There may be no design element in a home more utilitarian than interior doors . We bet you don't even think about them, even though you open and close them dozens of times a day. Okay, so the ubiquitous paneled, hinged style isn't the most inspiring thing in the world. Did you think that was the only option out there?! In fact, there's a slew of other types, from double doors to pocket sliders (and then there's the actual look of the door itself, but that a whole 'nother story). Read on for some options that might just have you stopping in your tracks every once in a while.
There are two ways you could go here: the typical sliding door you use to go out to the deck (but used indoors instead) or the type where the hardware is hung above the doorway (sometimes called a barn door). The former is clean-lined and modern, the latter leans industrial.
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In this Manhattan loft by MR Architecture + Décor, the classic sliding barn door goes industrial, clad in steel with a counterweight pulley system.
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The massive metal-framed doors in H. Ross Perot Jr.'s Dallas penthouse can slide closed to section off the living and family rooms.
Two instead of one instantly lends a sense of gravitas to any space. Why not make your morning scuffle to the shower a majestic experience?
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A pair of metal-framed doors provide a grand entrance to the dining room of this residence on Fifth Avenue in New York.
Hinges at the top and bottom of a pivot door allow it to swing open within the frame. Basically, the door takes up less space and looks good while doing it.
Take a pivot door to the next level with a floor-to-ceiling version, like this one in the living room of an industrial-style house/studio in Sitges, Spain, designed by Tom Kundig of Olson Kundig Architects.
A frosted-glass pivot door reveals this Manhattan study, which was renovated by Hariri & Hariri Architecture.
Tiny home owners, rejoice! Even more compact is the pocket door, which slides neatly into the wall.
Can you spot the pocket door in the screening room of this Robert Couturier–designed Manhattan townhouse? The same color as the walls, it almost disappears.
Slim pocket doors give way to the media room of this New York City apartment designed by Desai Chia Architecture.
Ideal for dividing larger spaces, accordion doors boast multiple panels that sandwich neatly together at one end of the doorway.
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Imagine if this nailhead-studded folding screen, which separates the guest bedroom from the dining room in Diane von Furstenberg’s Paris apartment, was actually a bona fide accordion door. Chic .