Adding A French Door To The Bathroom

The bathroom door in our bedroom was worn, plain and uninspiring. It certainly didn't fit our beach cottage home.

So we got creative and added a new door with style.

And now our bathroom and bedroom are a cottage style dream.


Earlier this year, on a cold, gray February day, we finally began working on one of my dream DIY projects.

Ok, well that's not entirely true.

What I should say is that's the day we bought the supplies for a long awaited renovation.


And I do mean long awaited.

You see, before that day there were several years of me mentioning, over and over again, to my husband {and super handy handyman} how we needed a new door for our ensuite bathroom.

Then once the door was in the house, it took me another several months of not so subtle suggestions like - Hey, you know what today might be a great day for? - to actually get it started.

My husband always says the reason most of my crazy design plans get done around here is because I can talk about them a lot longer than he can stand to listen to them.

Funny guy.

But frankly, I don't blame him.

This house was built in the 1920's...before building codes and apparently without a level. Nothing in our cottage is straight.

Which is super charming from a decorating standpoint.

And an absolute nightmare from a construction one.


We learned long ago that what would be a very quick and easy job in any other home takes hours and tons of wrestling to accomplish it around here.

This door was no exception.

I've mentioned in several posts, over the past few months, that the project was almost done, but man, it was not easy.

The story behind this door and my desire to change it is a simple one. The original door, installed in the 1960's when our bedroom was added to our charming abode, was ugly.

It didn't match the other raised paneled doors in the rest of the house and it had absolutely no charm.

Plain and simple, I hated it.

So for a decades we looked for one that would match, in stores, antique shops and at the curb, but none were the proper size. Our door is small at 24" wide and that wasn't something we could modify, like trimming it down or adding wood to make it taller.

Then one day I had a brainstorm. What if, instead, we added a French door, like we put in the living room?

And that was that,  I was hooked.

Of course, I'm just the the DIY dreamer. I have a general idea of what needs to be done, but my husband knew that the chances of popping the old door out and putting the new one in that same space were slim.

And again, he wasn't wrong.

The door frame was not square, so the new door didn't fit. Apparently, the correct way to do this would be to remove the door jamb and add a new one.

That, however, is major construction and I am firmly against that, so my sweet husband was trying to do it the Kim way to make me happy...which left him very, very unhappy.


After a lot of wrestling with that door and reengineering it by cutting it down on odd angles, finding a piece of wood, that was the right thickness to add to the top of the door to close a gap, gluing and sanding it, it fit.

I didn't get a picture of that process, but it was basically what he did here to my daughter's bedroom door after we removed the hallway carpet and there was a large gap under her door.


Making it fit was good enough for a few more weeks.

Then, in early spring, he took it down to paint it.

Outside. On days when it was still chilly, but warm enough to for the primer and paint to dry.

It took several coats, using a small roller to apply the primer and paint to the outer wooden frame.

For the glass, he used a spray paint and primer in one.

He also left the plastic on the glass panes rather than taping them. So much simpler.

When it was time to remove them, he just used a razor blade to cut it away.

The doorknob should've gone on before the door went back up, but the original knob was old.

That was from the 1920's and in order to use it, a large part of the door needed to be carved out to accommodate the cumbersome lock box.


I vetoed that idea and we found this brand new glass knob set (these are also similar glass knobs) instead, but when push came to shove, I thought that maybe we should use the old knob after all.

You know, for continuity.


My husband said he could combine the parts from the old and new knobs to make it work, like he did when we made the chandelier for the bedroom.

But it'd be a project for another day.

Well, that day was months ago. 

Before we got distracted by our closet door update and the stinky marketplace headboard and that chandelier DIY.

Oh, and summer.


In the meantime, I was able to order fabric samples and make a curtain for the door in a darling green check.

It's the same one I used to update the shuttered cabinet doors. Another unfinished DIY.

And it coordinates with the fabric on the vanity door and the pom pom curtain valance I made a few months ago.

Well, today, I decided that I was done waiting for the doorknob installation to be completed before the big reveal.

I wanted to share and figured you'd get the idea, with or without the hardware.


I have to say it was so worth the wait.

The new French door fits the room so much better.

It really complements the rest of the decor.


It looks fabulous from the inside of the bathroom, too.

A nice view while I'm showering is always a bonus.

So far the doorknob hasn't been missed.

The door stays shut when needed.

And I know in time it'll get installed.

In the meantime, I'm keeping my mouth shut.

About this project anyway.

I've got a bedroom that needs to be painted.

I'm saving my talking for that.

Shhh...

😉

Would you add a French door in your bathroom?

Happy Renovating, Friends!