I am finishing by basement and will end up with a closet which is approximately 145" and needs to be easily accessible. I would like to use doors, not fabric, to cover up the space. After much searching I found some inspiration in the Japanese shoji sliding doors. I love the look of those doors, however, I am looking for advice on where (in the Boston area) I can purchase them cheaply and/or how difficult would it be to make them myself. All advice, directions etc. are greatly appreciated! Thanks AT, Yelena
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I just moved into a house where the previous owner had done exactly what you are talking about. He was pretty handy and he made the doors out of strips of wood to which he stapled fabric to the upper half. The lower half of each door is plywood. They are installed on rollers with tracks at the bottom to keep them in line. The previous owner also made similar-looking screen pieces to cover the pipes and exposed joists in the ceiling. The overall look of the room is very Japanese and modern. The former owners used the space as an office but now it is inhabited by my teenage son. He loves it!
My guess is that you wouldn't want to do this without a plan, which I bet you could find online. But if you are handy enough to use a saw and a staple gun, you could probably do it.
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The Japanese have to re-paper theirs so I know it can be done at home. But they frequently complain about how difficult it can be to get it right, and how often it needs to be replaced (this is more so if you have children). The paper rips VERY easily. Doesn't help that it's very tempting to poke your finger into it.
I'd suggest a similar replacement (such as the IKEA ones above) or to find the frames and staple on linen. You'll get the look for a lot less effort. And it won't rip as easy.
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