You may have seen some of our posts on doors that look like plain ordinary bookshelves, and drooled a bit. It just sounds so decadent, and sort of Addams Family-ish, having a secret room in your house concealed by a bookcase! We have hinted at this before - the instructions for creating a jib door, along with the jib door decorating idea which utilises book facades are one way of creating a room in your home hidden by books - but it isn’t quite the same as having an actual, opening book case in your home, a secret door to a secret room. Of course, unless you plan to knock out some walls...

It’s a little luxury having someone to open the door for you, isn’t it?! It feels lovely just being able to slide on through that empty space, without all that arm-wracking effort of holding the door open by yourself. Or perhaps that is just because the most exercise I’ve had all week was when my mouse fell off the desk and I had to lean down and pick it up off the floor … oh, the pain! Well, with one of these alternative door knobs you can have the pleasure of having a cute little character to open the door for you, whatever time of day or night you need to pass through it!...

Before you start reading, we do stock door stops here at Architectural Classics. Big ones, little ones, tall ones, short ones, ones that squiggle and squirm. However! We also know the value of making something yourself, so we thought we’d let you know how to make these sweet, personalisable, low-cost and creative door stops… while munching on our biscuits with that authentic flavour of burnt flour and sipping on an iced coffee that is decidedly more ice than coffee! The joys of self-expression Pyramid door stops are a very cute, and infinitely personalisable alternative to regular door...

The front door of your home is the first actual physical contact that people will have with it – touching the door to knock on its wood or glass, picking up the knocker or touching the doorbell. So it makes sense that your front door forms an enormous part of the first impression that people have of your home. Many of you are renovating to sell, not only to live in, and a well-presented front door is said by ’some’ agents to add ‘up to’ 10% to the value of a property! We aren’t sure if you’ll be able to charge an extra twenty thousand on top of the price of...

No, we aren’t talking about getting rid of everything in the room … just what to add to your rooms once you’ve chosen the all-important door handles, and the somewhat important paint and furniture! This isn’t a course in imagination (if we could teach that, we’d be millionaires already) … but we do provide a framework for things you might want to add to give your traditional home or your modern home a bit of personality. Comfy Bottoms Where are you going to sit when you are in this particular room? Adding pillows and throw-blankets to a room, especially the living...

You roof must be the most important part of your home … there are plenty of dwellings to be found worldwide without walls (though the inhabitants might live some place that is closer to a tropical paradise than your own home!), but a home without a roof is just not a home! Who wants to be rained on while they sleep? Certainly not me … but if that floats your boat, I’ll not comment As such, we are looking at interior decorating of ceilings in this ‘Out with the Old’ feature. There are so many homes that have boring old white ceilings, that you will now find ‘Ceiling...

As you would have realised if you are doing a traditional renovation on your home … creating a whole new look for your most significant investment involves a little more than just choosing new doorknobs! (Although, of course, that is the most important part!). The second decision you’ll have to make when doing a traditional renovation, after the lever handles versus door knobs conundrum, is what color scheme you’ll have in your home. Here we look at some general guidelines and some inspiration for period style homes. One of the first things you need to consider when you are looking...

We love old stuff here at Architectural Classics. We may have told you that once or twice! We also think, though, that new stuff can be just as exciting … especially if that new stuff is old stuff. Confused? Well, I’m actually talking about doing period  style renovations. Ah, it all makes sense now!! This will be the first of a series of articles on renovating your period style home – some random information gems, tips and hints, and guidelines. This week, as is often the case in life, we look at why sometimes to get something, you have to go back to nothing. Or, as a wise old Muppet in...

Hanging doors is a tricky job, right? It is often held up as an example of something that is always outsourced to a professional, even for long-term renovators. So, installing a door that is pre-hung should be a piece of cake … (Ouch! ) [Low feminine growling noise] (Oh, for f***’s sake!) (Right, where’s the chain saw?) Hee hee! Here are a few tips to save you the frustration – it is amusing to read, but not so amusing to experience! If you’ve bought a pre-hung door already, hopefully you have one that is handed the correct way; that is, it swings the way that you want it to. It is not...

  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.