The Doors

Anyone who knows me knows I love doors. Not of the Jim Morrisson brand, but of the hanging on hinges kind. I don't really know when or how the love came about, but I know that I really began photographing them in earnest in Turkey, and by the time I'd moved to France it was full-blown. As I've moved into my own home, I have begun playing around with the idea of refurbishing old doors as a means of decorating and furnishing my home. Pinterest has really helped with that...

So a few months ago, I was walking along the avenue du Prado in Marseille, and came upon a dumpster diving TREASURE. Once a month (or more often, as Marseille goes...), people can put out big pieces of furniture on the curb for the trashmen to pick up (if they're not striking). So it's not uncommon to see dressers, desks, baby furniture, couches, etc., near dumpsters. This particular day, I found a wardrobe (or chiffarobe, as it's called in To Kill a Mockingbird, and I like that word so much better), taken apart and lying disassembled on the side of the road. Not near a dumpster, but near a tree. I would have walked on by not even noticing if it had not been for the wardrobe doors. A bit of beautifully carved wood caught my eye, and I flipped the wood over to get a full look.

Oh my. Beautiful. And except for a few tragic Hello Kitty stickers and temporary tattoos, the doors seemed in fairly good condition.

I called the Artist, who lived nearby, and asked her to come take a look. As we inspected them, several women lingered, waiting to see if I would take the doors. Take them I did! The Artist and I laughed as we carried these doors down the big main avenue through Marseille, but I was thrilled with my find.

Back at my house, I got them cleaned up and sanded, all the while dreaming about how I would paint them. The Artist sketched the doors for me, which I then photocopied to have a gazillion copies of, and colored each one different ways until I'd decided how to paint them. Blue and grey? Blue, grey, and wood? Only blue? Only grey? How much wood to leave unpainted? Everyone agreed that the carved flowers ought to remain unpainted. They're so beautiful on their own...and they'd be too hard for a novice like me to paint!
The Artist and I headed to the local version of Lowe's, and she talked me through buying paintbrushes and paint. I finally decided on the color 'Stormy Sky,' which I thought looked like a grey-blue...more on the grey side. Once painted, it appears to be more on the blue side. Below you can see the carved flowers that make my heart soar they're so pretty!Here is the final product...two doors on each side of my bed to greet me each time I walk in the room. Perhaps eventually I'll get another door to hang as the headboard of my bed.
Thanks, Artist, for all your help, instruction, and encouragement along the way! Yay for doors in my home!