No.1 - It's just a front door....
So it's just a front door, what's the big deal?
In a nutshell, everything, now I can hear you saying, ” I have an ugly front door, there's nothing I can do with it!” To this I say, rubbish, you can always do something, even a very small version, to give that old front door some kerb appeal. Want to know how?
Well come on in and read on!
Let's start at the beginning, what kind of door do you have?
Is it a communal door? if so, this one probably deserves its own blog or you”ll be reading forever.
Is it an old wooden door?
Does it have glass panes?
Is it a uPVC door?
I will tackle each one below.
Creating that first impression
This pictured door to the right is of a garden flat that had no front door, this is the reinstalled one, originally you entered through the garden meaning, yes exactly, you had no garden just a walkway!
Crazy I know, still if you want to see the transformation, click the link below and/or go to the Portfolio work tab on my website.
What does your door look like?
If you have one of those beautiful old wooden front doors, then lucky you, the world is literally your oyster; it's a bit like the girl, who would look good, even in a bin bag. These doors were handmade, crafted to last, strong, balanced, architectural gems. Door furniture just perches beautifully on its painted shell and if you are anything like me, picking the door furniture is the best bit, especially if it's from a traditional Ironmonger. 
Difficult doors
Now, if you have a uPVC door, do not fret, there are options, Dulux Weathershield does a paint for uPVC doors, imagine my excitement the moment I realised this, a whole new world has just opened up.
Finally, I can change my old greying white uPVC door, ironically I chose a dove grey, it looked so nice, a great step in the right direction. Ideally, I'd prefer a different colour, still, when you are on a tight budget renovating, forking out for a new wooden door vs a secure ugly uPVC door and a tin of paint, it was a no brainer really!
What colour inspires you?
The only other thing that is just as exciting as door furniture, is door colour! Are you into trendy colours and would like to use your front door to express this?
Have you always known what colour your front door would be?
Do you like traditional colours?
Do you like bright colours?
Are you looking for something unique?
Ask yourself, what important job is your front door doing?
Picking a colour
Finally colours, by now you will have thought about this, if you are still feeling risk-averse use an app, photograph your door and fake paint it, it's never a true representation, but it gives you a good idea. There are so many colours out there, traditionally people like to go for Black, White or Navy.
Otherwise, you can go for the brighter scale, red, blue, yellow and green, not so keen on these myself. Using these striking colours to your advantage, especially if you live on a road with all the same style of houses, then having a memorable coloured door will make it easy for people to find you.
Trends
That's said, I am sure you have all heard of the colour Downpipe from Farrow and Ball; a colour when spotted on a road was a sure-fire sign Developers are in the area and property was on the rise!
There are also some stunning muted pastels on the market now, which can give you a cottage feel, otherwise, you can always have your own colour mixed.
I am always on the lookout for new colours, the other day I saw the most beautiful colour, which I actually cannot stop thinking about, and will one day be on my front door. It was like a muted matt peacock-blue/green, absolutely stunning and really brought out the detail in the door. So can you imagine my sadness to see it covered in black gloss by the new owners, I could have cried!
Let's talk pimping your door...
Once you have decided on the colour of your front door, you need to decide what colour you would like the door furniture , brass, chrome, satin, black. Remember, each door requires the at least, a key receptor/ latch, door handle/ knob, letterbox and if so desired, a door knocker. There is an extra level of fun with traditional homes in the form of door bells, traditional push doorbell, the pull toggle button bell(a personal favourite), the pulldown metal handled or like mine the old school bell. This original Victorian villa door knob from 1893, when the house was built, is stunning, although the door is a little shabby you can really appreciate the iconic door furniture.
Extra bling
Other great ways to look at pimping up your front door are if you have glass above it, this is a perfect place for your house number or name; frosted or opaque, written in block or script font, a really lovely addition to your house's kerb appeal. Using opaque or patterned film can improve internal panes, lots of styles available, Victorian patterns or stained glass to name a few, can affordably enhance look of the glass and give you privacy. If you have no glass, then you can use metal numbers or plaques, however if you have a stone house, you can get a stonemason in to work the stone, to show off the house details, make sure they are visible from the road, otherwise there's no point, in spending the money.
Finally...
...has this has inspired you to reconsider your boring front door? This is the window to your home, how people judge you, an opportunity for you to express your homes personality, giving people a prelude of what's in store for them inside. I hope you have enjoyed my first blog as much as I enjoyed writing it, now I've finally got the ball rolling, for the next one I am going to talk about windows.
If you have a property you are trying to sell and are looking for some Home Staging or wanting to refresh what you have, check out my Home Assessment Report, perfect for getting you and your property back in alignment and sending out the right messages to the world.
On the home page you will find all our current offers, i have a colour therapy power hour which will help you decide on the colour scheme for the room and allow you to brainstorm with me for a whole hour, pick my brains for ideas from which you can move forward with your project with clarity.
There are of course fantastic take aways from the appointment, and opportunity to work with me further if your would like more help with your project. Details of how to get in touch with me are all below or ask for a call back, i look forward to helping you improve your home.
Until the next time, bye for now!
Emmax
