Consistency Beyond the Front Door

A period home renovation is an undertaking that can be incredibly fulfilling when you get it right. The grand, era-appropriate front door, the internal character of the home shining through, a lovingly restored brick façade, and then… a generic uPVC door leading into the garden.

Suddenly, the magic is lost.

As homeowners, we usually spend more time in the garden looking at the back of the house than looking at the front, but we still see so many properties where back doors and garden doors are treated as an afterthought.

Period Homes Made Perfect

The difference between a showstopping renovation of a period home, and one that feels dated, flat, or just a bit off, is consistency.

An incongruous kitchen or ultra-modern bathroom might be beautifully designed and installed, but if you’ve leaned into the beams, exposed brick fireplaces, and period detailing elsewhere, it will only feel incongruous, making the whole property “not quite right”.

We’ve talked before about how front door renovations often get left to the very end of a renovation, by which time you just want the decision off your plate. When it comes to back doors and garden doors, this feeling is even more exacerbated.

Starting at the Front

Generally, starting with the front door sets out a visual language from which your other internal and external doors can all read. Whether that’s in colour, scale, or detailing, front doors are where we can get creative, and then the rest of the doors in the home can follow.

Starting with a contrasting contemporary door? Then defined edges and minimalist glass panels will make sense throughout the home.

However, a traditional, ornate Victorian design flanked by unique stained glass sidelights will set the scene for panelled exterior doors, or French doors flanked by sidelights at the side or rear of the home too.

Of course, any period renovation can bring up treasures at any point – it’s one of the things that makes them so exciting!

If your internal or rear doors are from a particular era you want to emulate through the house, our latest guide to period doors can help.

Let the Outside In

In period homes, traditionally the back door would have been solid wood, and considerably less ornate than the front door. In larger homes, they would have been used primarily by the staff who worked in the home, so practicality came above aesthetics.

Today, rear and side doors have a lot more flexibility, while still tying in to the design motifs of the era. When designing rear doors and side doors, one of the biggest factors homeowners need to take into account is glazing.

Glazed doors with larger panels let you look out at your garden and enjoy the changing of the seasons in your outdoor space.

In some homes, balancing light, bright door designs with privacy can be tricky. Panelled French doors are a great middle ground, as the smaller panels are harder to see through outside, without blocking light from outside.

Update Your Garden Gate

When you’ve sorted the doors in your home, what about the entrance points further out?

Think of the beautifully loved and tended garden, with period-appropriate French doors and design-led landscaping juxtaposed against an ancient garden gate slick with green mould and peeling paint.

Garden and side gates in keeping with the rest of the property are the finishing touch to a showstopping garden, without compromising on safety and security for you, your pets, friends, children, grandchildren, or anyone else close to your heart.

Matching Hardware

It’s not just period-specific features that make a renovation feel seamless. It’s also consistency in other design choices, including hardware. While it might feel like a small-to-the-point-of-insignificant consideration on the surface – especially when compared to the hundreds of other big decisions that go into decorating a period home – different metals and finishes are one of those almost imperceptible features that make a space feel just not quite right, even if you can’t articulate why.

Finish the Story Your Front Door Started

From French doors to garden gates, every entrance to your home is part of the same design, and getting them right shouldn’t feel like an afterthought.

Our team specialises in period-appropriate doors for London homes, to help carry your home’s character right through to the garden fence.

Get in touch to find out more, or download our brochure for inspiration, where we can help you make sure every door tells the same story.