DIY CUSTOM DOOR MOULDING USING A CEILING MEDALLION

For my recent bedroom makeover, I knew I wanted to do something special with the doors that lead to the Master Bath.  A few years ago I painted them black, but that paint job was actually not a very good one, and I was ready to take them back to white anyway with the direction the room was headed.

With some previous experience adding moulding to our previously flat kitchen pantry doors, I knew that moulding would give these doors a much more custom look as well.  Since the armoire, door frames, and rectangular headboard were giving lots of squared off edges in the room, I really wanted to add some rounded shapes to break up all of the squares.  I envisioned running to the moulding store to pick up some curved moulding so I could do something like this, but come to find out the company that made that moulding for so many years doesn't anymore.  I may have had some options for something similar by shopping online, but of course I was down to the wire and didn't have time to wait for supplies to be sent.

So, I set off down the aisles of the hardware store to try to find some options.  I thought I might be able to find some thin trim that was flexible enough to bend into the shape I wanted, but no luck.  Then, I thought of the round ceiling medallions that I knew had an edge similar to the other trim I was using.  I thought I might just trim the edge off with an exacto knife and use just the curved edges along with the straight moulding I already had for the doors.

While considering the choices of medallions, I came across several smaller options that I hadn't seen before.  This one was one of those, and I was immediately drawn to it because it had some circular lines that I wanted, and it was just the right proportion for the width of the doors.  I brought home a few options, and ultimately decided that these from Lowe's would be best rather than trying to make something else work.

After deciding on a design for the entire door, I used spray primer on the bare wood moulding and the plastic medallions so that my brushed on paint would adhere properly.

I started by placing the medallions on the doors first.  I just placed them at the same height that the door knob was previously, even though I was moving the knob to the center of the door.  To attach them to the door, I used Gorilla Glue on the middle circular section of the medallion.  That was the greatest area that was flush against the door, and the best option for bonding well.

I love Gorilla Glue.  The instructions are easy to follow and the hold is superb.  It expands as it dries, so although I did have a bit that leaked out, I was able to chip that off with the tip of a knife.  I debated caulking around the outside edges of the medallion, but it is tight enough against the door that it really wasn't necessary.

Then, after lots of measuring, I made the necessary miter cuts on all of my straight trim to make the rectangular boxes on the top and bottom of the doors.  We have a basic miter saw similar to this one that is a lifesaver.   Trust me, with 64 cuts to make, it's a tool well worth having (I've used it many many times for light duty jobs that require a saw, as well).

For this project I also got to finally put this year's Christmas present to use.  My husband got me this air compressor with brad nailer... again, another lifesaver for this project!  It worked perfectly, wasn't too terribly loud, and really helped speed things along as I attached all of the moulding strips to the door.

After all of the moulding was attached, I filled in the nail holes, sanded well when that dried, and painted everything.  I used a color custom matched to the trim in the house in semi-gloss, and a combination of a brush and foam roller.

The crystal knobs we had (from Ross a few years ago) are stationary like dummy knobs, but they still have a post that goes all the way through the door and connects to a knob on the other side.  So, since I didn't want the inside of the doors to look strange with a knob by itself right in the middle of the door, I went ahead and did all of the trim and medallions on the inside of the doors, too.  I really like that even when the doors are open into the bedroom, the pretty details can still be seen on either side.

How about a good before and after?

This project probably took a couple of days off and on, a little over $100 for the moulding, 4 medallions, and paint, but I think the results are so worth it.  Adding moulding is really a pretty basic DIY project, I think measuring correctly is the trickiest part!  

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