The scale is better with a single door, IMO. And the use of a vertical proportion is more consistent.

The double door scheme introduces a square into what is otherwise vertical fenestration elements.

Good luck on your project.

Yay! You said it exactly, virgilcarter! That is what DH & I were thinking last night. When I first said I want to switch from 2 to 1, he said, "No way." Then when he saw it, he totally agreed with what you said & thought it looked more proportional. Thank you!

I like the double front door better and think it looks better. Not to mention, being able to open both doors to bring in/out furniture, christmas trees is a huge bonus.

I agree with caben. We have a single 42" door and have had no issues bringing any type of furniture in. Double doors are a PITA. You rarely open both doors and usually the one door is pretty narrow.

Thank you the balls, caben, & pps7!

I will look at the 42"x96" single door. I have an e-mail out to our architect to get his thoughts, too. The 42" width will accommodate all our furnishings just fine.

I do agree w/the confusion re. 2 doors. We actually had this discussion in one of our meetings with the GC & architect. I think there should be a US standard for which door to use to avoid this confusion! :-)

The reason I think it's not a standard is that which one is operable depends on the layout of rooms behind it, i.e. which direction of swing is most convenient to access. Same reason there isn't a single swing direction for single doors. I do agree it'd be more convenient if it were always the same though!

We have double doors and I have actually had babysitters that end up not being able to figure out how to close and lock the doors after pizza delivery, even though I told them to only open the right hand door.

Yes... strange but true.

The double doors can be be very confusing.

We have double doors but they are not confusing as we have a handle on one side only and the other door is locked in place with pins that push in to the trim above and the floor below.

IAC, in your situation, I like the single front door much better...I agree with VC.

Annie, I am n love! Your doors are gorgeous! You did it the smart way, for sure with the hardware!

Our foyer ceiling will be a cove ceiling. Your doors would look perfect. Are the wood or fiberglass?

They are mahogany...ordered them off the internet. But they are on the north side and protected from the weather by the porch.

But keep in mind that the exterior of your building is all square whereas ours has that "broken arch" theme running through it so it matches the shape over the front porch which has a barrel vaulted ceiling, the shape of the garage doors and the shape of the dormer windows. You may be better off with something more square to match your building style.

Annie, I know we cannot do that style. But I do love it - love the double doors & curve! They go perfectly with your home!

We will consider wood. The house is in Florida, about 5 miles from the ocean. The house faces south, so I am not concerned about the sun beating on the doors. We went to the door lumberyard yesterday, & they seemed to think a wood door would work fine at our location & would not need maintenance too often, as long as it was painted/stained & sealed properly.

DH is really struggling with glass & privacy. I don't want a frosted glass & he wants some glass but total privacy. The house will be set pretty far back on the lot, so I am not worried about privacy too much. I am one that could walk naked down the street with no issues, but he wouldn't walk around the house in boxers if there was non-privacy glass in the front.

I played in PS again. Any thoughts on any of these door styles? The first one has some curves in the moulding, so that could introduce the cove ceiling element from the foyer. My favorite is #2, but that offers the least amount of privacy for DH. #3 might be a compromise for DH. #4 is too Craftsmen, but that is what he was originally drawn to. I don't think it looks right with our French/English style.

This post was edited by wishiwasinoz on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 5:28

I prefer door #2! It looks like it fits with the style of your home.

Door #2! Beautiful homes! :)

I agree: Door #2. It matches with your windows.

Door 2.
You don't need to do clear glass or "privacy" glass to get privacy. If you get a glass with lots of small bevels and whatnot, it will allow lots of light, but you won't be able to see out from 2 inches away let alone someone standing a foot or 2 from the door on the outside...

There are options.

DH is open to the clear glass! Woo hoo! He said let's try the clear glass & if he doesn't like it, we can consider a privacy film with a peep hole.

One more question...
We are doing a wide plank white oak in a lighter greyish brown finish. There will be no dark wood in the house (kitchen will be white). Do we do a similar finish on the front door & garage doors or should we go with a darker front door?

Thank you all, again!

We are building a putting one large door in! I was very undecided on what to do two. We are going with the one large door. I am having trouble finding ones to look at. Where did everyone find there big front doors?

At the "big front door store" of course. What type of door are you looking (ie: material, wood, fiberglass, metal) for?