Date: 3rd March 2025
Author: Jack Devaney
Categories: Timber, Doors, Samuel Heath, Farrow & Ball, Entrance Door, Horndean, Winchester
When you look at a property, the front door is often, the first thing we notice and are drawn to. A front door plays a crucial role in the overall look and beauty of the home, and as a feature that is used multiple times a day, it is important to get the right one for you, that is secure, functional, practical, and also aesthetically pleasing.
In this blog we will delve into the various ways a front door can entirely transform the overall look of your home, and outline the different factors you should consider if and when you decide to change your own door.
Over the years, we have installed a lot of new front doors and the feedback that we receive from customers regarding the transformation is really pleasing. It can be underestimated just how transformative a simple change such as a new front door can make to the overall look and style of a home, often bringing new life, and bringing the style to the home that was originally envisaged when it was built.
Over time, many homes have suffered due to poor changes by previous homeowners/builders/developers etc. While this is understandably often due to cost/budgets, it does come at the expense of both the look, and performance of the windows and doors that were installed at the time. Poorer performing materials, shoddy installation, and even just bad selection of style, colour etc can mean some homeowners are forced to change their products, even if they do not want to, or when the products are not even that old; an unfortunate consequence that can be avoided if better decisions were made initially.
The images on the following link are of a property that we recently installed a new timber 'Greenwich' entrance door. The stark contrast is almost shocking in how much better the entrance to the home looks, not to mention the improvements in energy insulation, noise reduction, and security that the homeowners are benefitting from now.
Your home is your pride and joy, and what makes a house a home is your personality and taste being applied to it. With timber doors, there are greater customisations options available to you over composite doors and PVC for example. The list below outlines some of the various options you can adapt, to create a personalised front door that both suits your home, and shows your individuality:
Style – Whether you are looking for a traditional look or a more contemporary style, we have multiple door styles to suit.
Locking Mechanisms – Do you prefer a traditional door handle, or a townhouse style door with an escutcheon that you put your key into? All of our doors are available with either option, allowing you to choose your preference, or perhaps what matches doors in your area.
Colour – Timber has greater colour customisation options than uPVC, aluminium or composite doors. You can specify your new door in any RAL colour, as well as complementary colours from popular ranges such as Farrow & Ball and Fired Earth. Your new door can also be dual coloured, allowing the internal face to suit your internal colour scheme. Typically speaking, new windows are often safe colours such as White, Off-White, Black etc. However, with a new front door, this is less so the case. You can give your home more personality and kerb appeal, with various colours being a workable option. Over the years we have installed pinks, yellows, purples, reds etc, where the colour works well in the setting and was an appropriate, and personal choice from the homeowner.
Ironmongery – Our door hardware options include a variety of styles, from traditional doctor’s and art deco knockers, to sleek, stainless steel Barbican knockers designed for contemporary doors. Additionally, most are available in a suite of finishes, such as Black, Pewter, Satin Brass, Polished Chrome etc. So regardless of the colour of your new door, we can partner it with ironmongery that will enhance the overall look of your new entrance door even further.
Size – A further benefit is that it is entirely made to order, every window and door that we install is bespoke. Regardless of the size required for your new front door, we can accommodate. For larger openings, sidelights can be added, or French doors can be adopted in a front door style. A property that we have re-visited to take photos as one of our case studies is a prime example of this option, this can be viewed on the following page if that is of interest to you. If you require an arched top light, or arched door itself, we can also provide a solution for this which you may not find is possible from alternative materials such as composite doors, or PVC for example.
Glass – Patterned, etched or stained glass increase privacy, while also elevating the character of a new door substantially, without compromising the levels of natural light flowing into the home. Bespoke stained-glass patterns allow your creativity to shine, and can pay respect to the history of the home, its period, and the local area it was built in. If you have existing stained glass on a tired, old door, it can sometimes be possible to encapsulate this in a new one, retaining the original, intended look and character of the door, but in a higher performing, new door that will last for years to come.
Greater customisation options provide you with a fantastic opportunity to really put your stamp on your new door and transform the entrance into your home. However, how do you choose from the wonderful range of options available to you? Where should you start?
We highly recommend local research as a starting point, do neighbouring properties have a look or style that you prefer to your own? Find inspiration online to get an idea of the styles you do and don’t like, to help narrow things down initially. We would recommend looking on our Instagram page or Pinterest page for inspiration as we are updating the pages daily with recent projects that we have installed.
If you visit one of our showrooms, not only do they have full sized door samples for you to see and try in person, but our literature is full of examples of doors that have been installed for customers across the country. Our door portfolio's contain 255 doors of varying styles; A perfect brochure to flick through and highlight things you do and don’t like for when it comes to building your new front door.
Either our Horndean or Winchester showrooms will assist you in choosing the most appropriate entrance door for your home. Our members of staffs expertise and experience will help you make the best decision for your property in a completely unbiased way.