5 Tips for Painting Your Front Door

It can be intimidating to paint. It’s messy and can take a long time, especially if you need to use ladders or paint multiple rooms. But it can be really rewarding too! You can show off your personality through colors and I love having the little memory of, “Remember when we painted this….” Recently I painted my front door—and I love it! It was the perfect little weekend project. Here are my top 5 painting tips.1. Take your time choosing the perfect color. If you can, take a few paint swatches home and tape them up to the door or wall you plan to paint. See how the colors look with the surrounding area. Think about how this color will look through the seasons. I choose a bold yellow for my front door because I wanted a bright accent to my otherwise neutral/wooden home.

2. Choose the perfect finish. Most paints come in flat (sometimes called matte), satin, semi gloss and high-gloss. For my door I choose semi gloss. I usually prefer flat because I like how it doesn’t reflect light. But for a front door semi gloss or high-gloss is a better option because it can be cleaned more easily. 3. Prep the area you plan to paint. For me this included giving my front door a good wipe down. You don’t want to paint over dust or debris because it will leave bumps in your paint. When painting a dark surface to a lighter color (like a dark brown to yellow) it is a good idea to first paint on a layer of primer. I forgot to buy primer. Oops. No biggie, an extra coat of paint did the trick for me.4. Tape everything and watch your floors! Tape around edges and hardware. I choose to leave my door on its hinges as I painted. You could choose to take your door off, but be sure to hang up a thick cloth to keep flies out as much as you can as you paint. This is also why it’s a good idea to complete a front door paint job in the spring or autumn months; you don’t want your door open or off it’s hinges during months of super hot or cold weather. And be sure to cover your floors with newspaper or drop cloths as you work, especially if you have carpet. Painting can be messy but if you prepare then you can easily keep the mess under control and keep clean up time to a minimum.5. Order pizza. This is essential for DIY painting projects, no matter how large or small. And you are absolutely required to order pizza if you have friends who are kind enough to help. Pizza + painting = a good time!Side note: To paint the frame or not? I choose to paint the frame/trim around my front door because I loved the idea of making the color pop and I felt committed to my color choice. But you can totally choose to not paint the frame, making the door color a little bit subtler and it will feel a little more a part of the house. Just a preference choice—don’t be afraid to do what you want! xo. Emma

Comments

So cute! I love the bright pop of yellow. Thank you for your tips as well. I can't paint my front door where I'm at now, but I can paint the trim so I will definitely be keeping these in mind.

Posted by: Erica | June 30, 2012 at 05:36 PM

I love this color! Your door looks beautiful. I'm in the process of deciding on a shade of yellow for my living room walls, and this one looks like it might be just right. Could you tell me what brand / color of paint you used? Thanks for the tips!

Posted by: Kerry | June 30, 2012 at 05:55 PM

The color is really beautiful, and I realized it just goes great with all seasons!
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Posted by: Apollonia | June 30, 2012 at 05:56 PM

I freaking love this blog. Thank you for such fun content every day... You never disappoint. :)

Posted by: Renee | June 30, 2012 at 05:59 PM

Ahh that looks so so good. I love that yellow!

Posted by: Amy | June 30, 2012 at 06:01 PM

Thanks for the tips they are very useful. Love the new color
x
cammi
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Posted by: CamMi Pham | June 30, 2012 at 06:02 PM

another thing to make this DIY even better, would be to add beer drinking to the pizza eating!

Posted by: Joshua | June 30, 2012 at 06:27 PM

This is awesome...I love the yellow door. It stands out and doesn't look so dull. Great DIY idea!

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xo

Posted by: Gina | June 30, 2012 at 06:36 PM

Love the bright yellow door! Our door is green and I know of a house in my college town who has a lavender colored door! This is amazing and it really does pop! Perfect choice!

Posted by: Ashlee | June 30, 2012 at 07:10 PM

So pretty! Great color choice.

xo, vicky
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Posted by: Vicky | June 30, 2012 at 07:22 PM

Excellent! I've been imagining painting big blue and white chevron stripes on my future front door for ages. Got to do it now. :D

Posted by: Otter Mei | June 30, 2012 at 07:38 PM

Great color. That's funny, because I have the exact SAME door and I painted mine red. You know the geometric part on the bottom? I left it white, and it looks really cool!

Posted by: Jeanine | June 30, 2012 at 08:15 PM

great post!
xo
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Posted by: Alysa | June 30, 2012 at 08:16 PM

i cannot wait to have a brightly colored door.

Posted by: tiffani | June 30, 2012 at 08:24 PM

Love that yellow door. Wow that a lovely project and it makes all the difference.
Carlee

http://almostendearing.blogspot.com/

Posted by: Carlee | June 30, 2012 at 08:33 PM

Nice job guys.
The pizza was an essential step I see. :)

xoxo
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Posted by: Natasha Fatah | June 30, 2012 at 09:17 PM

Looks great! :)