One of my house goals before winter really kicks in is a solid front door. The current door is the original, with a storm door from the 1920s. It’s currently bolted shut and basically lets all the wind in. Brrr! As you can see in these photos, at some point in the 1880s shutters were put on the windows and the front door. Pretty, but not practical. (That mosaic number plate in the photo above was ripped off the day we bought the house. For obvious reasons.)
I’ve been wanting to not spend a ton on a door, so was excited to find a nice one in the “remnants” sale section of a local building supply place. After debating for months, my brother went in and was told it wasn’t for sale. BUMMER. So we’re back to the starting point of trying to find something solid, not super expensive, and energy efficient but with the gravitas I desire. Yes, gravitas. Sean keeps laughing at me for saying that as I look at doors, front porch lamps, and door knockers. Gravitas doesn’t come cheap, kids. So the search continues and in the meantime, I’m over at Pinterest thinking that if I pin enough, one will magically appear. That’s how it works, right?
1.Savannah 2. Christy Bright 3. Atlanta Homes Mag 4. Maria Killam
We once chased a beautiful solid wood door return through Home Depot all the while trying to hail a manager to pick a price for it. Eventually, like you guys, we were told it had to go through an “evaluation” process for a price that NO it could not be done on the spot… A front door is super important!
have you thought about repairing the original door? with weatherstripping, sealing the lights, you might find that you solve your drafty problem!
We definitely don’t want any glass in the front door. We’ll save it and use it somewhere else, but we want something really solid and insulated.
Affordable salvage? Far away from you (new england-y speaking), but these guys can be reasonable: http://www.nedsalvage.com/products.html
I am pretty definite that’s how Pinterest works. Or, at least, that’s how I’ve been using it.
I think most people, as a generalization, don’t put enough thought into their front doors, and we’d all be better off if we did. I’ve been thinking about the door I’ll put on my someday house since high school, it’s probably the first thing I’ll do whenever I get my own. And I’m with you — gravitas is exactly what you should be going for.
Count your blessings that the door appears to be a pretty standard size. Our home was built in the 1932 and has the original front door. It is in horrible condition and cannot be repaired. The height, width, and shape is irregular (rounded top). Custom wood is the only option. We’ve been quoted anywhere from $3700 (the cheapest!) to $6500. For a DOOR. OUCH.
The door is a couple inches shorter and less wide than a modern door, so we either have to order custom, or knock out everything around the brick. We’ll probably do the latter, but definitely not as bad as dealing with a rounded top!
Doors are serious business! You don’t think about them much until you have to. I have a good friend in NYC who’s a door HARDWARE specialist, with all kinds of rich and famous clients. I never even thought about that being a thing until I met her! I mean, some of these people are critically picking out these escutcheons and hinges and things in the thousands of dollars. Crazy! Door hardware – your next obsession. 😉