Maintain your cabin's rustic feel with appropriately styled closet doors.
A cabin can be an excellent getaway, but because cabins are generally smaller than a home, space is at a premium. Whether your closet is a walk-in, single-door unit, or an open wall closet with double doors, selecting doors for space efficiency may be of concern. Choose doors that fit in with the cabin's decor, whether it is rustic, weathered wood or glossy cedar. Does this Spark an idea?
Rustic-Style Doors
Rustic-style doors are easy to make yourself, as you can simply use old planks of wood that match the finish of your cabin and cut them to the height of the door. Cut enough planks for the width of your door, as well, then attach a horizontal strip of the same wood about 8 to 12 inches down from the top. Add another strip the same distance from the bottom. Add rustic-style hardware, such as large iron hinges and latches, and your door is done. Use this style for standard swinging doors, or create a sliding panel door with hanging hardware and a track that allows the door to slide along the wall to one side of the closet doorway. Sliding panels work for double-door closets, too; just make sure the flat sides of the door (without the horizontal bar) face away from each other, or use a rustic iron strip in place of the horizontal wood bar.
Bifold Doors
If swinging door space is a concern for your cabin closet, bifold doors work for both single and double door closet entries. The bifold design has a hinge in the middle along the vertical line of each door panel, so when you open it, the door folds in half and slides off to the side. Many bifold doors are available with slatted panels, allowing airflow that may be helpful for preventing mildew if your cabin is in a damp climate.
Wing Doors
If you have an odd-sized doorway for your cabin closet that is larger than a single door, but not big enough for double doors, consider installing a wing door. More like a section of swinging wall than a door, wing doors pivot on a point at the top and bottom of the door that is offset from the door frame, rather than swinging open on a hinge from one side. For example, if your doorway is 40 inches wide, your 40-inch wing door might swing open by pivoting on a point one foot in from one side of the door. When you open the wing door, 12 inches of the door panel swing into the closet, while 28 inches swing outward, leaving open space on both sides of the door panel. You can step in through the larger space, or simply reach in and grab something through the smaller space. One benefit of these doors is that you can design them to look like a part of the wall, creating a secret closet for your cabin. They also prevent you from needing enough space for an oversized door to swing all the way open.
Tags: your cabin, door panel, wing door, bifold doors, cabin closet, door enough
