Doors of Perception – Steal These 5 Famous Portal Styles! – Doors. Where would we be without them?
Either stuck inside, stuck outside, or free to move around but pretty darn chilly all the same.
But for devotees of art and design, a door is much more than a simple sealable interface between two environments – in many cases, it’s an object of beauty or even a supernatural gateway from the ‘real’ world to another dimension, or between a solid and liminal state.
Since doors have become motifs in many books, movies and amazing architectural projects, we’ve been reminding ourselves of a few examples which inspire our own home décor.
In case you’re struggling for door inspiration, here are five famous portal styles to steal!
Notting Hill Blue Door
If you’re a fan of the famous Hugh Grant, Julia Roberts and Rhys Ifans romcom Notting Hill, there’s no doubt that you’ll remember the iconic blue front door where Rhys Ifans parades around in his underpants in front of a baying paparazzi mob.
If you’re a Notting Hill fan, painting your own front door blue or buying a brand new, classic wooden door in the right hue could be a good move – it’s a subtle nod to the movie and the shade is cool and calming.
10 Downing Street
If you live at number 10 in any street, it’s almost mandatory to have a front door that resembles that of the most famous front-facing portal in British politics.
Whether you choose to stand at a lectern in your front garden giving an impassioned speech to passing pigeons and paperboys is optional.
Hill House-style Mackintosh doors
Outrageously gifted Scottish designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh knew a thing or three about doors. And windows. And practically everything else connected with art, design and architecture, as can be evidenced in the delightful detail in everything from facades to doorknobs in his famous Hill House.
If you would like a chic Mackintosh-style door on your own property, Oakwood Doors and other artisan providers are a savvy choice for making your vision a reality.
Rustic Hobbit-hole doors
Transforming your home into a Hobbit hole from The Lord of the Rings might be a step too far, but if you’re a fan of designer sheds as well as Tolkien, it’s perfectly possible to build a Hobbit dwelling in your back garden and it could become a gorgeous garden work pod if you’re operating remotely for the duration.
One note of caution – remember to scale your trendy shed to your own size and not that of a diminutive denizen of The Shire.
Narnia-style reading nook
Sticking with the fantasy theme, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe features another famous literary portal – the one hidden in the cupboard which connects the real world and the weird domain of Narnia.
One novel way to integrate this idea into your own home décor is by building a Narnia-style reading nook where your kids can curl up with a good book and keep cosy as their imaginations take flight. Denise Cox can help you get started with her Pinterest page.
Poppy Watt