A Black Front Door...(Made By Girl)

Hello everyone & welcome back!! This weekend we decided it was time to pull the PAINT brush out & do some work on our front DOOR!

You see, when we're about to walk our DOGS they tend to brush their DIRTY little noses onto the front door. Of course, with this habit comes a lot of CLEANING & wiping down! Know what I mean?!?  I always spot dirt marks on the front & side of the door...DRIVES ME CRAZY!! 

Sooo, painting the door BLACK was an attractive option. We chose a black from the Martha Stewart Living Paints - and decided to go with a more semi-gloss feel. I've been thinking about this idea for quite some time so it was awesome to see it come to fruition! 

Unfortunately.... we can't paint the outside of the door too because we have a strict HOA. Anyone else on the same boat with that?!?!?!?!!?

We were also thinking of placing a stainless steel KICK PLATE on the outside & (MAYBE) inside of the door....or something else to add more interest!!  Any ideas??!?

what do you think??


BEFORE


AFTER

-above images by jen ramos


Below were a few of the photos I gathered for inspiration! Enjoy!






via houzz


via Erica George Dines Photography



Pinterest

101 comments

  1. I love the black door! It totally transformed your entry!

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  2. That actually looks really sophisticated, especially against the crisp white. Love it!

    Dayner x
    http://www.mozzypop.com

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  3. Looks wonderful Jen! Our door has paw prints all over the place. Those crazy dogs...they get so hyper when we walk them :) Hope you're having a FAB Monday!
    xoxo
    -linh
    http://la-lalinh.blogspot.com

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  4. I love the new black door! I am planning on painting the inside of my front door in a bright pink for a surprise block of colour.

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  5. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    looks amazing! love it!

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  6. I love it! We have the same issue with our HOA, it's a pain!

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  7. Oh I love it!!! It looks perfect with your decor. I like the idea of the kick plate on the outside, but not sure about the inside. It might disrupt the flow a bit. But you have a way of making anything look good!

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  8. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    Love it, so dramatic! That inspiration image with the door knobs in the centre of the two doors in one of my favourites. We have black doors throughout our entire house. My interior designers had to convince me, but I am in love with it now, especially with the chrome hardware.

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  9. LOVE black doors and yours looks fantastic. It suits your style perfectly, messy dogs or not. I also have restrictions regarding exterior door choices because my townhouse is a condo. Such a drag sometimes. But it does keep the neighbours in line. lol.

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  10. I love it!!! You have now given me a new project for my own home!!!

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  11. TANYA: Yes in that sense you are correct...it does keep neighbors in line. We wouldnt want a mustard colored door next to ours? LOL

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  12. TIFFANY: Yea im not TOTALLY convinced yet about the kick plate on the inside yet...we'll see. thanks!

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  13. Brilliant. I love it! What a difference!

    www.justatouchofgray.blogspot.com

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  14. MELINDA: WOW...pink? that's pretty bold. But the right pink in the right home would look amazing I bet!

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  15. I love it! I've been meaning to paint our front door a deep shade of plum for the same reason - our dog - but black is really beautiful.

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  16. It's fabulous Jen! The matte black is perfect!

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  17. That looks great! I think a kick plate would set it off :)

    Lauren | Myers Maison

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  18. I love it!! I'm planning on doing this in my home, too but I haven't gotten around to it yet.

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  19. it looks fabulous!!!

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  20. LOVE IT! We are painting ours black as well...i am actually in the process of painting all the doors in our apartment black - i love the look, plus we too have a large dog who pressers her wet nose against everything. I am using a glossy finish though.

    I find it insane that HOA can give you restrictions like that. I work in real estate and still don't understand it at all. I get that some people would do horribly ugly things, but you own the home and the property - you'd think you could personalize it a bit. A friend of mine got written up by her HOA because she installed something for her hose to wrap around on the side of her townhouse, without permission - insane.

    Rai xo
    http://raianashanesedesigns.blogspot.com

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  21. Love the door! I totally understand the dog nose conundrum - now only if it was that easy to solve the nose prints on the windows!

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  22. Black door? Sign me up!
    I'm such a sucker for your hardwood floors.

    *sigh*


    Rashon aka Mr. Goodwill Hunting
    www.ilovethrifting.com

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  23. fantastic! i love it!

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  24. The black door looks fabulous! It provides a great contrast to the white walls.

    Jessie
    www.mixandchic.com

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  25. First of all, I LOVE the shape of your door. The color is really striking. Love the way it made your room pop! xoxo

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  26. I LOVE it, Jen! It really makes the door pop!

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  27. I love black front doors. I want to paint ours black too!

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  28. It really looks nice! :-)

    xx,
    A.

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  29. Its beautiful Jenn, I love it!!

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  30. Love how it anchors the room along with the rug and your console table, excellent decision!

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  31. LOVE it!! I painted mine black last summer & I'm still in love with it! haha It definitely makes a statement. I love how the beadboard-like design on your door really pops now!

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  32. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    Great look! So dramatic.

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  33. what a great idea! I would have never thought to pain a door black, but it looks fabulous! So clean and bold! Love it! Sorry about your HOA rules not letting you do the outside!
    Pure2raw Twin
    ~Lori

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  34. Gorgeous...love it. Makes a huge difference.

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  35. jealous. it looks fantastic. I've wanted to do that forever....

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  36. I loooove colored front doors!!! They have them in Nottingham in London and I find them adorable. I have been actually thinking of painting mine in Honeysuckle. Too bright? Too vibrant?
    Maybe we can exchange notes when I make my decision :).
    Xoxo

    http://m-daydreaminginthecity.blogspot.com/

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  37. Jen...its Perfection! Adds a real polished look to that space and finishes it off beautifully..love it! I cant help but imagine a little more gloss to it and a Kick Ass door Knocker would look awesome! Good Skills lovely x

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  38. Love it! I think you should also paint your closet door. Since they are so close together, I think that would look good. Almost like a set of double doors, what paint did you use?

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  39. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    This looks so sophisticated and chic! It ties in well with your furnishings and zebra rug. It actually brings out the door as a focal feature and draws the eye upward within the space. It also adds warmth to your beautiful flooring. I think it was a great decision, meeting both function and form.

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  40. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    This really finishes off the entry - it's perfect! Another one to add to the inspiration files until I finally paint my own front door.

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  41. LOVE IT!!! I have beent thinking of doing the same thing with my front door, but I'm afraid it'll make my entry hall way look so much smaller :-/ Love the look though, makes the door look chic instantly!

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  42. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    Yup, pretty much love it!! I actually like it as is . You may not need to add the plate ;)

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  43. gorg! I recently painted interior doors black...love them.

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  44. The black looks great! Good idea :)

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  45. Definitely a good choice on the black door! It looks fantastic!

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  46. Love it Jen..looks incredible! Painting ours black is next on our to do list too, I guess we are lucky though, our outside is already black. Sorry to hear you can't paint it, but a kick plate would add alot of fabulousness :) x

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  47. Wow nice change! That was a great call to paint the door black. It really makes a statement in the room now and it is such a pretty door that kinda just went away before.

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  48. BRYN: Cant wait to see what you do. You're always doing pretty cool projects, so im sure it will look amazing!

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  49. I love the contrast it creates and the zebra rug is gorgeous there! Our HOA is the same way!! Ugh it can be annoying sometime!! I'm sure whatever you choose to do to the outside will be beautiful!! Good luck!

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  50. It's striking!!! I think it looks great!

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  51. What a difference!!! Black makes such a great impact!

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  52. the door looks great! excellent choice :)

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  53. The door looks stunning!! It's amazing what a little paint can do!

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  54. So gorgeous !! Looks amazing and really pops against the white.

    xxLily
    goldandgray.com

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  55. What an impact that makes! It creates such visual interest in the foyer now! Love it!rel

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  56. Looks fantastic!! I had to scroll back and forth to see if it actually was the same entry! Perfect update to the space.

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  57. Such a sassy little door! The black just makes it pop, like a little black dress. Love it.

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  58. I have a black front door! love it!

    xoyeanxo

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  59. I loved it!! and the desk matches perfectly now! Good idea! Practical and beautiful!

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  60. AnonymousJune 13, 2011

    Amazing change.. i love it!!
    http://stellaroseblog.wordpress.com/

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  61. Love it! Looks so great - I really like the matte finish.

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  62. AnonymousJune 14, 2011

    The black door really transformed your entryway - looks amazing!

    http://www.highglossfashion.com

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  63. AnonymousJune 14, 2011

    I love it! Looks amazing!

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  64. It looks phenomenal!! I've been trying to convince my hubby of black interior doors throughout the whole house for awhile now, but he just won't go for it... I love how dramatic this looks!

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  65. The black looks amazing! Love the transformation!

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  66. OMG what a great idea! We have a strict HOA too, we can't even hang plants or lights off our patio awning. Annoying!

    LOVE the end result, looks fantastic!

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  67. Definitely nicer AFTER! I love black doors!

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  68. AnonymousJune 14, 2011

    We have just finished painting front door black and now contemplating painting the inside black too - mind made up now xx love it xx

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  69. What a great idea!! I've never thought of a black front door! It looks amazing, something to try out!

    hellolucie.blogspot.com

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  70. Gorgeous! I love me a black door....

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  71. AnonymousJune 14, 2011

    Wow. Love it, it look amazing. At first when I was reading i was like, black? But once I saw it, i fell in love.

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  72. Yesss! I just posted about black doors too bc they are amazing!!!
    http://samanthakayjewelry.blogspot.com/2011/06/black-is-new-black.html

    love all those doors!

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  73. Love the black. It really accentuates the shape of the door.

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  74. I love love love it! One of the only things that I liked about our house before we gutted it is our front door which is glass with a black metal frame. I think it just changes the space completely to have a door with some interest. I've also heard that white metal window sills can be painted black which may be my next DIY project. Good call for you though, it changed and made your entry way along with the cow hide, the DIY light, the black console table,that cool white mirror and..... :)

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  75. I love the dramatic front door!

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  76. Great before and after!!! Love the idea of a popping glam black door. Now, only if we had a front door to our apartment I would do this! Our elevator goes directly into it....

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  77. Classic, Fun & Elegant all at the same time! Great Job!

    Emily :)
    www.furbishhome.com

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  78. OH MY! That black door made such a POP of your entryway! I love it!

    Lisa
    www.pickfair.etsy.com

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  79. That's exactly what I would have done. I love black front doors! Great job!

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  80. Love the impact the black door has on your foyer! Great choice.... I have a wonderful Black Lacquer Front door posted - today - over at Northern Light Blog!! :)

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  81. wow what an amazing detail that makes a huge impact... looks so luxe..

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  82. Looks fantastic against the white backdrop.

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  83. We have a black front door and LOOOOVE it! Yours turned out wonderful! Thanks for such inspirational posts!

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  84. Looks great! A small change with big impact.

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  85. that looks really good! i wouldn't have thought to go black, but it looks amazing in your space!

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  86. Love the black door , it looks veru chic

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  87. You made a great job, it gives another spice on your room. Anyway, the one from Erica George Dines is really nice specially the floor design.

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  88. How beautiful!

    Jess xx
    www.jessielauren.com.au

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  89. Huge difference - I love it!

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  90. I love so much! We are getting new doors in Surrey and now I only want to get black ones. I especially love it paired with that zebra rug.

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  91. Great post. I love the transformation.

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