rom gray-and-white kitchens to empty libraries and laminate flooring, the twenty-first century is riddled with minimalistic architecture. Have we forgotten the elegance a Victorian-style home can convey?
Here are some of the most practical and sophisticated interior door design ideas we will cover that will turn your home from dull to debonair.
The Romans first engineered stained glass from sand and colored it by adding metallic salts and oxides while in molten state. Later, the Egyptians established their stained glass design through the creation and selling of jewelry.
According to the stained glass museum, the Anglo-Saxons followed suit and forged the idea of colored glass and lead to create a new form of architecture-- Gothic architecture. Twelfth century places of worship became homes for these bright red, blue, green, and yellow cathedral windows.
The gothic design of figure windows soon transitioned to medallion windows, depicting characters through intense colors and designs to represent historical stories of life-and death-throughout the aisles of a church, for people who were illiterate, to comprehend.
“Grisaille” clear windows became a cheap and popular brighter window, functioning as an adjusted design for architectural styles of the fourteenth century. Churches continued to use stained glass more popularly as depictions of certain subjects and Biblical events. Stained glass is now less prominent in churches and increasingly popular in domestic home decor.
Modern stained glass window and door designs are easier to fashion than you’d think. You may not want delicate stained glass (made by heating sand, lime, and soda ash at a high temperature) in your home for fear of destruction. Stained glass window films are a feasible way to obtain that beautiful tinted glow.
Stained glass works best in areas of bright natural light, so an interior stained glass door would work best for sun rooms and bright areas with an abundance of windows.
Influenced largely by the Italian renaissance, the elegance of French doors were an unmistakable addition in symmetry to seventeenth century homes. Throughout the evolution of the functional French door, their floor to length windows became glass rather than pure wood.
After the glass industry (and stained glass industry) gained popularity, French door architecture started to incorporate clear panes and flights. Before the invention of electricity, glass doors and windows were prominent in early-century homes to entertain natural light.
Best utilized in offices, bedrooms, libraries, gardens, patios, pool areas and sun rooms, glass French doors create an openness, as the natural outside world fills a room with light and a soft breeze (at least in the summertime).
According to Martha Stewart, The Victorian era was characterized by sophistication and grace. Developed in America and England in the early nineteenth century, pocket doors were seen as practical advancements ideal for entertaining company. The living room would lead into the dining area, creating a balanced flow of people and conversation.
The advancements of technology ushered in the comeback of pocket doors in later years. A boom in the 1950s reopened the architecture of pocket doors to prevent accidents and cleaning frustrations, while the switch from a floor track to a ceiling track saved space and circulated guests more easily.
Pocket doors are best utilized in smaller rooms such as closets and bedrooms to provide more space, and larger areas like living rooms and dining rooms to accommodate guests.
According to the Sun Mountain Door, The colonial architecture of the Dutch door characterized the Victorian era, originating in Europe in the late seventeenth century. Like French doors, Dutch doors allowed a “split” component, helpful for keeping animals and children inside while allowing a fresh breeze to flow inside. Dutch doors can also be used as interior doors to keep children and animals safe, while still allowing for an open concept of conjoining rooms.
The Dutch door lost its popularity with the invention of screen doors in the twentieth century. After a resurgence in the twenty-first century, these functional and old-timey door designs can be best used in kitchens and entry doorways.
Every child dreams of a mysterious hideaway in their homes. Our desire to keep our secrets hidden from the developing world stems from the Egyptians in 3100 BCE, as hidden doors and passageways were utilized to protect the Pharaoh's valuables for the afterlife.
Later, during Queen Elizabeth I’s reign, Catholic priests would hide themselves from the queen’s protestant crusaders in hidden rooms known as “priest holes.” Wealthy Catholic families would invest in priest holes to hide and protect members of the clergy from protestant pursuivants who “hunted” them.
Nearing the 19th century, historic homes utilized their hidden doors as panic rooms for emergencies. Especially during prohibition, hidden doors led to bars, casinos, and brothels.
Even some of the greats had secrets. Charles Dickens famously had a hidden door put into a fake bookcase in his Kent country home. Dickens’ bookbinder was ordered to create hundreds of fake books accompanied with fake titles like “Cat’s Lives” and “Five Minutes in China.”
Nowadays, hidden doors can be used to hide a work office when not in use, to store valuables for safe hiding or as a means of security. Hidden doors can be (found?) behind bookshelves, underneath staircases, inside pantries or hidden between ornate wallpaper patterns.
Interior doors don’t have to be a boring part of home renovations. From classy to elegant design ideas, you can make your home inviting, practical, and beautiful with these five interior door ideas for anyone!
