Thank goodness they haven’t yet invented one of these for your home! We would be out of a job.This is a disappearing car door – and I challenge you to see how it works the first time you see it … or even the third time! It really does seem to disappear without a trace the first few times you see this door open.

  Did any of you watch Looney Tunes as a child? You know, those incredibly violent cartoons that our grandparents and other childless adults said would turn us all into violent, angry, psycho killers by the time we reached our late teens (We sure showed those GODDAMNED STUPID PRUNES … excuse me ! Well, it is funny to see that even with the advent of all the new technology we have today, that comedy remains essentially the same, we laugh at the same things, and even door knobs can be funny (not just stylish or inspiring!). If you can’t watch the video, the man on the left is shown temporarily...

  Porcelain door knobs come in so many beautiful and colorful varieties … they are the only door knob medium that you can actually paint on, and the ones that we do have need to be well preserved. Here’s a few tips on how to safely clean and maintain porcelain, and also mineral (clay) door knobs. The first step is pretty predictable – soft cloth, soap and water. Nothing too fancy though! Dish detergent will do just fine. If it can be easily done, remove your knob from the door for a more thorough cleaning. This is applicable to brass and other metal knobs as well.

Such an ancient style, this knocker and studs on a heavy old wooden door. Despite their obvious age, they are still shaped pretty much like the day they were forged (of course we have to assume a little, since we weren’t actually around. They may have started out life shaped like giant bananas, or something!). I think the Occupational Safety people may have something to say about having large metal spikes on the front door, though – perhaps this type of traditional hardware is what spawned the saying “Watch where you point that, you’ll put an eye out” … I can imagine that actually...

Although it is sort of like giving away trade secrets, we felt we absolutely had to include this awesomely detailed, well set-out, clear, concise and above all, useful site in the blog! The BBC’s Homes area contains this very practical page, which details most things that you would want to know about a wide range of period styles, to make your traditional renovation more true-to-form and consistent.They include a range of styles, not just the traditional period styles – and definitely not only English period styles, although the site is, of course, English. Here is the list of decors you can...

We love this beautiful fox shaped door knob as much for it’s surroundings, and the way they are captured in this photo, as for themselves. The entire shot almost seems like one of those cryptic puzzles, where you have to name things in photos and put them together to make either a different word, or the title of something. Like the shot, and the fox, are trying to tell us something. Did you notice that the fox has only half come out of the door? Very clever three-dimensional effects… Photo credits: Startled Fox by Mark Dodds

For those of us not growing up in a country where nickel could buy you lollies at the milkbar on a Saturday, you may not have been introduced to this metal until now! Nickel is a very popular choice for traditional door hardware … but why? And wherefore? And how come? Nickel is chemically close to iron, and is produced in the universe by much the same forces. Along with iron, it is formed by much smaller and lower temperature stars than other metals (read: less heat and energy, on Earth!), and as such is very common in meteorites … and in the Earth’s crust, where anybody might pick it up...

This very unusual, very striking traditional door knob is Italian (although that information has come through a string of Chinese whispers!). Such an unusual shape, to have either a flattened or concave back half of the knob, and a rounded front half. It makes it seem like a lady’s parasol … albeit with quite warlike, Celtic designs adorning it! It is apparently part of a collection of old hardware, doorknobs and knockers that once belonged to a Teddy Craig … and we would love to see more! We are researching currently, and will keep you posted. Any information you have is always...

Poor old doorknobs often get quite a bad rap. We are culpable for contributing to it ourselves … blog posts report on the footpull used to avoid germy bathroom doors (where 34% of men, and 12% of women don’t wash their hands!), and also on the bactericidal properties of brass. But we only just recently came across a wealth of information on other ways and means people have of avoiding horrible, horrible public door knobs … which are nothing like your gorgeous home ones! There are the old standbys – low tech but high wastage methods like using a paper towel to touch the actual doorknob....