Going Dramatic with Black Interior Doors
I fell in love with the look of interior black doors months and months ago, but didn’t know if I would love them in our house. Painting the interior doors black would create quite a statement, but was it a statement I was ready to make? If you follow me on Pinterest (and you really should be!) you know that I have a board called “Black Doors”. I really do love black, used either on walls or doors, or even floors. It’s not like I haven’t taken a baby steps in this directions, as I did paint the inside of the front doors black a long time ago. You can check the front door out here in the post about painting the floor tiles.
I wasn’t sure about painting all of them though… I was especially worried about it in the hallway to the kids bedrooms, since there isn’t any natural light in there at all. But after months of deliberation, and much trepidation, I finally said “What the heck?! If it’s not everything I imagined it to be, I can always repaint every. single. door.”
So I said a quick prayer that I would love them because no one in their right mind wants to repaint over black doors…and proceeded to paint all the interior doors in the house black.
I painted them Tricorn Black by Sherwin Williams in satin, to be exact. Except for the bedrooms and the bathrooms, the rest of the house is painted in Mindful Gray by Sherwin Williams, and Tricorn Black is the perfect shade to go with it and the white trim.
Here are a few before shots…
Kitchen pantry – we just have a few aprons…
Bedroom and bathroom off one side of the hallway
Oh, how I abhor those floors! I can not wait to replace it with wood, but for now, I silently curse the nasty grout lines and broken tiles when I vacuum. Unfortunately it is in the entire house, except for the bedrooms, so that’s a lot of cursing.
Hallway leading to laundry room and bedroom
And finally, the doors to our master bedroom…
Doors to the master bedroom. Can you spot the cat?
Of course, I wiped down all the doors before I started. I did not sand them, but I did prime them.
Primer started…
According to the paint gods, the gray primer is supposed to help the black paint cover better. It still took three coats of black paint to get a solid black door, so I can’t even imagine how many coats it would have taken if I didn’t use the tinted primer.
Primer started on master doors
I was trying to make sure to document all the steps I took, including started the primer in the insets of the doors, you know, so I could write a proper how-to post… yeah, that didn’t happen. I didn’t take any more pictures until after I was completely done with the last door. Sorry!
There are a total of eleven doors, so the priming was done on one day. Then the three coats of paint took a few more days. And finally, this is what we ended up with.
Master Bedroom Doors
Hallway doors…
The other side of the hallway looking at the laundry room and bedroom
Here’s a view of the master bedroom doors from the living room.
The master bedroom doors from the living room
In the kitchen…
The kitchen pantry door. Can you spot Gracie in this picture? I swear, they photo bomb on purpose
This is the other kitchen pantry… Elvis had to get into the action again…
Let’s just say that the kitchen cabinets are on my list of things to paint too. And getting rid of those knobs. UGH. If I could, I’d re-do everything about the kitchen, except for the black doors 🙂
I was playing with the camera on a tripod today, and got a pretty good shot of the living room, with the kitchen reflected in the mirrors showing off the black door above…
I love all the black in this shot – the black shades on the Stiffel lamps, the black faux bamboo chest and the black pantry doors in the background.
I was pretty excited to finally get some not so blurry pictures in the house. That tripod made all the difference!
Can’t you just imagine how fabulous the kitchen will look with white cabinets?! As you can see, I still haven’t moved the red cabinet to it’s new spot in the breakfast area. I’ll get there eventually. 🙂
So, what do you think? Do you love the black doors as much as I do? I think they add so much drama to the house – and this house needed a little drama.
Thanks for stopping by!
Eliesa
Sue says
August 24, 2013 at 9:06 pmThey really do add drama. Very nice. Like your gray chair in the master bedroom.
A Pinterest Addict says
August 24, 2013 at 9:25 pmThanks Sue! It’s in my living room 🙂 I actually reupholstered that guy myself 🙂 It has a twin that isn’t done yet. I should probably get on that, huh?!
🙂
Tracy says
August 24, 2013 at 9:10 pmGreat job Eliesa!! That’s a big job, especially considering all the coats you had to do… but the end result looks worth the while 🙂
A Pinterest Addict says
August 24, 2013 at 9:26 pmThanks Tracy! I will call you this week, I promise. xoxo
karen@somewhatquirky says
August 24, 2013 at 9:37 pmThese look great! I’m working with a friend to turn all her doors black. Actually a grey black. She has grey walls like you do with white trim and this post gets me excited to finish hers out! Great job.
A Pinterest Addict says
August 24, 2013 at 9:43 pmThanks Karen! I really do love how they turned out! I hope you share how your friend’s turn out – I’d love to see them!
P.j. says
August 25, 2013 at 12:29 amVery elegant! Your bravery paid off very well! 🙂
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 9:24 amOhhh… I like “elegant”… sounds even better than dramatic! Thank you!!
Mrs. Major Hoff says
August 25, 2013 at 1:03 amnice! I love your little photobomers!
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 9:24 amIf it’s not the cats, it’s the dogs 😛
kirby carespodi says
August 25, 2013 at 6:49 amOh wow…they look great! I love how your style is evolving…like it’s almost New York-y penthouse, but still a family home.
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 9:23 amThank you, Kirby! It’s still quite a work in progress – this area is pretty much the only one that is even a little “done”.
Donna says
August 25, 2013 at 7:51 amHi there! I love your black doors, can I ask what color black you used? I plan to do the same some day and love the black you used.
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 8:50 amThanks! i used Sherwin Williams Tricorn Black.
Megan @ The Brick Bungalow says
August 25, 2013 at 9:27 amHi! I came over from That DIY Party and love the doors! It looks great with your living room. And you kitchen cabinets would look good in white next to all the black doors. I feel ya on tile floors. Our kitchen and bath were both done by the previous homeowner and are in horrible shape!
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 10:02 amThank you! As far as the tile situation goes… usually I’m all about “just do it!” but when you are talking about taking that much tile OUT – ugh. We would have to move everything into a storage container. Makes my head spin just thinking about it.
nATALIE says
January 20, 2019 at 6:02 pmHave you considered luxury tile? I put it over tile floors and it looks amazing! i GROUTED MINE, BUT WOULD THINK PLANKS WOULD DO OK AS LONG AS THEY HAD THE PROPER UNDERLAY (OR YOU COULD TRY SHAW WITH THE ACOUSTIC BACKING WHICH IS REALLY FIRM YET STILL VERY SOFT) “tHEY” SAY YOU HAVE TO TAKE OUT THE TILE, BUT i’VE HAD ZERO ISSUES WITH CRACKING OR SOFT SPOTS. IT IS A TAD HIGHER, BUT WHO WOULD NOTICE THAT BUT ME?
Laurie says
August 25, 2013 at 10:03 amYep!! Love the black doors!! 11 doors?? You have more patience than I do! Wanna come do mine? ;D
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 10:06 amThank you! It was truly one of those projects that I couldn’t stop in the middle of, so I HAD to finish. I was dragging my butt the whole time. But I love the way it turned out, so I’m glad I finally did it!
Janis@All Things Beautiful says
August 25, 2013 at 1:49 pmThese look GREAT! I’ve got to do this. Started with my front doors, and I have plenty of paint. I just need a workforce! Truly elegant and awesome results. You gave me the boost I needed. xoxo
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 2:15 pmThank you!! I wish I lived closer – I would help you out!
Lori says
August 25, 2013 at 2:40 pmBeautiful! They look like they were meant to be that color! 🙂
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 8:04 pmThank you! I think so too! Now that I look at the before pics, they looked so blah in comparison.
Doreen says
August 25, 2013 at 3:12 pmLove it! I was thinking about doing this myself and I think you just made up my mind! Thanks for sharing the before and after, it really shows off the impact of the black doors!
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 8:06 pmThanks, Doreen! Oh boy! I hope you love them as much as I do! Can’t wait to see how they turn out 🙂
Melanie says
August 25, 2013 at 3:20 pmLovvvvveeee! Great job Sweetie!
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 8:07 pmThanks Melanie! It makes me smile when you comment, you are always so sweet – 🙂
michelle lentini says
August 25, 2013 at 4:33 pmFirst…those are the exact doors we just put in throughout our house. You know that I love love black and I do love your doors painted black. Nice job
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 8:08 pmI have to make a date to come see your new abode, Michelle! I can bring the paint if you want! LOL! Miss you, lady!
Trisha D. says
August 25, 2013 at 8:06 pmOhh the black is quite unexpected and brings them up a notch on the classy scale!!
A Pinterest Addict says
August 25, 2013 at 8:17 pmI knew you would like the whole black door thing! I am seriously loving your blog, by the way. Totally fun! I am so glad we were able to meet at Haven… having a new blog to follow is one thing – knowing the blogger is amazing and fabulous is quite another! 🙂
Cindy says
August 26, 2013 at 11:46 amBeeeeautiful! 🙂
A Pinterest Addict says
August 26, 2013 at 2:42 pmThank you!
TA says
August 26, 2013 at 1:34 pmThey look amazing! I have been wanting to do this in my house for some time. This may be a silly question but did you paint both sides of the doors?
A Pinterest Addict says
August 26, 2013 at 2:41 pmThank you!
No, that’s not silly at all! I did not paint both sides, only the side that faces the common areas. The insides of the doors are all white.
Kayla says
August 26, 2013 at 1:51 pmThey look great!! I’d love for you to link up to The DIY’ers. http://homecomingmn.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-diyers-and-last-weeks-top-three.html
A Pinterest Addict says
August 26, 2013 at 2:48 pmThanks, Kayla!
Miss Kitty says
August 26, 2013 at 5:06 pmWow! Such a transformation! It really made SUCH a huge difference in the look of your doors…amazing! Thanks for sharing how you did it. You have a lot of stick-to-itiveness to get all of those doors done.
DesignedByBH says
August 27, 2013 at 1:03 amOh, wow! The doors look amazing! And you can tell that you have painted a good bit before…they’re perfect! I especially like your bedroom doors next to the decor in your living room. What great inspiration!
paulasweetpea says
August 27, 2013 at 4:37 pmYour black painted doors looks so classy and really change the look of your rooms.
Traci says
August 29, 2013 at 1:38 amI have been thinking about doing the same but I have 21 interior doors and I can’t image painting them all but I love yours.
Traci
A Pinterest Addict says
August 30, 2013 at 10:10 amThank you! Oh my, 21 doors… that would make me very wary too! 😛
Jenn says
August 29, 2013 at 2:18 pmI must get black doors. That’s it, you’ve just made my mind up. I’ve been wanting them for a while, also pinning pics of them and just haven’t pulled the trigger. Now it’s next on my project list!
A Pinterest Addict says
August 30, 2013 at 10:08 amDo it! I love mine, and wish I hadn’t taken so long to pull the trigger. Let me know how they turn out for you! 🙂
Danielle Driscoll (@DDSilverPennies) says
August 31, 2013 at 8:34 amLove your elegant black doors! Thanks for sharing at Silver Pennies Sundays. x
Brenda Travis says
September 4, 2013 at 7:47 pmThey are very glamorous as well. Most of the wood work in my house is natural wood so I don’t think black doors will be right for me but I do love the idea.
Vohnda says
September 8, 2013 at 9:03 amI was wondering if you have any suggestions for cleaning the black doors. I have had black interior doors for about 5 years and love them. I haven’t found anything that removes finger prints well and does not leave streaks or smudges.
A Pinterest Addict says
September 8, 2013 at 11:05 amYou know, I am just starting to see marks on the door where hands have left oils, etc. I think I am going to have to put another coat of semi-gloss paint on them to make them easier to clean. Anytime I try to wipe off the smudges, it just makes it worse. Sorry I can’t be more helpful.
Tiffany says
February 20, 2014 at 12:21 pmLove your black doors, and after looking at so many different shades of black doors, I’ve decided on the tricorn black too!! Can you tell me what kind of grey primer you used and how they have held up since not sanding….I really would like to avoid not sanding mine so, just wondering if you still recommend priming only?!
Thanks so much,
Tiffany D
Tiffany says
February 20, 2014 at 12:45 pm*** I meant I would like to avoid sanding mine! 🙂
A Pinterest Addict says
February 23, 2014 at 9:52 amThe doors have held up really well. But I wouldn’t recommend skipping sanding on cabinets. I’m learning that the hard way! UGH!
Martha says
June 2, 2015 at 6:58 pmWhat type of paint finish did you use for the black doors? Love this will be painting all my doors black… also what color dod you use just regulaer black?
A Pinterest Addict says
June 4, 2015 at 10:51 amI used a satin finish on ours. HOWEVER… I would use a semi gloss if I had to do it over again. The satin collected just a little too much dust and handprints, etc. They wipe off, but semi-gloss doesn’t seem to hold so much. 🙂 I used Sherwin Williams Tricorn black.
Stacy says
June 25, 2015 at 10:40 amI love the black doors (and your before and afters…they’re so helpful) and painted my garage entry door black as well as my front and back doors; however I thought of painting the interior doors too but thought the black felt closed in. I noticed your hallway with the two doors close together. Did it make you feel that way? I think the black is so chic and doesn’t show dirt either. I’m torn.
A Pinterest Addict says
June 26, 2015 at 1:48 pmNo, I don’t think so. I love the way the doors pop now – all over the house. The hallway before seemed very blah, and now it seems to have some definition.
nATALIE says
January 20, 2019 at 6:07 pmi’M CURRENTLY PAINTING MINE BLACK BUT CAME HERE TO LOOK AT DOORS NEXT TO EAH OTHER (i HAVE TWO AREAS WITH 2 OR MORE DOORS NEAR EACH OTHER….) – i ALSO WAS UNSURE ABOUT WHITE TRIM OR BLACK…. HAVE TO SAY YOURS TURNED OUT REALLY WELL! tHE BIG DIFFERENCE WITH YOURS IS THE BRASS (?) HARDWARE (OR IS THAT GOLD?) – IT JUST MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE! tHANKS FOR THE INSPIRATION 🙂