My $65 Carriage Garage Doors!

I have always loved argyle!  Back in the 1980s when my favorite read was "The Official Preppy Handbook", my Dad and I designed and made this garage door design out of trim and paint.  It was SO cool.  Fast forward a few decades and it was time to go!  I always wanted the fancy carriage doors but could never afford them.  So, on a whim, I decided to try to re-create them.  Daunting?  A little but after several days of sanding, priming, mitre sawing, painting, etc..... here is my result!  I love them!  Total cost (other than my blood, sweat and tears) $65! 

It took a long time because I also was repainting the house and went through 12 sample colors to finally get it right!  From the street, you can hardly tell the "windows" are actually Rustoleum gloss black paint. 

It was bittersweet removing the trim and design from the old door.  Underneath, I found a few pencil markings of measurements from when my Dad and I designed it.  It was a little emotional to sand and prime over those.   Once that was done, this was all that was left of the original door!

Because I wanted a raised appearance to look a little more authentic, I used 4' x 8' sheets of birch underlayment and cut them for the design.  I sanded them and painted them all white.  I adhered them with liquid nails and a brad nailer.  The difficult part was doing each of the four panel individually so when the door opens and closes, the continuity is maintained.  Here is the door before the addition of the hinges and handles.  The hinges were on sale for $3.88 a pair and the handles were from Hobby Lobby for under $1 each.  They were a rust color so I simply spray painted them.