Screen Door into a Pantry Door

While out on one of my yard sale and vintage shop adventures I came across this awesome screen door at Grandma's Attic, on the French Shore.  Now, I don’t always know what I am going to do with certain treasures – but this was a very simple, no fuss style – and I liked it.  For $10.oo I had to add it to my stash for future use. 

So, here’s the thing…. 

In my second Blog I shared with you my first interior design gig and followed that up with a Blog on how I created an old mantel from a piece of timber.  Today, I want to share with you how I took an old beaten up screen door and turned it into a cute little cottage pantry door. 

This door was in need of some tender loving care as it was old and had been badly weather beaten. Joints were loose and the screen was torn – but with a little patience I knew I could make this into something worthy of display.

The first thing I needed to do was cut the door to fit the opening.  It was too large, so I cut the width down to 32”. 

Next, using my all time favorite glue, Gorilla Wood Glue, I disassembled the door, glued the joints, reassembled and clamped it together and let it sit for a day to dry. (Always have a damp rag at hand when working with glue so you can quickly clean up any drips that creep out of the joints or crevices). 

Once the glue was set I removed the clamps and began to paint.  I wanted the door to have a dark wood showing through when it was distressed so I stained the door in Minwax Dark Walnut and allowed that to dry completely. 

I used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Graphite as the basecoat and then FAT Chalk Paint in Apple for the topcoat.  After letting the door dry I went over it in Annie Sloan Clear Wax.  Once the clear was had set I distressed the door using Bulldog Fine Steel Wool getting into those places which, after years of use, would be worn, kicked, nicked and scratched.  I wanted this door to look old but function as if it was new.  I then applied a coat of Annie's Dark Wax and polished with fine steel wool and a soft cotton rag.

Now, I’m not good with at cutting on a 45” angle and framing so I called on my contractor, Terry Power, and asked him to install the screen and add the moulding – a $10.00 expense that I gladly paid as it would have cost me a lot more in what would have been my sorry attempt at doing it myself!  I pre-painted, waxed and distressed the moulding to save having to do it after as that would have been a time consuming, tedious task. 

When I got the door back, it was ready for hinges and a handle.  I purchased the hinges from Lee Valley and found a piece of gnarly wood on the beach for the handle which I left in its natural, rustic state. 

Here is the home owners Pantry Door.  She love it and it adds a bit of relaxation, creativity and openness to her kitchen.

Glued, Painted, Waxed & Distressed

Hinges Handle and Hung - It fits!

It looks Fantastic!

“There is no life I know to compare with pure imagination.”

                                                                        -         willy wonka

Tomorrow I will share how I turned a $20.00 chair into a work of art. 

Please let me know if you have any questions on this or any other projects. Do you have a piece of furniture you don’t know what to do with?  Send me a picture and I will provide a free consultation for you!

 

Until next time – Live Simply!

           Mary Elizabeth