Chris,
Do you happen to know which specific paint your painter used for this project? I am looking for something durable and hard drying for my interior doors since my first go about 10 years ago never (never!!) seemed to be fully cured.
Thanks in advance.
Also wondering specific paint. I would like to do my kitchen but the Sherwin Williams paint they recommended for my built-ins hasn’t held up well. Thanks!
Beautiful. From the knotty wood and dizzying carpet in Greta's room to this is just amazing!