Wooden Louvre Shutter Door Gets a Rustic Farmhouse Makeover

Yup, it’s true! We have these plain-o louvre shutter doors encasing a couple of cupboards in our little farmhouse, all equipped with the same boring wooden 80’s handle (urgh!). With the air conditioning install project now well underway (we do now have cold(ish) air coming out of vents of which roughly half are installed and ducted. Progress is progress and whilst not finished, it has already saved us from a very early start to Summer…in Winter!), we have forgoed half of our expansive linen cupboards for the return air void and in turn, relinquishing two of those louvre doors from their former duties.

Let me show you how I managed to spend just a couple of hours on a simple makeover that has added some country farmhouse charm to this drab worn door! Bit of painting, antique style door handle, a quick style – sounds super simple, right? Absolutely easy…here goes!

TOOLS & MATERIALS

Fine grade sandpaper block – I used 240grit
Dust cloth or brush
Chalk Paint – I used DecoArt Americana DÉCOR Chalky Finish in ‘Everlasting’ purchased from Spotlight
Paint brush
Screwdriver or Power drill
Decorative door handle and screws to attach – TIP: it doesn’t need to be a functional door handle

Pretty simple looking list huh? We already had these things at home so didn’t need to run out and buy anything new…after all, this project is all about repurposing and upcycling, using what you have on hand so be creative and look for possibilities in what you already own.

Firstly, remove any existing hardware and handles before giving your piece a quick going over with the fine grit sandpaper. If your door has any lacquer or coating of some kind try to sand back to the bare wood. As the look we were going for here is quite rustic, it doesn’t have to be perfect! Next give it a quick brush or wipe with a dry cloth to get rid of any dirt and dust particles and you’re ready to go.

Using a small-medium sized paint brush which allows you to get in between the individual slats, use a dry brush technique to apply a thin coat of chalk paint to the door. Dry brushing is used a lot in furniture upcycling to achieve a country chic or rustic It’s very simple with the key being to keep your brush fairly dry – dip just the tip of your brush into the paint and using light, quick brush strokes, start dry brushing your door. If you accidentally apply too much paint in a certain area, don’t fret! You can either use a cloth to remove paint straight away or we’ll pay closer attention to that spot later when sanding.

DecoArt Americana DÉCOR Chalky Finish in ‘Everlasting’

Farmhouse-Door-whitewash-chalk-paint-closeup

Give your fresh paint job time to dry (follow instructions according to the specific paint you’ve used) and then using the fine grade sanding block, give your door a quick going over to strip back and expose different areas or places that the paint went on a bit heavy. Given we used the dry brushing technique, this is just a quick step to add some more rustic charm if needed.
Work out where you want your new door handle or hardware to go and mark up with a pencil screw holes. Using a screwdriver or power drill, attach your handle with appropriate screws. I found these antique style door handles on The Home website at the start of the year and have been waiting to use them on a project!

And there you have it – one rustic farmhouse door makeover complete! Once you’ve decided on the perfect home for your new piece, dress your door with a wreath or some greenery to make it pop. I quickly put this small burlap wreath together with materials I had from Spotlight (metal wire wreath, burlap ribbon, linen rose heads). Let me know in the comments below if you’d like a DIY wreath tutorial post.