Replacing outdated interior doors can really add up. With a few inexpensive supplies you can update your louvre bi-fold doors and I’m going to show you how!
A few months back I reorganized our bathroom linen closet and added these faux wood floating shelves. I had taken the closet door off to work in there, but really didn’t want to put the outdated louvre door back on.
After doing some research and contemplating the best way to update these doors (we have sooo many in our house!) I came up with a simple and inexpensive solution.
This is the result – a shaker-style door!
If you’re not familiar with louvre doors, these are interior doors you’ll typically see on closets and look like they have slanted slats. They are very hard to keep clean and honestly, don’t fit my decor style at all.
For my son’s bi-fold doors, however, I decided to try something a little different. If you’re unfamiliar with his room, I created this color block wall and herringbone faux wallpaper. With that in mind, I updated his bi-fold doors with black shiplap.
How to Update Louvre Bi-Fold Doors
Materials + Supplies
- tape measure
- brad nailer
- 1-1 1/4″ nails
- 1/8″ plywood or hardboard
- liquid nails
- wood filler
- caulk
- table saw, jigsaw, circular saw
- clamps
- sand paper
Process
Start out by measuring out each individual door.
Cut down your 1/8″ hardboard to fit the width of each door. Next you’ll cut down your hardboard to 5.25″ pieces. This will be your shiplap.
Always do a dry fit to make sure it works!
Tip: I would recommend giving your doors a quick one coat of the paint you choose. There will be a nickel gap in the shiplap so you *may* be able to see through.
Attach your shiplap pieces with liquid nails, creating a nickel size gap in between. (I used an actual nickel.)
Use your brad nailer to shoot nails on the left and right side of each door to secure.
Use wood filler to fill in nail holes.
Sand your wood filler until smooth.
Now you’re ready to prime/paint (I chose an all-in-one paint and primer in the color Charcoal by Behr.) whatever color you choose!
While you can certainly use a paint brush or roller for this project, I find that this paint sprayer is able to get into all the shiplap cracks/spaces to create a flawless finish.
Bifold Door Update with Wallpaper
Tuesday 2nd of March 2021
[…] and louvre bifold doors. Since moving in I’ve updated our main bath closet door and the bifold doors in my son’s room. The last set is here in my daughter’s room. We gave the room a makeover last fall and I […]