High Gloss Rolling Doors for My Studioffice

How to Transform Thrift Store Bi-fold Doors into Rolling Doors

As most of you know, I write for the Glidden paint blog. One of the best things I have gained from being part of the team is the knowledge of the shiniest, glossiest paint – EVER… Glidden Trim and Door paint.

I have posted about using it before, when I painted the desk in my studioffice. Last week I finished using it again to paint – just installed DIY rolling doors for the doorway between my studioffice and family room.

Look what you can do with bifold doors found at the thrift store. How to make a unique DIY rolling door to separate two rooms for about $30.

The paint is oil-based, but if you want shiny-as-glass-paint – it is worth the extra clean-up effort to use. If you don’t want to use an oil-paint and still want a high gloss sheen, this paint is my favorite water-based high gloss paint.

tobyscott.com.au 1 Est Magazine — *Image credit: Toby Scott Est Magazine*

I am a fan of white in my décor – white walls, furniture, dishes…and more. To keep it from getting bland – I add pops of color in the details. This is one way to make white work.

Another way to make white rooms come alive is by adding whites in different textures – shiny, matte, rough, smooth, etc. See that shiny door in the photo above – Oooh…la..la…

This room would not look half as appealing to me if the door were a matte white. The shine creates contrast against the flat walls and cabinets. This is the look I was after when deciding on what finish and color of paint to use for the new doors.

sliding-doors-north-carolina-home-0512-xln

I was inspired to add the unconventional doors to the doorway after seeing these clever DIY rolling doors from Crisp Interiors in Country Living magazine.

I don’t have the wall space available for the door roll-back needed to each side as is done in the photo above, but I did come up with an idea similar to this that would work for my space.

How to Transform Thrift Store Bi-fold Doors into Rolling Doors

Thrift-store-bifold-doors-made-into-a-rolling-door — Doors BEFORE Painting

This is the view of the doors from my studioffice.

I found the 3 bi-fold doors doors at my local Habitat for Humanity for $5.00 each. This is the same place I bought the doors to make a tri-fold folding screen using bi-fold doors for the empty corner in my bedroom.

supplies needed:

3 bi-fold doors or as many as you need to cover your door opening
6 – 3-inch surface mounted hinges to hinge and connect doors together
3 – 3-inch door hinges to attach the doors to the door jam
4 – 1-5/8-inch roller casters
door pull
1 quart oil-based interior primer
1 quart of white Glidden Trim & Door Extra High Gloss Paint
high quality angled paint brush
sandpaper – 100 and 220 grit
tack cloth
drop cloth

Blogger of DIY Decorating blog Diane Henkler of Oducu

Painting Tip:

The best drop cloths when painting are not made of fabric or plastic sheeting -these move around too much, I prefer to use flattened cardboard boxes. They stay in place and can be used over and over again.

Doorway BEFORE

This is the view from the family room.

I added bi-fold hinges that I bought at the hardware store to connect the 3 doors together. Before painting, I added painter’s tape to help keep paint off the hinges and wheels.

How-to-put-wheels-on-a-rolling-bifold-door

Before attaching the connected doors to the door frame with hinges, I added 2 casters to the bottom of the right and left door.

This added 2 – inches to the height of the doors.

1. I then attached the trio of connected doors to the door frame with 3 hinges.

2. I added a piece of door jam molding in front of the hinges for a more finished look.

The doors are not a perfect fit, but do block the view. There is about an inch of clearance between the top of the door and the top of the door frame.

How to Paint Doors Using High Gloss Paint

1. Spackle holes in the doors. Sand and then clean the doors before priming and painting. Let dry.

Painting Tip:

When using high gloss paint, make sure the surface is smooth and even before painting because the high gloss paint sheen will bring out every flaw. I sanded with 100 grit sandpaper and then went over the surface again with a finer grit of 220 grit.

2. Use a tack cloth over the surface before painting to make sure you get every spec of dirt or dust removed from the surface. Apply one light coat of oil-base interior primer, let dry.

Glidden-Trim-and-Door-Paint-high-gloss-white

I have had a few readers write to me telling me the paint was so thick that they added water to it. Don’t do this!

The paint is specially designed paint with Glidden’s Gel-Flow Technology to help eliminate drips and brush marks. It is supposed to be thick, in fact you are not even supposed to stir it much – just a stroke or two in the can is all that is needed. It self levels – not a brush mark will show up when it is dry.

It’s super durable, comes in extra high gloss in White, Antique White, Classic Red, Linen Canvas, Rich Navy, National Red, Traditional Brown, and Deepest Black.

3. Apply one coat of paint. This paint is thick and unlike any paint you have ever used before. If it looks like it has separated, stir gently until mixed back in. I used a brush, but you can use a high quality foam or microfiber roller to apply it.

4. Dip brush into can and apply. As you brush the paint on, it will thin and self level. Brush until paint finish is smooth and even, but do not overwork.

5. This paint does smell while you apply it and as it dries. It will take about 4-6 hours to dry to the touch. 8 hours to handle and overnight to recoat.

6. I used 2 coats. I let the first one dry 24 hours, before applying the second.

When the doors are fully extended, they don’t quite cover the entire door opening – there is about a 2-inch gap.

I added an industrial style pull to the edge of the last door to fill the gap. Placing it along the outer door edge and not on the front or back allows me to easily open or close the doors from both sides with just one centrally located pull.

How-to-install-bifold-doors-to-a-doorway

I created the faux transom two years ago. You can learn how I did it in my post – How to Create a Faux Transom.

How-to-hang-bifold-or-sliding-doors-with-wheels — *Close-up of casters/wheels*

Now I don’ t have to look at the mess I sometimes leave in my studioffice when I am finished working for the day. The doors also add a bit of architectural interest to the space.

Total cost of the project: $50 – a lot less than if I bought bi-fold doors and the track needed to hang them. I also like the fact that these are not so traditional. This is one project that I envisioned in my head that came out exactly as I planned with no extra effort.

I love when this happens – makes me think that it was the way it was always meant to be.