Front Door Revival

Remember that front door make over I said I was going to post tomorrow? Except I said it like 2 or 3 days ago, yeah... well her it is! It's tomorrow somewhere right??

I have been wanting a new front door since I first saw the house we bought back in 2010. I kind of still do, but a lot less. I envisioned some dashing handyman hanging my beautiful teak wood craftsman style door with the lovely window on top, while I sip iced tea on my porch on a summer day. Basically none of that played out. I decided to keep myself busy one weekend while the hubby was away on business and painted the door we already had. And instead of blissfully sitting on my porch drinking iced tea, I kept repeating in my head "please don't wake up, please don't wake up". As my twins were napping upstairs.

My point is, painting your front door is really really easy, pretty cheap, and can be done during nap time.
I dare say, I love my "new" front door. I think it really adds character to my home and bumps up the curb appeal (as do my symmetrical flowers on my porch, but that's another post).

Here is how I did it:

First you will need the following supplies: 

Your choice of paint. I used a quart of Behr Marquee Exterior Paint + Primer. Available at Home Depot. You can use whatever brand you'd like but exterior paint is great for dirt and water resistance. Also using a Paint that has Primer in it really cuts your time down. I also chose to get my paint in a semi-gloss finish, you could also do satin as well, though I'd only recommend those two finishes for this project.

A High-Density Foam Roller: This is different than what you paint your walls with. You can find them anywhere, I just used the mini ones but you could use whatever size you'd like.

A Foam Brush or Angled Brush: This is for painting any indents your door might have, as shown below.

Painter's Tape

Sand Paper: I can't remember what grit I used (ugh!) But I want to say something like 200 or 220?

Hot Soapy Water 
Sponge
Towels or Plastic: To cover your floor

Step 1: Take your before picture. Seriously do it, it will make this project 10x more satisfying.

Remove your door hardware, that way you don't need to worry about taping that part up and painting "around" it. 

Next, you need to wash/scrub your front door thoroughly. Make sure all the dust, dirt, spiderwebs and whatever else is on there is gone. Because once you paint over it, it's there FOREVER!

Now it's time to sand the door. You can use an electric sander or a sanding block. I opted for a sanding block so I didn't make a mess and wake my sleeping offspring. You don't need apply a lot of pressure, just enough to rough it up a bit. And yes, this step is necessary even if you prime or have primer in your paint. The sanding really does help bond paint to the surface. 

Next, it's time for the part I hate most (no reason really). Taping up your door. You may not think this is necessary, but don't let your confidence fool you, trust me, you are not that good that you won't make a mistake. Yes it's possible to be careful when you paint and not create a shit show of a mess, but it's also 10x likely that chaos will ensure and you'll end up with paint in all the wrong places. I taped up the bottom black plastic of my door and STILL got paint on it. Oh well, that's what Goof Off is for right? Tape anywhere you don't want the paint and remember PAINT SPATTERS!!! 

I started with painting my groves in my door first, as pictured. I think that this creates a smoother finish overall, you don't want those pesky brush strokes to be seen. So paint all the spots that you cannot reach with your roller first.
NOTE: This is the step where you if you live in a HOA neighborhood that you will get neighbors giving you looks, wondering what the eff you're doing and what they may be forced to look at. Just smile and tell them you really though a neon pink would make your house stand out from the crowd 

Now it's time to use that roller! Going up and down, or down and up, roll the paint on the door evenly. Don't be too focused on covering up spots that still show through, you will need at least 2 coats. I think I ended up doing 4 (though this picture was taken after 2). You need to wait for your first coat to dry before applying your second. Trust me, otherwise you'll drive yourself crazy and waste paint.

Now give yourself a pat on the back because you just painted your front door!

Go create something!