How To Prime & Paint Solid Wood Doors {and a FREE Printable!!}

Don't forget to look for the free HOW TO Printable at the end!

When we made our big to do list, we talked about adding doors to our Master Bedroom. (Yes, we bought a house without doors to our bedroom). I laugh because it has been 3 months and Ty and I have gotten use to having entire conversations from the living room to our bedroom with no problem. We are excited to have some privacy when guests come, and to stop tip toeing around in the morning when one of us gets up before the other. Because of the archway, these doors needed to be custom so we contacted a contractor in our area and had him come out to measure and create a template for the doors. 6 weeks later they arrived at our home to be installed. Our next step is to paint the doors. We did a similar door painting project on an exterior door in our last house, but this one is much easier since we have a fresh slab of wood rather than a door caked in years of paint. Here is how we painted our solid wood doors (and how you can do it too!).

How To Paint Solid Wood Doors

1// Remove door from frame. Remove all door hardware including hinges. This will give you a clear surface to paint and keep your hardware paint-free!

2// Lay your doors flat! This is key in avoiding drip marks during the painting process and while the doors dry.

3// Gather your supplies. We found that a foam roller brush gives the smoothest finish on doors and cabinets.You will also need a primer made for bare wood if your doors did not come primed. We chose Valspar bare wood. You will also need a foam sander block. This is essential for sanding between coats of primer. Depending on the finish of your doors you will need fine or a moderate grit sanding block. We bought both just in case. These are great for other sanding projects around the house too. Lastly, you will need a tack cloth to clean off the sanding debris, and your choice of paint for the door. 

4// Time to prime. Our doors were sanded well and smooth from the beginning so we did not sand prior to our first coat of primer. If your doors are uneven or have layers of paint, you will want to thoroughly sand them prior to priming. Using our foam roller we applied one coat of primer to each door and allowed it to dry for 2 hours  per the directions on the primer can.

5// Now that the primer is dried, its time to sand. We lightly sanded each door until the surface was smooth. Using a tack cloth, we then wiped the door of all sanding debris. This part is essential to keeping debris out of your paint and off of your roller.

6// (Optional) Depending on how well your primer went on and how porous your wood surface is, you may or may not want to coat with a second layer of primer. If so, repeat steps #4 & #5. We opted to move forward with painting at this point rather than a second coat of primer.

7// With the surface clean and dry, its time to paint. We really like Sherwin Williams ProClassic paint for trim and doors in our last house, so we went with it again. We also chose a semi-gloss finish in a custom white for the door. Using our foam rollers again, we rolled one coat of paint on to the door surface and allowed it to dry for 45 minutes.

8// Repeat step #7 until you have achieved an even coat throughout. We did three coats of paint total.

9// Once paint is completely dry, flip the doors and repeat steps 4-8.

10// Rehang newly painted doors. Replace hardware and hinges. Enjoy your newly painted wood doors!  (Before & After of our newly finished doors coming soon!)

Enjoy this FREE Printable: