Two frosted glass pocket doors.
Ron

I agree with Ron, glazed pocket doors. That's exactly what we did to divide the rooms, however, I had a 6" margin of clear glass around the edge so I could peak into the room without invading privacy. We were only able to find doors to accomodate a 6' opening. It has worked out great.

Pocket doors sound great but they are expensive and will require plastering and matching texture again. Also... there's that big old piano that wants to live in front of them.

I do understand the appeal of the more upscale glass however.

Hmmm.....

are you my wife? this layout sounds identical to ours, with the exception of our door to the kitchen is 36"!

our plan is to frame inside the LR/DR opening and just sheetrock in. if we ever decide to open it back up, tear down teh new sheetrock, bust out the frame, and trim out the original opening.

if you want you can even put some glass block or a frosted pane of glass inthe wall looking back into the LR.

honestly framing it and sheetrocking would be cheaper and sturdier than trying to buy 3 doors, attach them together, bead board them, and make them work.

another option, simply buy a screen. like the ones they use at fashion shows, so the girls can change behind quickly. set it up inthe opening and put your piano infront of it in the LR. don't like it, move it in just a minute.

David... ha ha! Not your wife, no.

I know walling it up the "right" way is the p.c. thing to do. I've thought about maybe framing it and then just using beadboard paneling across the whole wall instead of messing with the plaster. I have a cottage-y style, so the beadboard would probably blend okay, especially if painted to match the other walls. Just looking for a quick, easy, non-permanent fix to satisfy my whims!

Thanks for your input... are you making an office too?

Curtains, drapes, vertical blinds.

yep, that is the long term plan. our house has a formal LR, formal DR, den, and a breakfast room. the breakfast room is right off the kitchen and large enough to easily fit our table. so our plan is to close off the formal DR and use it as an office/excercise room. at the same time we do this we are going to move the wall between the DR/kitchen back a couple feet to enlarge the kitchen.

as far as framing it in, you are talking about 8 2x4's max if you use 24" spacing. remember, this is not carrying any load tha tis onthe header of the existing doorway. the 2x4's will cost you less than 3 doors, around here they are under 5.00 each, some places as low as 1.50 each. then simply cover them with what ever you desire, beadboard, sheetrock, whatever. you can put a couple of cheap sheets of plywood or particle board up to nail/glue the BB to. total cost, not counting the beadboard, would be under 60.00.

by doing it this way, you could remove it later in under an hour. then you simply seal the nail holes with caulk and repaint the area. your suggested way would require more work to install, cost mroe, and still the removal later would take the same effort.

what about mounting a couple of sliding doors on the outside? I have seen this done with barn type doors in several magazines. The track and hardware are mounted above the opening. With your cottage style, I think this could fit in nicely.

David... your plan sounds so much like mine. Our "L" shaped kitchen, open to the family room, has more space for a table than the dining room. I can actually fit TWO tables in it if I choose.

The 2x4 thing is making sense to me... I thought of it before, but didn't consider it to be easily removed until I read your description. I suppose you are right.

Dogridge... the sliding door thing sounds interesting... do you have any ideas where to get them (or the parts to create one)? Any pics or links of examples?

Thanks for the advice!

Lis

The picture in the link below isn't the prettiest barn door I've seen in my life, but it does explain it well. (That's the type of system that was suggested). Done in sogi (I don't know the spelling for that) screen or a frosted glass mullioned door, I think it would suit the purpose and look nice.

It's a MUCH better idea than walling off the room. You can leave them closed most of the time, or open, your choice, but when it comes time to resale, you'll want to either remove them or open them, and just have a tiny bit of wall repair to do. I for one, would never buy a house without a formal dining room, and that subject has been debated to death here :) but the general feeling is that it isn't the best idea on a permanent basis, but while you live there :) Go for it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Barn door installation

Wow, igloochic, that's a neat idea... but it's pretty expensive. I only have 40" of room outside the doorway... will it open enough?

I know not everyone likes the room closed off... which is why I want to make it reversible if possible. I suppose I should also say that I have a fairly large "L" shaped kitchen which is open to a 15'x19' family room, so the house does have open space still. Of course, closing off the DR/LR will mean the kids no longer have their "race track" in which to run circles...and circles...and circles...and circles... :)

Here's another question... does walling up the wall between the LR/DR necessarily mean to a buyer that there is no formal DR? The room is still the same size and still has a doorway to the kitchen. There is only one window, but it is a fairly large one in a bump out with a lovely view. Thoughts?

French doors will give you the option of a door between the DR and LR, add to the value of your house. A lace curtain over the glass is the traditional way to cover them for privacy.

If you wall in the space, please put your 2x4's 16" oc. It will take only a couple more and you will need the extra studs for nailing - sheet rock and trim are designed to be nailed every 16". If you are going to the effort of building a wall, do it right.

Many people close in and rename their dining rooms. It's a fine idea to use the space you have to suit your family. But a house that 'goes around' works better - think of small children chasing each other through a house, happy for hours, or a party where people don't get caught in a dead end room but can circulate easily. So even if you close the door most of the time, I would suggest that you leave one, even if it is only a single French door.

Yes, if you can only get to the DR through the kitchen, it is not a formal DR.
When you have a dinner party and wish to entertain in the LR, you then set the table with your favorite china and silver, etc., and welcome people into your dining room formally - in Victorian days the gentlemen would have offered their arms to the ladies and escorted them into the dining room!
However, if you do not entertain like that and do not intend to move in the next 5 years, do what you want! Someone else can change it back.

jegr.... good points and something to think about. My sister (an interior designer) told me the same thing this morning about no entrance other than from kitchen = no formal dining room. Makes sense I suppose. I do not entertain formally... mostly family who are happy to eat in my big kitchen where the men can still see whatever football game happens to be on. But I do know that plenty of other folks do still value the traditional DR.

I thought about the opening issue. My guess is that when the doors are open, there would still be some overlap of the cased opening. However, I think the passage would still be at least 30-36 " I was thinking you could do 2 doors that meet in the middle. The hardware can be found at most agricultural supply companies, or do a web search for barn door hardware/ hangers. For the doors, how about using 2 pieces of plywood with a beadboard veneer glued/nailed on either side. Add some paint and a bit of trim to hide the edges and your set.

oruboris...

I had actually stumbled upon those pics of the "secret passage" bookcases before and I think those are soooo cool! Maybe I should rethink them... That would be pretty neat!

Here's a link:

Here is a link that might be useful: door- bookcase/furniture

How about using French doors and then putting white drapes on the glass panels? I guess, if you decide to sell, just take away the drapes/panels so it becomes open again.

By panels I mean those translucent, voile-types through which you can see shadows but no clear view.