Help with refinishing old antique farmhouse doors and replacement glas

10 years ago

My husband and I have been working on our old farmhouse for years. One of our next projects this summer is to refinish our front doors. We have one that goes into the dining room seen here and one to the right that would have gone into a parlor. I want to replace the glass which is really thin, one panel is cracked. I'd like to go with something heavier, perhaps leaded. Our house is yellow with a green roof. We just haven't painted the siding on the porch yet. We were originally going with maroon/burgandy trim on the house, but I think I'm opting for white now and painting the doors red. Does anyone know of a source for getting panels of leaded glass custom ordered. Any other ideas for these tired looking doors? Thank you!

Featured Answer

PRO

Dynamic Garage Door

10 years ago

Depending on your budget, leaded glass might be costly and distract you from the authentic beauty of these farmhouse doors. I would recommend you locate a local designer glass supplier in your area and go with a seedy type glass or rain glass that is clear-translucent yet still provides some level of privacy. If you want to add impact and maybe an authentic architectural element I would possibly add some sort of decorative, basked weaved wire mesh such as in the door below. This will balance out the door's overall essence and refresh the old tired look. Your doors are gorgeous and hope to see updated pictures of what you came up with in the end. If you need any pointers or ideas feel free to contact one of our door designers at (855) 343-3667, these projects are exciting and we love to throw our two cents in whenever possible. Thanks for sharing your project here on houzz.com!

European Style Entry Door in Sandblasted Red Oak Wood, Architectural Window Mesh · More Info

Comments (8)

tullymore
Original Author
10 years ago
Thank you Dynamic Garage Door, I love that idea.
PRO
Dynamic Garage Door
10 years ago
No problem TulleyMore, happy to help!
bungalowmo
10 years ago
While I don't have the answer, I know folks who can help. This site is for old house owners. Mainly from about 1930's back to the 1700's.

There are several who have restored their original front doors like yours. They can tell you what finishes held up & which failed...as well as how to prep & different glass options to use.

It's called https://www.wavyglass.org/
It's easy to sign up & post any questions you like. I'm there too. They helped with a bunch of my questions, as well as my door too!
tullymore thanked bungalowmo
bungalowmo
10 years ago
Hey....a couple more things...
I'd love to see more pics of your old place! :0)
And...is that a doorbell on your front door? I think it's a loud twisty one like mine!!
tullymore thanked bungalowmo
tullymore
Original Author
10 years ago
Yes, that is the original door bell! I'll try to take some photos in the parlor, there is some really cool ornate wood and art work under the windows.
bungalowmo
10 years ago
What's the style of your home? Looks from the doors & wood siding that it's maybe a Queen Anne? The folks on that forum LOVE to see pics!

We all used to belong to http://www.oldhouseweb.com/ until about a year or so ago when the new owners let it get overrun with spammers & trolls. One of my favorite sections is the picture forum. If only for eye candy or inspiration, it's fun to look!
http://www.oldhouseweb.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=12&sid=37ed82ce8fdfc20e0a4f25d15bb75043

Careful...that section can suck you in for hours! :0)
tullymore thanked bungalowmo
tullymore
Original Author
9 years ago
It's not a Queen Anne, but our porch is nothing special to look at right now. We took the gingerbread down when we rebuilt the porch, but have always intended to put it back up. In fact before we took it out down, a neighbor who lives in her childhood home a couple of miles from us came and took rubbings of the gingerbread. We also had an unused fancy column that matched what was on our front porch. A carpenter recreated the columns for her and gingerbread in time for a family wedding. What inspired her to come to our house for the designs was that our porch matched what her porch originally looked like from an old family photo. Pretty cool.