I think the answer to your question is really dependent on the space and how ornate the carvings will be. I've never seen carved by pass doors before, but when it comes to by pass doors in general, I'd want them to blend in and not draw attention to them. I'd leave them plain in style and painted to match my trim, but that's just me.

If you have a setting that carved doors would work with and you want to draw attention to them, used the carved but I would stain them not paint them.

One thing to consider also is how big the space is. I can't say for sure, but just have a feeling that stained carved doors would make the space look smaller.

Well the point to having carved sliding doors was to draw attention and make a statement as soon as front door was open to someone. the hallway width is 42 inches by 95 inces and the sliding doors would take up about 90 inches. I was planning on having the middle door slightly in front of 2 side doors acting as the focal point-maybe w the mid panel being more decorated and intricately carved than the two side panels.i was thing wood tones would give the feeling of warmth cause I am a little bored w all white. The paint color for the rest of the room probably an eggshell shade or light yellow or beige.More opinions please!!

can you post a sample of the doors your thinking of or something similar? I agree wood tones would definately make it more warm. Why not make a statement with color? Instead of going so light, add some punch with a color from your entry rug or something. In my entry, we used Behr Grass Cloth green and it's wonderful. (less expensive too) :c)

this the website with the carved doors-the one posted is an exterior door-i will have the two doors pictured carved so the latches aren't there and use it as one panel for my middle slidind door-the two other doors on sides will be recessed the depth of the existing front panel so the can all move one way or another to access the closet. What do u think?http://www.madisondoorsinc.com/products/details.asp?id=Carv01

Well, my tastes tend to be much more simple and less ornate so for me, while beautiful, I think they would be too much but I'm saying that with very little information about your home and how those doors would tie in with the rest of it.

Also, since participating in this forum I've come to learn that there can be a big difference in design styles depending on where you live. I'd hate to discourage you just because the design styles where you live are different from my area, know what I mean?

Magnaverde, one of the board pros is also in NYC. I ALWAYS love reading his posts, they're fun, thought provoking and helpful. I wish you could get some feedback from him because I believe it would be really helpful to you. Let's hope he sees your post and responds. If not, maybe you can put a shout out for him.

In any case, here is the picture of the doors just in case others want to offer some feedback too. :c)

Well, I would have them stained if it works into your concept (which leads towards the exotic to me?).
As far as the beige and white walls---why? If you do a search for nyc apartments, you'll find a plethora of deep colored apartments that feel cozy despite the lack of natural light. I wouldn't do a white or beige with those doors because I'm not sure I would like the contrast. They're asking for a deep red or perhaps a medium gray, even if it were just painted in the entry it would work if you ask me.

can u shout out to magnaverde for me-i am not that technical-lol-and tell him to respond and not laugh at my ideas!

Oh, sorry - I don't know him personally, what I mean by shout out is to just start a new thread to his attention like "Maganaverde or other pros can I get your opinion please" and repost your question in that thread.

I love the idea of the carved wood doors as a focal point against white walls. I could see them painted the same color as the walls also, as the texture of the carving would still be apparent. It sort of depends on the layout of the apartment and what other furnishings you have along with it. Those carved doors in a small apartment with simple elements throughout the space would look great.

Of course you could go for the 'layering concept' line in the (in)famous "pug apartment".

What is your overall vision for the entire place?

I think your idea of the carved doors in the entry way is fantastic! They will be a wonderful focal point.

They have an oriental feel to them, IMHO.

I think whether you paint or stain depends on what is happening in the rest of your apartment. I could see them stained to give a more natural organic feel to the place, I can also imagine them painted in something like a deep red, or a green, or really anything. In a gloss.

What I would not do is paint them the same color as you are painting the walls in the rest of the apartment. I would want them to stand out.

I think the doors are lovely, but I am sure that they are really going to be appreciated in that space. Once someone comes in the door and steps into the space, they are going to be very close to the doors themselves - and so I am not sure they will get the real impact that they might if the doors were at the end of a long entry, for example. I am just thinking that the money might be better spent on items that would really give you the bang for the buck that you are spending.

If it were me, I might instead get doors that have recessed panels, and inset those panels with an interesting wallpaper such as grasscloth, or an exotic pattern that picks up on your decor style, or something like bamboo or woven wood placemats mounted on the doors (allowing for adequate clearance, of course).

If you really love the doors, could you use them in your bedroom instead?

I am almost sure Magangverde lives in Chicago, not that it matters. Just start a new thread, he pops in here from time to time, and recently he has been in here.

You may also want to ask Pal as well, she is an interior decorator on here too.

There is another decorator on here from Brokyln that is fabulous and I don't remember her name. I know Brokyln is spelled wrong.

....Jane

I would be interested in seeing the exterior of your apartment and I'm guessing Magnaverde would too.

Oh! I thought he lived in NYC, thanks for clarifying Jane, good to know.

Pal is a great resource too, HE is in here all the time too. (Jane, did you miss that thread where Pal posted a pic of a bathroom and his reflection was in the mirror? We were all surprised! ha!)

Oh my gosh, Pal is a man? Good grief you could knock me down with a feather.

.....Jane

I want to check above.

yeah...everyone was super surprised. LOL

Hi Uesmayor.

OK, let's back up, here. Yes, those are interesting doors, but in a room only 42 inches wide, they'll be totally wasted. I know, because in my old apartment, I used to have a 48-inch hallway, and it didn't matter what I had in there--Rococo Revival hall tree, ornamental fragments of demolished buildings, 19th century engravings in period frames--no one saw any of it because the room was nothing more than a glorified tunnel, to be walked through in two seconds. In my new apartment, I have a whole extra foot of width, but it still doesn't matter. Sure, I have stuff on those side walls, but only because I needed the wall space to hang it, not because anybody will ever notice any of it.

Unfortunately, in rooms the size & shape of our hallways, all that matters is whatever you see at the far end--not the sides--of your hall. So, if there's a wall there (rather than a another doorway) and you're determined to use this panel--that is, one panel--what I'd do is paint it the buttercream you mention, glaze it with a neutral color, attach it to that end wall & pinspot it from above with a narrow-beam light to throw strong shadows on the carving. Meanwile, while you wait for it to arrive, give your hallway--plain sliding doors & all--a few coats of high-gloss enamel in the darkest value of whatever other color you're using in the rest of your apartment. Maybe black, maybe ultramarine blue, maybe eggplant, maybe espresso brown. All that matters is that it's dark, it's fairly neutral & it's shiny.

Won't the dark color make your hall look even smaller than it already is? Maybe, but that doesn't matter, because all that a pale color will do is make obvious how small the room is, anyway. Let's face it, a 42-inch room will never look any bigger than it is, no matter how light you paint it, so you might as well go for drama. That, at least is achievable.

Here's the thing: we big-city, small-apartment dwellers have a whole different set of problems to contend with than most of the people on this board, so it's important to keep focused on solutions that will work for us and not get distracted by "solutions" that don't apply to our givens. What looks great in a marble-floored entry in expansive new home in the suburbs or in a cozy, window-seated vestibule in a Victorian farmhouse seldom looks equally good in our typically dark, cramped spaces. That's probably not what you wanted to hear, but trying to force a style that works in one place onto a place of a totally different character is just a waste of time & money. And I don't know about you, but I don't have enough of either one to throw away.

Anyway, if the layout of your place means those carved panels won't work in your hallway, why not use them someplace else where they'll be better appreciated?

Regards,
Magnaverde.

Magnaverde Rule No. 16: Decorate for the life you really have, not the life you wish you had.

Thanks Magnaverde!! very good advice. Just one thing I didn't uderstand-say I were to choose a light pewter grey for wall paint-are you saying amake the by pass doors a dark shade of like grey or even darker?

I would make your entry's plain doors the same color as the walls that surround them. And, if your entry is a separate volume from the other rooms--as mine is--I would make it very dark, the better to contrast with the lighter & larger area beyond it.

There is no reason to use a contrasting paint color to turn a sliding-door closet closet into a feature. Save your emphasis for something that deserves it.
M.

I just thought of something I think I would be concerned with if I were you---What if people thought it was the exit and opened it to leave all the time? Maybe it's counter intuitive to have these doors....