The Hassle of Doors

When working in such a small space, something that always seems to get in the way are doors.  It may sound strange, but doors opening & closing can make a small room feel like it’s constantly shifting in size depending on the door’s position.  It’s like the room is breathing…or like you’re Alice in Wonderland, without eating or drinking anything.  

In our old home, which was only 450 square feet, doors became a bit of a problem.  The french doors to the back yard conflicted with the bathroom door, so neither could be open at the same time.  Inevitably, there would be times when we would need to navigate the labyrinth of doors just to get to the bathroom.  Sometimes urgency requires access to the bathroom to be swift & obstacle free.

In the In Law unit, there will be four doors.

1. The closet
2. The bathroom
3. The door to the yard
4. The entry door

That’s a lot of doors for such a small space.  When it comes to the closet, I’m not a fan of accordion (or bi-fold) doors.  Maybe it’s just me, but they always seem to get stuck, or making a screeching sound when I open them.  While a pocket door might be an option, plumbing & wiring in the wall may make it impossible to install without a lot of reconfiguration.  The solution I’m considering is to install a sliding barn door.  (I know…back to that barn talk again).  I think that from an aesthetic standpoint, sliding barn doors look really cool and could fit into our rustic space quite well.  There are also a ton of options for doors and hardware.

Check out some of these ideas.

Here is a picture of where the closet is located in the room.  This door would be one of the first things  a person will see when entering the space, making it that much more important that it sets the tone for the design.