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August 7, 2020

Tips For Painting A Front Door

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Does your front door need a little refresh? Ours sure did! Over the past few months I have painted our front door TWICE. The first time I did it, I made a few mistakes, and I didn’t LOVE the color. So I painted it again, made a few tweaks and changed the color. So what did I learn throughout the process? A lot. Today, I want to chat about Tips For Painting A Front Door, what I did wrong and what I did right….in the end.

Tips For Painting A Front Door

Get Tips for painting your own front door!

Steps For Prepping Your Front Door For Paint

  1. Tape Your Front door: If you don’t have any glass to work around, you most likely can skip this step. I have a lot of glass panels so I had to do some taping!

2. Remove the door hardware. To ensure a really clean nice finish, remove all the door hardware. This includes the handle, lock, and any door knockers.

3. Gently sand your door with a high grit sand paper. Probably around 220. This will remove any loose paint, smooth out blemishes, etc.

4. Rub a deglosser on the door! This is a SUPER important step. Don’t skip this! I used this M-1 Deglosser and Cleaner and it worked perfect!

All you do is apply some to a rag and rub it on, thoroughly. This will remove all the shine from the door and previous paint and allow the new paint to adhere better.

Here you can see the spots from where the deglosser tried and where it took the shine off. Apply another coat if you see areas that need more. Wait about 10 minutes to start painting.

Should You Brush Or Roll Your Front Door?

This is where I learned a lot. ROLL! 100% use a small roller to paint your front door. At least on the flat parts.

I do recommend using a nice brush for the trim, or the inset parts of your door, and then roll all the main areas.

Let’s take a look at the difference.

The first time I painted our front door I used a brush for the entire door. You can see the brush strokes in the picture above. It did not turn out as smooth as I wanted at all.

I also did a dark charcoal gray paint and decided it just wasn’t the look I wanted. I wanted a shade or two darker. This is a tip to never settle, if something doesn’t feel right keep going until it does!

Second Attempt at Painting The Front Door

And here is how the front door looks now! This time I used a small roller for the frame and changed the color to my favorite Rebel by Kilz (Visit this post on my Fav Neutral Paint Colors for more).

I love the bold pop it has now. The contrast is much better and the black goes better with our planters and rug.

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About Taryn Whiteaker

Taryn Whiteaker is the voice of style behind TarynWhiteaker.com (formerly Design, Dining and Diapers) ! Taryn is a previous PR/Marketing professional who got back to her creative roots after becoming a mom and now shares her passion for home decor and design for the world to see. Taryn lives in the greater Seattle area with her husband and three kids and loves coffee, the outdoors, and exploring with her family.

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Filed Under: ALL POSTS, Before and Afters, DIY Home Decor, DIY Projects

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ashley says

    September 17, 2020 at 9:12 pm

    Hi! What sheen do you recommend for a front door?

    Reply
    • Taryn Whiteaker says

      September 19, 2020 at 9:18 am

      The standard exterior paint is semi-gloss, but I feel like it is too shiny for me. I tried it on my first coat on the front door and didn’t care for it, so I went down to satin finish and really like that.

      Reply

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Taryn Whiteaker

Hi and welcome! I'm Taryn and the voice of style behind Taryn Whiteaker Designs. I'm a wife, mom of three, and coffee lover, living in the Pacific Northwest! This is where I share my love for design, whether it's decorating our own home, tackling big DIY projects, creating inviting tablescapes, or sharing my personal style. Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to subscribe to my mailing list to get all the latest updates! Read more...

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Which kitchen is your favorite? 1, 2, or 3? Coasta Which kitchen is your favorite? 1, 2, or 3? Coastal farmhouse, earthy contemporary or retro mid-century modern? I recently had the opportunity to tour all three of the model homes at the brand-new Poulsbo Meadows community by @tripointehomes.official . All three homes have completely different styles yet, are equally beautiful. To get each of these looks it all comes down to picking the right finishes and creating a cohesive look for your home. 

On the blog today, I’m walking you through how to mix different finishes together to get each of these looks. Plus, you get to see TONS more pics of the homes. 

The Poulsbo Meadows community is opening soon; you can join the interest list to learn more about the community and availability. #ad #tripointehomes #poulsbomeadows
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And this sums up my excitement right now.... our b And this sums up my excitement right now.... our backyard is all coming together!!!!! Gah I’m loving it so much. I’m been sharing tons of projects in stories over the past couple of weeks - I am (almost) finished putting in this turf with @paverturfgrids and I couldn’t wait to share a peek with you! Sharing tons more soon... but for now, I going to enjoy this... 
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Ps. I don’t think I’ve tried this jump since high school cheer and let’s not discuss how many takes it took! 
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IT’S DONE!!! I still have some finishing touches IT’S DONE!!! I still have some finishing touches to do with lights and styling but I couldn’t wait to share a peek! I seriously cannot believe our house is finally the way I envisioned it so long ago. Thank you all for the input on dark exterior colors, I couldn’t not be happier with how it turned out. I will admit I was a little hesitant with the shingle stain at first, but seeing it all together is so good. It’s the more modern PNW vibe I wanted for our home, I can’t wait to share even more. 
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Exterior/Trim in SW tricorn 
Shingles in SW Black Alder Solid Stain 
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So ready for the weekend! We will be hanging out w So ready for the weekend! We will be hanging out working on the backyard all weekend so tune into stories because I’ll be sharing lots of updates! 
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Have you thought about adding more smart home tech Have you thought about adding more smart home technology into your own home? #ad It's been something we have talked about a lot over the past year, and I am loving the new products we've recently added from @amazon and @ring to refresh our home! Check out this video to see how I use them in my everyday life and head to the blog to read more about each product and @alexa99 #askalexa #amazonhome #smarthome
Guess what?! Both our leather sofa and drum coffee Guess what?! Both our leather sofa and drum coffee table are back in stock! We love both of these pieces from @overstock (gifted), and they are used daily around here. I will say when it comes to leather couches, we all give this one a 10/10, it’s incredibly comfortable and a piece you will have fore a looooong time. 
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Not ready to close the books on spring break! I ha Not ready to close the books on spring break! I have a feeling homeschool is going to be a tad challenging this week 😉. We’ve really enjoyed the past week and low key weekend, it’s definitely getting us all a little more excited for summer and being outside a lot more! 
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One of my top questions is about the console table One of my top questions is about the console table in our entry way, I got it from Arhaus about 6 years ago and haven’t seen it in stock since... BUT they have two other ones on sale right now that have similar looks to them. I also rounded up a few more that will give you the same look. I linked them to this post in the @liketoknow.it app and will share in stories as well! 
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Got our dose of Vitamin D this week! Felt amazing. Got our dose of Vitamin D this week! Felt amazing. But I can’t wait to jump back into projects! Lots of new stuff coming up, I also have a fun video tour of the house coming up tomorrow! 🖤
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