Inspiration: Burlap Covered Sliding Doors

Burlap's a fabric we associate with the 70s and the hippie dippie side of the disco era. But its rustic texture, neutral colour and home-grown associations are very much in keeping with a modern home. Witness these sliding doors from the Richard Neutra House in Silverlake we visited a few weeks ago (and where, coincidentally, we met Rebecca, one of the blogger's who's trying out for a position on our team)...

In a house full of still-modern ideas and things to ooh and aah over, these doors caused the most comment. Ironically, they're probably the idea that's the easiest to replicate in your own home. If you're handy, you can fit burlap, linen or muslin (the loose weave of these fabrics will allow them to stretch somewhat) to your existing doors, staple the fabric in place and then reframe them. The simplicity of these fabrics make them a natural fit with the bright cool metal. Riffing of the doors, consider them for reupholstering your furniture if other fabrics are priced out of your range. They warm up modern pieces and bring antique finds into the present day. If you're really brave, you can use it as a jumping off point.

Comments (6)

Well, they're a million times better than the burlap chairs that got posted yesterday!

posted by lurker2209 on July 10th 2008 at 11:44am
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I wonder if those doors are linen? Or if there are different grades of hemp/burlap? Or maybe those funky chairs were made of burlap jute? I don't know the distinctions between the fabrics, except I think linen is made out of the flax plant.
I've seen some nice examples of bag/upholstery.
If you go to Loodylady's shop on ebay you can see examples of vintage hemp and linen. She also has some images of nicely upholstered chairs.

posted by greenlight on July 10th 2008 at 11:55am
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there are definitely different grades of burlap. it's often used as wall panels for acoustics - it's much softer and comes in a variety of colors.

posted by setdec on July 10th 2008 at 12:26pm
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No. It looks like my cubicle wall. I would not want to go home to that at all.

posted by Lexo on July 10th 2008 at 12:26pm
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I agree with Lexo. The first thing I thought was these were cubicle walls. Maybe with some other fabric but otherwise no.

posted by Jen C on July 11th 2008 at 6:22am
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Well, it's definitely preferable to mirrored closet doors.

posted by Erika in Seattle on July 11th 2008 at 1:36pm
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