The entry had good bones: a brick facade, a white hood on carved brackets, and a pair of brass lanterns. The doors had seen better days. The black stock double doors were scuffed and chipped, with the finish worn through on the lower panels. Dented brass kick plates had tarnished across the bottom rails, and two polished brass handlesets sat side by side at the center. Small half-moon lites at the top of each leaf let in almost no light. The pair also split the opening into two narrow leaves, so daily comings and goings squeezed through a single 32" door.
Project Story
The thinking behind the work
The Starting Point
The Thinking
The opening was wide enough for a better arrangement: one generous door flanked by glass. A single 3'-4" door gives everyday entry a real width, where the old active leaf offered only 32". Sidelights on either side bring in far more daylight than the old half-moon lites ever did. The door itself stays solid and private, with a traditional five-panel layout: two tall panels over a horizontal lock-rail panel, over two short ones. That's a classic design that suits the brick and the bracketed hood. The sidelights continue the door's lines, with their glass ending right where the door's upper panels do, so the three pieces read as one composition.
The Execution
The unit is built in solid mahogany, 1¾" thick, with mortise-and-tenon joinery. It's stained a rich reddish-brown and sealed with an exterior clear topcoat that brings out the cathedral figure in the panels. The door has five raised panels, with the horizontal center panel set at lock height. Each sidelight carries a tall clear insulated lite above a single raised panel. The door, sidelights, mullions, and frame are built as one mahogany assembly that fills the full opening, with new dark bronze thresholds beneath.
The Result
The entry now has one clear focal point. The deep stain warms the red brick and reads rich against the white hood and brackets. The sidelights fill the foyer with light the old doors never let in. The single black handleset keeps the face of the door clean, and the family finally has a front door that's easy to use every day. The house went from worn and cluttered to settled and welcoming in a single December day.
Specification
Unit Size
6'-1" × 7'-1"
Panel Thickness
1¾"
Joinery
Mortise-and-tenon, no mechanical fasteners.
Glass
Clear insulated glass, one tall lite per sidelight; door solid
Finish System
Multi-coat stain with exterior clear topcoat
Hardware
Full-plate matte black handleset with thumb latch and keyed deadbolt
Installed By
Scobis
Common Questions
Why replace double doors with a single door and sidelights?
With a pair of doors in an opening this size, each leaf is narrow, and everyday traffic squeezes through just one of them. A single wide door makes daily entry easier, and the sidelights use the rest of the width for light instead of a second door that rarely opens.
Why keep the door solid and put the glass in the sidelights?
A solid door keeps the foyer private from the front walk, and the sidelights deliver the daylight. The split gives the entry both, and it lets the five-panel design show at full strength without glass interrupting it.
Why black hardware on a stained mahogany door?
Matte black reads crisp and modern against the warm stain, and a single handleset keeps the door's face clean. It replaced two polished brass sets that had crowded the center of the old doors.
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