The Front Door: I Think We Are Painting It.

Perhaps the title of this post caught your attention. We are painting the front door? Well, maybe.

Andy and I have been working on the front door, on-and-off, since the summer of 2015. Probably the most important post that we wrote was how ice dams damaged the door and how we fixed it. That post started the restoration process. Every year after, when the warm season began, Andy and I would commit to checking this door project off of our to-do lists, but each fall, the first cold snap was a sad reminder that it wasn’t going to happen after all.

Despite trying everything from the most benign to the most toxic chemical strippers, there is still a shadow of green oil paint in every crevice. We have used a heat gun, dental tools, tiny manual sandpaper tools, and a Dremel. We have spent hours working an inch at a time with small scraps of sandpaper. Our methods have not yielded results that are compatible with staining and varnishing. In fact, in some places, we caused minor damage to the wood instead of creating a clean slate.

Through the years, I have spent a lot of time thinking about a solution. This summer, when I pored over all of our before and process photos, I discovered something important. Very important. There is no evidence of stain or varnish on this door anywhere. During the past three summers, we were operating under the assumption that the original finish of this door must have been stain and varnish. I no longer think that is the case. I think this door was painted in thick green oil paint right from the beginning.

Since we started working on the front door three years ago, I have stripped my share of woodwork here in BHH. The interior doors show signs paint over stain. However, other areas in the house indicate the woodwork may have always been painted–specifically the grand staircase. Some of the paint has chipped off down to bare wood, and there is no varnish or stain. The first layer of color appears to be a shade of medium brown.

While we have no interior shots from the 1800s, we do have this exterior photo. To me, it looks like the shingles were natural-colored, and the woodwork was a dark color–probably green, but maybe brown. I wish the lighting was better on that front door!

The March/April 2015 issue of Yankee Magazine published an article that supports the idea that dark green oil paint was available and used during the time that BHH was built.

All of this evidence has honestly kind of rocked my world. Three years ago, I had no idea that some original woodwork was painted from the get-go. If you are interested in learning more, the book, Victorian Interior Decoration: American Interiors, 1830-1900 by Gail Caskey Winkler and Roger W Moss (affiliate link) discusses the trends for painted and unpainted woodwork in-depth. BHH is not classified entirely as a Victorian house, but it is a mish-mash of Colonial, Victorian, and Shingle style trends. In 2017, I wrote two specific posts about our mullet house: Business in the Front, Party in the Back: Part I and Part II. Both of those posts elaborate on the hodgepodge style of BHH.

All this to say, that I think we have decided to paint our front door. We are also considering more hinges and a new doorknob. We need to restore the function of this door, not just the beauty. Right now, it has all sorts of problems. Daylight is visible around the edges. The locks only line up if you give it a solid hip check and pull up on the knob at the same time, but my biggest concern is safety. The door is difficult to open, and the doorknob has fallen off more than once. My daughter is just now strong enough to open it. As a gymnast, she’s no slouch in the strength department either. Being unable to open the door would be dangerous in an emergency.

Currently, I am researching doorknobs and locks. There is a limited selection for our specific configuration which cuts down on the decision-making. Before we change course entirely, I welcome your feedback about this door. For me, painting instead of staining is a significant mind-shift, but I am completely open to the idea. We have been working on this door for three years, so I can wait a few more days to hear you out.

So, let me have it. Or not… If we choose to move forward with the painting, we will start right away. It is going to be cold soon, and the paint needs plenty of time to cure properly. For the exterior side of the door, we would use Heritage Red by Benjamin Moore. Heritage Red is the same color we have used on all of the other doors, including the street side front porch.

We would paint the interior side to match the existing color of the woodwork.

PS: Are there any signs of fall where you live? The air is already crisp here during my early morning dog walks. I’m not ready!