A guide to the often-overlooked factors of selecting and buying doors

Doors are an essential element of interior and exterior design, style and function, but homeowners may find it difficult to select the proper product amongst the array of looks, makes, colours, hardware, size and additional features available. Here, Corinthian Doors (Corinthian) and a selection of leading homes experts unlock the important, but often overlooked, factors to opening the ideal door for your
home.

Define Your Style

Great home design relies on creating a consistent theme across material and colour choices, which should start with the door. Nat and Kristy of Norsu Interiors explain, “If we think of the door as the cover of your style story, then it follows that you should ensure it is represented in every detail. Door frames, picture rails and skirting boards all provide opportunities to add more texture to the home through the use of carved and embossed profiles”.

Measure Up

When it comes to doors, one size doesn’t necessarily fit all. Many entryways don’t have standard measurements, and installing a door that doesn’t fit an opening can either create drafts or prevent the door from properly closing, which will require additional work and expense to correct.

“If you’re new to building and renovating, invest in using an expert to help achieve the best result. They should be able to assist with measuring and functional decisions such as a choosing door that uses sliding or pivot systems,” explains Amy Ryan, Marketing Manager of Corinthian Doors.

Spatial Awareness

One of the most important considerations when choosing a door is the surrounding space. Hinged doors require empty area to accommodate
their swing trajectory, impeding on valuable floor space.

Corinthian’s new Moda Barn Doors are chic space savers, offering a range of popular designs that add eye-catching character to any home.

They’re versatile in application, and make for an ideal transitional piece between rooms from bedrooms to kitchens and even theatre rooms.
“How to get more out of your square footage is always a consideration. Barn doors have instant space saving advantages, while also adding an architectural element to rooms,” says

Melissa Bonney, Director at multi-disciplinary design studio, The Designory.

For new builds or larger, structural renovations, Corinthian’s Platinum Cavity units can be built within a wall cavity, allowing the door to retract smoothly into the wall and conveniently out of sight. Platinum Cavity units are especially suited to tiled wall applications, in bathrooms and wet areas, as their steel construction ensures resistance to warping and bowing, white ants and rot.

Choose The Best Base

A door’s finish is key to defining a home’s look. The latest trend for bright, bold exterior and interior doors highlights your door as décor.

While palette choice comes down to personal preference, carefully consider the best base options for painting or staining and sealing. Ideal for painting, choose Corinthian’s Madison entrance doors or Moda Primed interior doors.

“Corinthian Moda Primed interior doors are factory primed on all sides and edges, and as a result deliver a superior finish for any paint sheen,” explains interior designer Kyal, one half of famed renovating duo Kyal & Kara.

During a recent Scandi-inspired home renovation, Nat Wheeler and Kristy Sadlier of Norsu Interiors found that the primed surface of Corinthian’s Balmoral interior doors was straightaway ready to add a smooth paint finish.

This was “a real time saver, and ensured we could customise the door to the look we wanted” according to Kristy.

Equally, a light timber veneer, such as Corinthian’s Blonde Oak entrance range or Moda White Oak interior range, provides a blank canvas for painting or staining and sealing. A simple clear stain and sealant will capture its natural beauty by highlight the intricate grain and knots. 

When you begin exploring stains and other finishes, you’ll find an array of options from honeyed hues to the heaviest of ebonies, and every shade in-between.

Pick The Right Profile

The door profile refers to designs created through routing, panelling, moulding and other decorative details that alter the surface from a fully flat expanse.

Modern architectural styles benefit from doors with bold but uncomplicated, sharp features. Corinthian’s Deco collection is perfect for this aesthetic, as it features a crisp geometric routing, which evokes striking shadows within the line work. For Kara of Kyal & Kara, “the clean, vertical lines and geometry of the Deco door design added texture” to their Long Jetty design project on the New South Wales’ Central Coast.

Alternatively, the craftsmanship and simplicity of The Moda Collection, a range featuring 24 designs with horizontal and vertical rail that will
match the lines of any interior from classic, Victorian and Hamptons inspired homes. “Moda is a long-time favourite of ours. Its simplistic
design ties in perfectly with our costal style, whilst also providing a unique difference to an otherwise standard door,” adds Kyal.

Think Functionally

In addition to windows, the doorway is one of the largest openings in a room, making them an important barrier against external and internal noises. Houses near busy streets will benefit from a solid-core door as opposed to a hollow-core door, as having a solid inner comprised of thicker, denser material will muffle sound more effectively.

For those looking to build or renovate in bushfire-prone areas, BAL rated products that meet government standards. Corinthian offers a
range of BAL 12.5, BAL 29 & BAL 40 entrance doors that suit both modern and traditional architectural styles “Far from an afterthought, the right door can provide an opportunity to pull a room or façade together and define your style. If you know how to choose, the right choice of door will open up design possibilities to define the property’s look, feel and function, ultimately turning it from a house into a home,” Amy Ryan concludes.