8 Inviting Front Door Ideas

A front door does so much more than provide an entrance. In addition to creating some serious curb appeal and adding value to your home, it’s also a great way to introduce people to your personal style. Take these front doors from the WL archives, for example. With bold colours, patterns and textures, they’re even more beautiful than they are functional.

Ex-reeds Expectations

To create a welcoming energy, designer Ayshea Mojadidi filled this entryway with thoughtfully crafted pieces—including smoked-glass pendant lights, a textured console table and a custom reeded-glass front door (complete with a gorgeous brass handle). Check out the rest of this 4,000-square-foot Vancouver home.

Clear Conscience

Architect Behsheed Darvish and designer Stephanie Brown installed an oversized glass pivot door instead of a solid door at this Sunshine Coast home in order to maximize views of the water. When the scenery is that epic, nothing should detract from it. Step inside this cozy, seaside retreat.

Sunshine State

“Front doors should be more expressive,” says Alykhan Velji. “It’s the first thing people see when they come to your home.” Hence the cheery yellow colour the designer used here. It’s unexpected and whimsical—and guaranteed to put a smile on peoples’ faces. Learn more about this dramatic look.

Glam Jamb

After working with the team at I Know a Guy Renovations, the owners of this Calgary home brought in designers Paul Lavoie and Kristy Keer to turn up the volume. While the rest of the home is boldly coloured, the geometric doors, marble floors, chandelier and pedestal table in the entryway lend a touch of glam. See more of this maximalist Calgary house.

True Blue

Kalu Interiors was asked to bring this Vancouver Special into the 21st century without completely destroying the home’s original charm—which they achieved by knocking down a few walls, adding some fresh grey-green cabinetry and warm flooring, and incorporating pops of black and gold throughout. The blue front door helps, too.

“You can maintain the… personality of the home and still have something new and updated to live in when done properly,” says principal Phyllis Lui. “An old house can be given new life.” Peek inside this renovated residence.

Shy Guy

Designer David Nicolay says this exterior is “introverted.” And while it’s not how we would typically describe a home, we’re having a hard time thinking of a better word for this look. The extruded aluminum cladding, basalt tiles and floor-to-ceiling glass food and windows give the house a quiet, sophisticated presence. Tour this modernist beauty owned by former NHL star Trevor Linden.

Warm Welcome

Rather than making a one-off statement, designer Stephanie Brown treated this front door and entryway as the first introduction to the home’s colour palette. The black, white, cognac and warm wood details you see here can also be found in the kitchen, living room and bedrooms. Explore this modern farmhouse.

Frame Game

Don’t feel like painting your entire front door in a bright hue? Take a page from architect Marianne Amodio’s book and use a fun colour to frame a glass door.

This works especially well if it accentuates other elements of your home. “There’s a moment when you’re standing in the pink door and you can see the pink scallops on the gable of the heritage building—it really connects the two,” says Amodio of this Vancouver abode. See the before and after renovation photos.