7 Easy Ways to Make Closet Doors a Feature, Not an Eyesore

There are some areas of your house you just know you want to make over, like a dingy bathroom or a dull, dated living room. But these renovations require a fair amount of time and money that, unfortunately, can send them to the back burner. 

But there are a number of other less obvious weekend warrior-type projects that cost a mere fraction of the larger-scale redos, yet make a world of a difference. Take your closet doors, for example. Why live with an unsightly door when you could create something truly fabulous in just a few hours and — in many cases — for much less than $100? 

To take your space, whether a home office or bedroom, to new heights with one simple DIY, try one of these seven stylish and beginner-friendly projects. 

To match the tile floors, Sam Ushiro had door handles laser cut into polygon shapes, then she painted them and assembled each one by hand. The result is a completely custom double door that serves as a grand entrance to her 1970s-inspired walk-in closet.

Want to copy the look? You can cut a project panel into a unique shape using a jig saw. Then, paint with your preferred colors. Screw or glue a base piece of wood that’s the length of your handle to the door to help give add some dimension (and space to grab onto); then, attach your new handles to the wood pieces with finish nails.

Plain doors become artwork with a little careful planning. Though this unique sunburst project does take some precise planning and cutting, you only need a few simple supplies: an embroidery hoop, wooden dowels, and a vivid yellow paint color.

For vintage appeal, Robert and Lauren of Blesser House applied a decorative film to the glass panes of a French door, then painted the door with masking liquid, primer, and a fresh coat of white paint. They finished the vintage look by installing glass knobs with antique brass backplates. 

If you already have sliding doors, consider turning them into faux barn doors rather than replacing the whole thing with a pricey new set of doors. All you need to do is attach some wood framework with liquid nails adhesive, then add matte black hardware. 

Make a big statement with a colorful peel-and-stick wall mural. This is an especially great solution for renters, since it’s easy to take off at any time without causing any damage. 

To incorporate an element of texture to an otherwise plain set of doors, consider adding fabric panels surrounded by moulding. The finished product looks entirely custom — even though it’s pretty inexpensive to do.

To pull it off, you’ll need linen (or for a twist, try cane webbing), plus wood trim to help hide the edges of the fabric and to frame out the doors.

Bi-fold metal closet doors straight out of the 1950s go from ho-hum and dated to super cool and bohemian thanks to a dark and moody coat of paint and graphic decorative decals.