Paint a High-Gloss Front Door

Take a stroll down a London street and the glint of a front-door paint job is bound to catch your eye.You can spot copycats on rows of brownstones in the streets of New York's West Village and othercities stateside. This time-tested look isn't limited to urbanites. A high-gloss front door will boostyour curb appeal, no matter what ZIP code you're in.

We turned to United Kingdom-based paint and wallpaper brand Farrow Ball for details on copyingthe covetable look. Charlotte Cosby, the company's head of creative, clued us in on why the style ispopular. "Full-gloss doors in classic colors like Pitch Black, Rectory Red, and Hague Blue aresynonymous with London's Victorian town houses," she says. "These high-shine doors have a smart,elegant feel that captures London style." Follow her steps for a water-based high-gloss paint job fora project you can complete on this side of the pond:

Step 1

Cosby says that an essential starter is sanding back any old paint so that you have a clean, smoothsurface. She recommends using fine- or medium-grade sandpaper.

Step 2

Use a damp cloth to remove any sanding residue.

Step 3

Coat your door in a primer for a foundation to make your glossy paint job pop. Cosby recommendsFarrow Ball's Exterior Wood Primer Undercoat.

Step 4

With a spray gun or a well-loaded 1-inch or 2-inch synthetic paintbrush,apply your chosen high-gloss paintfrom top to bottom. (Note that FarrowBall's is water-based.) Take care topaint the beads of the door panels first.Avoid overworking the paint or re-working drying paint; both can createmarks.

Find more color inspiration for astandout front door and read This OldHouse TV general contractor TomSilva's tips for removing stubborn paintfrom doors.

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