Design suggestion request
 

"Ba r r y" wrote in message
...
Folks,

I have a room which features a red oak floor, doors, craftsman style
wide trim, and radiator covers. The floor is clear oil varnished, the
rest is stained Minwax Natural, mixed 3:1 with Minwax Golden Oak, then
covered with Seal Coat and the same varnish as the floors, for just a
slightly darker color than the floors. The walls are a cool, medium
soft green.

Then there's the metal entry door, factory painted dove gray... 8^(
The door looks good from the outside, and is durable and secure, but
what to do with the inside...

Since we all appreciate wood here, does anyone have any suggestions on
what to do with the door?

I can gel stain and "grain" it, but I don't know how that would look
side by side with real wood. Painting it the wall color wouldn't
work, according to my wife (so you know it won't G).

Help! There's lots of different tastes and plenty of good eyes here.
Anybody?

Thanks,
Barry

I would probably make a new front door out of quarter sawn white oak. It is
a weather resistant material. It will require periodic maintenance, but so
do the metal doors if appearance means anything.

But then, I dislike metal doors and for that matter mdf. I'll take real wood
every time. :-)

A faux paint job would be better than what you've got, and if you don't like
the results, it is reversible. Doesn't Jewitt or Flexner have a recipe for
faux finishes on their website?

Design suggestion request
 

On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 15:39:20 GMT, Ba r r y
wrote:

This particular door is in a brutal, direct sun location. I was
trying to avoid spending tons of my time refinishing the door every
year, as I had to do with the old door. We tried storm doors to
protect the old door, which literally created an oven. A newspaper
stuck between the doors would actually brown in a couple of hours,
even in the winter!

Maybe the best use of wood in that case would be inside of a tree
screening the entry, if possible.


-Leuf

Design suggestion request
 

On Sat, 29 Apr 2006 15:39:20 GMT, Ba r r y
wrote:

A faux paint job would be better than what you've got, and if you don't like
the results, it is reversible. Doesn't Jewitt or Flexner have a recipe for
faux finishes on their website?

They sure do. Since the door is surrounded by real wood, and is next
to a real wood closet door, I figured this won't be the best location
for a faux finish.

I would look for a good painter and ask if he could wood grain the
door to match. This technique is quite common on both metal and
fiberglass doors and a skilled painter should be able to make a very
good match. While it won't be a real wood door, it should look very
close and IMO will likely look as good as any of the alternatives
mentioned.
I also think you could do this yourself but it might take a few
attempts to get good colors and a few more attempts to get the
graining technique down. I'd pay the painter.

Mike O.