Perhaps these old doors once provided access to horse-drawn carriages. Nowadays they’re inactive. Time has taken a toll. A row of raised panels has been replaced with flat-panel substitutes. The astragal trim, which would have covered the vertical intersection between the joining door leaves, is missing. The hinges appear unhinged. Nonetheless, they’re handsome doors.

Natural light enters the narrow, glass panes that are in careful proportion with the wood panels. View of the interior is purposefully limited since this would originally have been a storage space. The hefty, field stone, exterior wall with deeply raked joints and arched top greatly contributes to the appeal. The warm toned stone nearly complements the forest green doors, in much the same way that cedar shingles would often offset dark green trim when the Shingle style had its heyday.

There’s plenty here to inspire the design of oversized doors today -- for a garage, carriage house, or creative outbuilding. Attention to detail never goes out of favor.

by Katie Hutchison for the House Enthusiast