Do you have a door problem at your house? You know, the kind of issue where you have a tiny space and opening a door into (or out of) that small area makes for some awkward maneuvering? I love that we have an attached bathroom in our bedroom, but it’s a pretty small area to walk into and having the door swing into the already tiny space was frustrating from day one of living there. My Mom suggested when we moved in that I fix the problem with a sliding door of some sort, but I didn’t really know how that would look. And it sounded expensive on top of all the other renovations we wanted to do.
I continued to be annoyed with the door situation until I saw the sliding barn door that we had installed at the studio to fix a similar problem. The issue with that door was that it actually swung outwards and stuck out into the living room when it was open (as you can see in the above before and after pictures). So awkward. A door that would slide instead of swinging made much more sense and wouldn’t take up any space in the teeny-tiny bathroom or kitchen. Problem solved!
When I saw that the problem at the studio was instantly fixed with a new door configuration, I knew it would be the perfect set up to fix my door issue as well. Now, another door solution for small spaces is a pocket door, but they slide inside the wall rather than on top of the wall. So they are much more expensive because you need a contractor to open up the wall and install them. I wanted to use the hardware that we used on the studio door, but I also needed an actual door to hang on the hardware (duh!). The simple ones I liked were about $400. Too much. So I recruited Josh to build a door I designed with a vertical and horizontal stripe pattern, and of course, he nailed it and built it for much less! Tell us your door secrets, Josh!
Hey! Josh here. The real secret to building this door is that it’s so easy and inexpensive to make. A door that looks similar can cost up to 800-1000 bucks (I stress looks because some material is just inherently more expensive.) This door cost about $80!
Supplies:
– about 9 1″ x 4″ x 8′ pine boards
– 1 4′ x 8′ medium grade plywood sheet (I used an oak ply)
– wood filler
– paint
Here are the tools I used:
– table saw
– miter saw
– circular saw
– tape measure
– nailer
– straight edge
– sandpaper
– painter’s tape
The first thing we did was make a plan, which is a good place to start. Laura’s doorway was pretty narrow, so the door ended up only being 29″ wide and 93″ high. The door was just wide enough to cover both sides of molding when closed (by design.) Don’t forget you can modify to fit your opening and space!
After we came up with the plan, it was time to cut some wood (or make some sawdust, as I’ve heard old timers refer to woodworking). I cut the plywood down to the size we needed (29″ x 93″). In order to get the amount of planks onto the size we needed, I had to rip them to 3 1/4″ wide. After everything was ripped, I cut them to the length needed, then sanded them.
After everything was cut and the edges were sanded, I laid all the planks on the plywood to make sure everything fit right. Then it was just a matter of gluing and nailing everything into place. I started with the horizontal planks. Then moved on down to the verticals, making sure to push the pieces firmly next to each other. I used 1.25″ 18 gauge galvanized nails.
After everything was glued and nailed down, I filled all the nail holes and any other imperfections in the wood. Once the filler was dry, I hit the entire thing with 120 grit sandpaper, and then moved up to 220. Since I was painting the door, I wanted to make the surface as free of defects as possible…almost so you couldn’t tell it was made from wood.
To install the door handle, I drilled a couple of holes from the back side of the door, inserted the screws through to the front, attached the screws to the handle, and then filled in those screw holes with wood filler.
At this point, all that was left to do was to tape and paint. I used painter’s tape with edge lock technology. It costs a few bucks more, but you can tell the difference! I taped all of the edges super tight, and then applied 3 coats of each color, lightly sanding between each coat. And that is it! The whole thing took about a day to make. The longest step was painting.
To install the door onto the wall, we just followed the instructions that came with the hardware. This process will be different depending on which hardware you go with, so make sure to choose hardware that has an installation process you are comfortable with (or you can always have a professional install that part and just concentrate on your door).
Didn’t Josh do such a good job? Teamwork! You can see above that I made the inside handle with a 1/2″ piece of quarter round that I cut to 7″ long, painted white, and glued on to the door. My husband wanted a really low profile inside handle so we could open the door completely (it’s a really narrow doorway so you need all the width you can get), and this was the perfect solution.
This sliding door has made all the difference in our bathroom space, and it feels so much larger since we made the switch. Plus, I love the character it adds to the bedroom side of the wall, and the stripes are just too fun not to like. Do you have an awkward door that needs a sliding door makeover? xo. Laura
Credits // Authors: Laura Gummerman + Joshua Rhodes. Photography: Laura Gummerman, Joshua Rhodes, and Janae Hardy. Photos edited with A Beautiful Mess actions.
61 Comments
That guy should not be wearing flip-flops in the workshop.
Really, Sam (respectfully)? I would be more concerned about hidden little red l.e.d. than I would with someone fumbling around loudly to peek through the small gap.
Be that as it may, there are products that would deter the stealthy perv., provided that the installation mitigates a large gap – like a felt or brush strip installed lengthwise. Or even a common weather strip installed in such a way to be virtually invisible …for the most part.
This is such a good idea!
xo
http://www.iolablog.com/
This is really brilliant! I have a wide closet and hope I can do two doors. One question: Can I just buy lightweight doors (or have wood cut to size) instead of building them?
Right now I have these awful metal bypass doors that run on a track. Besides being heavy, they are noisy, and rumble and squeak when you push them. No one wants to use the closet because of the awful doors! Thanks for the tutorial.
I was JUST thinking about how chic and practical those sliding barn doors are in homes, but how I could never put one together! This is so awesome.
Cat
http://oddlylovely.com
I’ll have to re-read your post. Wondering whether kits are available, so we won’t have to buy all of the individual parts. Wonderful idea, BTW.
I’ve always loveed barn doors and never thought of using them in my home since it is more modern looking. I love the look of these though! I hate the curtains on my sliding glass door and for years have been looking for a different way to cover them. Thanks a bunch for the idea!!
I need a sliding door for my ensuite, it doesn’t even have a door at all so my bedroom curtains always have to stay shut.
Such a great design !
Wow, I’m LOVING this! so creative for a small space 🙂
This is a fantastic idea. I currently have a door problem in our bedroom. There’s a door to go directly into the bathroom but if left open it keeps bashing into our main bedroom door. Annoying – especially with kids! I totally would love to try this, would add some style too.
http://xfallenmoon.blogspot.com/
This is great…i still haven’t seen a sliding/barn door that i haven’t loved.. the stripes are just perfect…love this..
xo
agoldentulip.blogspot.com
Wow. I never would have thought to fix that problem with a sliding door. I probably would’ve kept living with it until I was so used to it it just didn’t bother me anymore. Will definitely keep this in mind just in case!
I love it, it’s funny I just talked about that with my man yesterday for the bathroom door. Because of you, now we know how to do it. Thank you.
Wow, it looks great! So good that you documented the process.
http://barbarianme.com/
Love your smiley pillow!
Beautiful Project! Very Compliments
amazing idea!
Fashion latte with vanilla
Where are the glass flower holder floating above your chair from? I love them!
nice idea!!!
http://www.agoprime.it
Love the gray and white!
Gorgeous! Where is the bathroom sink from?
I’m planning on doing this in my master as well. The door I have is wide enough but it opens into the bathroom it blocks a window and is horrible for natural light for doing hair and make up. on a hot day its miserable because it gets very humid in the bathroom. Door closed=too hot door open=not great lighting. My concern with the door is the noise. I wake up a couple hours before my husband and don’t want to wake him. Have you found your hardware to be fairly quiet while opening and closing?
The door is awesome, but I agree with Elizabeth – safety first, Josh!!
That is genius! Looks like it was always meant to be there. Love the stripes and the hardware toughens it up so perfectly. I might try and adapt something like this to a set of pocket doors we have. Great project! xo
http://www.stylebee.ca
I would love to do this in my bedroom´s bathroom!
http://www.mykitschworld.blogspot.com.es
Such a good idea!
http://somebodyfromsomewhere.blogspot.com/
I love the idea of this. I have a bathroom door that opens into a very narrow hallway with a few other doors opening in to complicate matters. I’m wonder about the privacy level of the door. Does it sort of swing on the track? Could you lift in and walk in? How comfortable would your average guest be using it? What about kiddos and animals?
This is fantastic! I’d love to do this someday. The mix of horizontal and vertical stripes really works with the room.
Any chance you remember where you found that moon phases print in the before picture? I’ve been looking for one like that for a long time!
Such a great idea! I have a similar situation with my bathroom door, unfortunately there’s nowhere to slide it too as it’s by 2 walls 🙁 I might swap it round though, so it opens into the hallway rather than into the tiny bathroom!
http://www.peonyandpeach.blogspot.com
I was so excited to see this post! We are doing some work in one of the rooms of our house, and a sliding door will be perfect! Right now we have an UGLY plastic bi-fold door, and I can’t wait to rip that sucker out. We were going to do a pocket door, but I like this option even more. 🙂
Does a sliding door offer enough privacy for a bathroom? It doesn’t really close all the way, the way a regular door shuts, does it? Or does it have a tight enough fit against the door frame that there’s not really a difference?
I would love to do this to our bedroom door, but in our 1br/1ba apartment I’m worried that losing the ability to completely shut a door wouldn’t give us enough privacy.
I really adore the look of these sliding doors. I think yours fits in so seamlessly in your room with the neutral colors. Gorgeous job Laura and Josh!
xoxo
Taylor
Yep! You totally could! I have an odd shaped door, so I don’t think I could have found one that was the right size already, but even if it’s a little bigger than the edges of your molding, I think you’d be ok 🙂
Laura
They are actually a DIY:
http://abeautifulmess.com/2014/03/hanging-planter-idea-made-with-plastic-fishbowls.html
Make some, they are really easy 🙂
Laura
I think that part depends on the hardware you get. Some is noisier than others, I think ours is pretty quiet comparatively, but any sort of sliding door will make some sort of noise when the wheels are rolling 🙂
Laura
No, the door can’t swing out towards the room, the hardware comes with different types of things you install in the floor or baseboard to keep the bottom down. Since the door goes all the way out to the molding, you can’t see in from any angle and you could install a hook to lock the door on the inside if you wanted. It’s our personal bathroom, so I didn’t care about a lock, but I’d put one one if it was a guest bathroom. I don’t have kids, so I can’t speak for that part, but I would think the same rules would apply for a sliding door to a porch. And the cats couldn’t care less about door styles! Doesn’t matter to them…
Laura 🙂
I think it was a print on Urban Outfitters 🙂
Laura
Since the door goes all the way out to the molding, you can’t see in from the sides and you could install a hook to lock the door on the inside if you wanted to. It’s our personal bathroom, so I didn’t care about a lock, but I’d put one one if it was a guest bathroom. That’s easy to do 🙂
Laura
looove this! so cool!
xxoo,
nikki
http://www.dream-in-neon.com
I love the look of the sliding door, but do you feel that it gives you the same amount of potty privacy?
This is brilliant. My bathroom is tiny (and I mean tiny), and this is the perfect fix!
This is so pretty, I love how sleek it looks.
Random question… how do you lock it?
What a great idea! The stripes suit the space well 🙂
Such a clever idea!
ISOSCELLΔ | http://isoscella.blogspot.com
I have been looking for that style of pants with that fit FOREVER to no avail. Where are yours from?
I love how you did two different types of stripes. It makes the door even more unique!
Just a thought: look into salvage shops in your area. Habitat for Humanity has Restores everywhere but they’re certainly not the only resource. I’ve managed to get basically all of the materials I’ve needed for my home renovation from my two favorite local salvage stores and I can’t even begin to think how much money I’ve saved. I wouldn’t dream of spending more than $40 on a door!
Josh Rhodes is my hero.
Ive been wearing flip-flops in the work shop for years. Haven’t cut off my foot yet!
-Josh
i love your painted door…great idea! We just did a sliding barn door for our guest bedroom closet and I love the way it looks. We actually built the hardware ourselves and it was a pain…good call on buying it, we’ll probably buy it if we do more barn door in the house.
You actually look quite comfy and peaceful! Can you build a door for me? 🙂
This is cool! I have a issue where the door to the master bedroom and the half bath are right in the living room! Two doors on either side of the main wall! Could I use the barn doors to add a little extra element to those doors or any other suggestions?
I absolutely love this! But wondering for the bathroom does it provide enough privacy? Or is it the same as a traditional door?
Where did you get the black iron sliding parts?
i like the idea of these kinds of doors, but i really don’t think i’d do it for a bathroom or powder room. why? well, because they do not close completely, there is always a gap around the door, which would lead to a privacy problem in more ways than one… for another room great! but not a bathroom or powder room.
but you did do a good job! 🙂
This is a fantastic idea. thanks for sharing.
Nicely done! I followed the link for the hardware and I felt the prices were too much, can’t figure out how you completed the door for the ????quoted. Anyhow, I love your door, the stripes showed me an option for the cabinet door we will be making. We will be making the hardware from separate pieces to keep the cost down.
Our space is very small as well
Also the door it self has to be pretty this
How thick is this door?
I love this idea! I wanted for my bathroom door but there something about the hardware above? It needs support? Thanks