January 26, 2006
Closet Doors with Personality
It's hard to get excited about closet doors, or at least it is if they are just blah strips of hollow wood. There's no rule that says you have to stick with the closet doors that came with your house though. This door is from DIY Shutters and has a hand-printed fabric panel to add personality. Flowers, trees, and numerous patterns are available with several different styles of wooden frames. The company also offers different styles of solid wood doors. Prices start at just over $100 and will vary depending on the size door you need.
Most of the doorknobs you see in today's homes are so... boring. In ye olden days, we had glass knobs, hand-painted porcelain knobs, decorated brass knobs--basically lots of interesting designs gracing homes. Well, there's no reason to settle for ho hum. If you'd like to spruce up your doors a bit, check out Fabulous Knobs, a company that makes designer doorknobs like these glass knobs made to look like blue marble. Their prices start at about $50, and the doorknobs are sure to bring interest to your entrances and exits.
I love big windows that allow in lots of natural light and also have a bit of personality. The trouble is it can be hard finding treatments to fit windows that deviate from the standard rectangle. If you've got arched windows, and you're trying to figure out how to decorate them, check out Adjust-a-View's movable arches. Their blinds are designed for those half-circle openings, and the left and right sides open and close independently of each other, so you can adjust the amount of light you want to let in. When the blinds are completely retracted, it doesn't look like they're there at all. The company also has blinds suitable for quarter-circle windows.
Insulated window shades don't sound as exciting as designer window treatments, but with rising gas and oil prices, maybe we should be thinking more about those niggling little things like making the home energy efficient, eh? Any window treatmeans (curtains, blinds, etc.) can help prevent heat loss, but honeycomb shades are the ones recommended for maximum insulation. This is because the honeycombs capture air, which in itself provides an insulating property. Hunger Douglas's triple-honeycomb shades claim R-values as high as 4.8. According to an article in a recent issue of 
, they also have high sound-absorption ratings. Colors are almost limitless and the insulated shades are available in varying degrees of opaqueness, which provide different amounts of protection from the sun's UV rays. For the Hunger Douglas window shades (the Duette honeycomb ones), prices start at $155.
Whether you're selling your home soon or just looking for a way to add curb appeal, the front door is a good place to start. Rocky Mountain Hardware offers these ornamental hinge straps, which can be attached to your existing hinges, to embellish an otherwise drab door. The silicon bronze straps are available in 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, and 37 inch lengths to fit even the most dramatic (read: gargantuan) doors. The price is $105.25 per hinge strap.
Remember when we only saw stuff like this in the movies? This keypad door lock is made for residential use. It replaces your existing key-using door lock with a number pad, so all you have to do is remember your secret code. Just what we need, another password to remember, right? Personally, I'm waiting for the retina-scan door lock. They have it on Star Trek so it must be in the works. In the mean time, I guess this will do if you're tired of locking yourself out of the house.
Remember the last time you went into the house carrying heaping bags of groceries? That knob was a pain to open, wasn't it? That's why many homeowners are switching to door levers. (Well, not so much because of the grocery-carrying issue as because seniors and aging baby boomers find levers much easier to open than knobs. Hey, give the young-uns another ten years to develop Carpal Tunnel Syndrome from hacking at the keyboard all day, and they'll be looking for easy-to-open doors too). If you've got someone in your home who has limited hand mobility, replace those knobs. And don't think you're stuck with the limited supply of hardware at your local home improvement store. Online suppliers like Baldwin Hardware offer thousands of door levers, knobs, locks and more to browse through. This satin black, Arts & Crafts style lever has an elegant look that will complement many front entrances.
No, secret doors and passages for houses aren't just for mystery novels. If a door disguised as a book case or a wine rack sounds fun, you can visit the appropriately named Hidden Door Company. Specializing in "doors in disguise," the company's doors are outfitted with wine racks, cabinets, or bookshelves in order to pass as built-ins. But as you'd expect, they swing open to reveal the secret doorway behind. The doors are available in standard and custom sizes and can be ordered in numerous wood species such as cherry, maple, and oak. The prices for the hidden doors range from $1,288 to over $6,000 for three-piece units. Some of the customization options include voice activation ("open sesame...") and remote control.
Glass blocks are a popular choice for privacy windows in bathrooms since they allow in light but make it hard for people to see inside. In warmer climates, windows can really heat up the house though. To combat that, Hy-Lite has introduced Solar Block Plus, glass blocks with a smoky gray tint that is designed to prevent solar heat gain. The blocks can be incorporated into operable and non-operable windows, and they meet Energy Star requirements for the US southern zone.
Marvin's Venting Picture Window is a new product that gives you unobstructed views as well as cross ventilation. A sash projects outward to reveal a screened opening to help vent stale air, reduce condensation, and keep insects out. The hidden window screen is made from fiberglass-wrapped reticulated foam designed to resist mold and mildew as well as UV rays. Because the screen surrounds the perimeter of the window instead of laying on top of the window, it allows air circulation without impeding the view. From the outside, the window appears closed at all times, so homeowners can feel secure even if they leave the windows open at night.
You've probably heard of radiant heat used in floors, but how about heated windows? The IQ Glass heating system is a double-pane glass unit with three components: an outer pane sporting an invisible coating to reflect heat in the summer and block cold in the winter, krypton (a nontoxic insulating gas) between the planes, and a thin coat of metal oxide on the inside window pane. An electrical current runs through the metal oxide, creating a resistance that produces radiant heat. According to the manufacturer, the IQ window system uses up to 35% less energy than other heating systems. 
These stained-glass domes from California-based Door Decors are handcrafted and come in a variety of styles and colors. Shown here is The Colonial Dome; it boasts more than 1600 pieces of hand-cut glass. You can choose your color options. The company offers 8 and 10-foot diameter domes as well as a 12 foot elongated size. Other styles they offer are Turn of the Century, Victorian, and Islam.