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Painting Interior Doors Black!

June 5, 2012 By Rhoda 148 Comments

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A trend started about 10 years ago that I took note of then, but didn’t do and that trend was painting interior doors black (yes, both sides!).  Have you noticed that one?  It’s one of those subtle little changes that can make a huge impact and I’m loving this one.

I have never painted all my doors black, but I have some friends who have done it (like my friend, Renae here in Atlanta) and the more I see it, the more I likey.  And I’m about to do that in my new/old house.  Paint every interior door black.

black-door-habitually-chic

(via Habitually Chic)

Let me show you a few inspiration pics to show you how great it looks.  The one above is a good example of a normal 6 paneled door painted black. Note that only the door and not the trim is painted.

black-interior-doors-4 Shelterness

(Via Shelterness)

This dramatic double black doors shows the impact they can make, especially with lighter walls.

black-interior-doors-13 Shelterness

(via Shelterness)

More black doors and wood floors.  Beautiful!

Decorpad

(via Decorpad)

This dramatic black kitchen French doors along with that stunning lantern makes this kitchen swoon-worthy.

black door foyer

Not sure where this photo originated from, but it’s been all over blogland and I still love this foyer.  It is perfection in my book and look, a black interior door.

houzz black door the wool acorn blogspot

(via WoolAcorn)

Black inside the front doors and painted black stair railing adds an extra wow factor in this pretty foyer.

Yellow Cape Cod

Just to show you that everyday homeowners can get away with this one too, check out Sarah’s breakfast nook.  I’ve highlighted Sarah’s house before on Feature Friday and love the impact this black door has with the wide striped curtain panels at the windows.

Joni, at Cote de Texas, covered this back in 2010, when she posted about updating your decor and stated that all of her builder’s grade interior doors were painted black.

Now this one, this one, really got my inspiration going.  Let me tell you about Emily’s (A Well Dressed Home) black doors.  I came across her post doing a Google search and got so excited when I saw what she started with.

Smooth-Interior-Doors-Before-A-Well-Dressed-Home1

Look at these smooth as a baby’s butt doors!  These are white and mine are stained brown, but smooth, very smooth, with no architectural details AT ALL.  Boring!  I had contemplated changing out these doors, but that will be awhile down the road.  I’ve got hardwoods and a kitchen to install first, so anything like this will just be on the back burner for now.

But once I saw how gorge Emily’s doors turned out by adding molding.  Wow, oh wow!  I can just do this and keep my doors for the long haul.  Save myself some bucks.

Interior-Doors-with-Trim-A-Well-Dressed-Home

Molding was added.  Love how she did 3 panels of different sizes (she got inspiration from some fancy door place online).  She had a handy man come in and install them.  I can do this using liquid nails and my nail gun.  And the miter saw.

Here’s another peek at how great Emily’s doors look now.  Are you as amazed as I am?  I am SO doing this.  I’ll keep my plain ole’ smooth doors and just buy the trim for them.  I am already painting my doors black.  Now I will add the molding too which will really up their presence.  I’ll paint mine with Black satin paint instead of semi-gloss.  I think I’ll like that better.

It might be awhile before I can get to the molding, but painting them black will happen from the get-go.   When I mentioned it to my dad, he looked at me with the usual, “what in the world is she going to dream up now?” look. 🙂

So, do you like the whole paint your interior doors black trend?

Or not?!

Me, yes, yes, yes, I’m loving it and you will see black interior doors in my house!

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Filed Under: Decorating Ideas 148 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Elzabeth@ Blue Clear Sky says

    June 8, 2012 at 5:22 pm

    I love the look, and the inspiration photos too, Rhoda. I painted the interior of our entry door black a few years ago and still love it. Lots of guys and a dog and I have only one chip that needs touched up this summer. Your doors will look great, and yes the trim will come in time. Painting them first while the door is without trim will probably be a lot easier too.

    Reply
  2. sherry hart says

    June 10, 2012 at 5:40 pm

    Yes…YES…yes…I love the painted doors. I want to do mine but I am just too lazy….:)

    Reply
  3. beth says

    June 11, 2012 at 9:19 am

    Rhoda:

    LOVE this post. I’ve painted my exterior doors black on the inside and I love it. However, I have a short / stubby “hall” at the top of the stairs and there are 4 doors clustered there. So, it’s more of a landing than a hallway. It reminds me of The Price Is Right…you know..pick door no, 1, 2, 3 or 4 and enter! LOL. I wonder if painting the doors black would look funny since there is very little wall space between them. I noticed in one of the photos you shared, Emily’s doors are sort of clustered too. However, in the photo you posted they are still white and don’t have the molding. Do you think you could get her to post a photo of the doors with the molding added and painted black? Thanks. Beth
    P.S. A bee-you-tee-ful black to use indoors is BM’s “soot,” 2129-20. It’s defintely black but it has blue in it and the blue gives it such depth. It’s truly gorgeous. I have and all white tile bathroom, with a wainscot and white plumbing fixtures. I painted above the wainscot with “soot” and it’s beautiful….

    Reply
  4. Lisa says

    June 13, 2012 at 9:04 pm

    As a fellow split level home owner, I’m so excited to follow your renovations on your new home. I’m dying to try black doors, but since I just added moulding and painted all the interior trim/doors white in the past 2 years, hubby is a little less than thrilled with the idea. Just wanted to say that you won’t need any nails to adhere the moulding to the door, just some wood trim glue and lots o’lots of blue painters tape to hold it snug until the glues sets. Can’t wait to see your next installment…and even more psyched to see you work your magic on those doors!

    Reply
  5. Lotta Käyhkö says

    September 5, 2012 at 7:07 am

    Black is really a good choice of color specially if you home have a light color,just like this it appear really elegant,in Finland country most of the interior door are very fit for your home,not only for on paint but also the concept of design.

    Reply
  6. traci says

    September 13, 2012 at 8:58 pm

    I could not commit to plain black so I went with a dark charcoal gray. It added so much drama to my home. There isn’t a door in my house that was not painted. I can not tell you how many compliments I have received.

    Reply
  7. Deena says

    September 30, 2012 at 12:32 pm

    Do you paint both sides or just the side facing out?

    Reply
  8. linda says

    October 9, 2012 at 10:17 pm

    How about a list of good choices for black doors. Not just any black will do. It must be a certain look.

    Reply
  9. Sharell says

    October 14, 2012 at 11:00 pm

    I am LOVING your black doors! So much so, that I’ve decided I’m going to start painting mine all black as soon as I get the paint! What brand and shade did you use? Satin? or Semi-gloss? Thanks so much! Sharell

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      October 14, 2012 at 11:22 pm

      Hi, Sharell, the paint color is Valspar Fired Earth in Satin. Hope you enjoy, I love my dark doors!

  10. PaulaMarie says

    November 3, 2012 at 3:31 am

    Hello! I love the Black colored doors, however I have brown trim and brown hardwood floors. Living room is two shades of green with brown trim seperating the two. I face the lake so I have three large bay windows(3 to make a set, and three sets) all brown and trim brown. I have catherdral ceilings that are white. All my doors now are currently brown. I seen a few pictures that have the black doors with brown flooring. Is the gray a better choice if you do have brown? Or is the never mix black and brown out the window and is perfectly ok! I have been contemplating this for a while now! Any advice would be great!!! My house isnt really “dark” colors as they are light colors but no white, gray, etc. wall. Kitchen tannish/yellow. Entry way light blue-I am reading this going, my colors are crazy but a professional did come in and I have three opinions! 🙂 Thank you for any input!!!

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      January 14, 2013 at 8:21 am

      HI, Paula, it’s hard to tell you my opinion without seeing pics, but I don’t think I’d paint dark doors without having the trim white. I’ve seen really high end homes with darker doors and trim (painted other than white) and it’s a very European look and gorgeous. But, the average home wouldn’t turn out like that with the same treatment. I do love gray doors too, very classic.

  11. Erin says

    January 9, 2013 at 2:52 pm

    Any ideas what hardware (door knob) color looks best with the black door? And will spray painting the existing hardware be an ok DIY work-around, or should I purchase new hardware?

    Lastly, is Valspar – Fired Earth a deep brown or an actual black color? I’m not sure which direction to go… Help?

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      January 9, 2013 at 4:01 pm

      HI, Erin, there are several ways you can go. Really oil rubbed bronze would look very classic on black doors, as well as nickel finish. I chose an antique brass for my doors and love that too.

      Fired Earth is a deep dark brown, which I love even better than black in my house. I think you’d like something not quite as stark as black. I’ve seen deep gray done too and both are equally stunning.

  12. Gloria says

    January 12, 2013 at 9:40 pm

    Does black paint have to be high gloss or more flat.

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      January 14, 2013 at 8:22 am

      HI, Gloria, I used Satin on my doors, but if you wanted them to be more wipeable, then semi-gloss would be fine too.

    • Puttycats says

      March 23, 2013 at 3:26 pm

      I originally had oil paint on my doors. The painters used a primer with black tint and I purchased the color Black Satin from Benjamin Moore in a Satin Finish. We are also finishing the doors with a clear polyurethane water based satin finish for easy clean up; absolutely love the results.

  13. Dustin says

    January 20, 2013 at 3:24 pm

    Hi I was just doing some browsing on here and i too wanted to paint my doors black. I have your typical light colored brown neutral carpet, I painted all the walls a bone white x2 color which makes the white pop more. All the doors i currently have are a cherry close to brown color. There is white trim around all the doors. Is painting my doors black going to the right choice and if i decide to do that, what color should i make my base board to match the whole scheme? white or black? Thank you so much !

    Reply
  14. Rhoda says

    January 20, 2013 at 4:14 pm

    Hi, Dustin, if there’s white trim around the doors already, aren’t your baseboards white too? I’d do white baseboards and just paint the doors dark brown/black. My color is a deep dark chocolate color. Your walls are light, so that should work out well.

    Reply
  15. Arleen says

    February 27, 2013 at 6:00 pm

    love black doors..mine are 6 panel stained brown..wondering about prep work prior to painting ..want super smooth look..do I need to sand, strip, caulk joints, spray , roll????

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      February 27, 2013 at 9:21 pm

      HI, Arleen, I think if your doors are already smooth, you could get away with priming and painting. I do use a small foam roller for my doors.

  16. Jennifer says

    March 16, 2013 at 10:29 am

    Can anyone tell me about doors with plantation shutters? My front door and patio door both have plantation shutters as my windows do. Would you paint the shutter black as well.

    Reply
  17. Puttycats says

    March 23, 2013 at 3:20 pm

    Absolute Must!! I have just hired a painter and am having all of my interior doors painted in black with white trims. I can’t wait till it is finished. We have 30+ interior doors so it was in my best interest to hire a professional to do it. I must admit that my husband thought I lost my mind when I said I wanted black doors. He is now loving how it is turning out and has even asked the painters to do all the trimmings, crown moldings and ceilings. : )

    Reply
  18. Tara says

    December 7, 2013 at 4:03 pm

    Any suggestions in Sherwin Williams on a black paint for my interior doors? Thank you.. Also, did you do matte finish or glossy?

    Reply
    • Tara says

      December 7, 2013 at 4:05 pm

      Please help me select a black Sherwin Williams paint for my interior doors.. Did you do matte or glossy finish. Other email I realized was incorrect.. (:

    • Rhoda says

      December 7, 2013 at 5:54 pm

      Hi, Tara, I went with a black/brown on my doors. I ended up with Valspar Fired Earth, a rich deep dark chocolate color. It’s a little more warm than just black, so think about that. I’ve heard great things about Urbane Bronze SW7048, it would work on doors too. I did a Satin finish on my doors.

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Thanks for stopping by! I’m Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn’t have to cost a fortune and I’ve spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yard sales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I’m here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won’t you join me?

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