Replacing our Old Worn Door with a 100-Year-Old Front Door

This was our little year-end present to ourselves: a new front door.

On the occasion, we will do these one-off projects that may not be priority, but they bring us joy. At the end of a 10-month long, non-stop work run, we are both extremely tired. And even though we have some huge projects that we need to work on, sprucing up (pun intended), the front entrance was just the pick-me-up we needed heading into the new year.

We have wanted to work on this section for months. Luka has spent the last 6-months scrolling Facebook Marketplace like most people scroll TikTok. He was heads down deep in the search for the perfect doors: and we were being quite selective. We had clear parameters: real wood, large windows, modern lock and aged around 100-years. We fielded many candidates. But in a country as old as Slovenia, 100-year old doors with modern locks are hard to come by.

It was nearly love at first site when we scrolled onto these doors; hand-crafted cherry wood, with real iron work and separately swinging windows. In spite of the three hour drive to Tolmin where they were located, we opted to make a weekend out of it, and head out for a camping trip/errands trip in the stunning Soča Valley. We spent Saturday and Sunday enjoying the Julian Alps, and bathing in the icy waters of Slovenia's Crown Jewel. Its a memory that we now cherish, and get to relive every time we unlock the doors for a day's work.

Installing these was no walk in the woods though.

It was Luka's first time working with a hard wood. And hard wood earns it's name. The cutting and chiseling took nearly 3 times longer than with spruce, fitting the frame work to the existing wood took nearly an hour of slight tapping, pushing, re-tapping and pushing again. It was a deceptively slow process in freezing temperatures. But we got it fitted it and snug tight.

The doors have some damage on the wood that will need to be repaired, and wood needs a good sand and a fresh stain. But we are so happy with the results, and excited to work on the other three doors come January.

We have only one thank you for this project, which was of course, Lado, who at this point, is team member number three.

Hvala lepa Ladi.

Please enjoy!

CHAPTERS

00:00 - 00:42 Introduction
00:43 - 01:07 Demolition
01:08 - 04:52 Frame Notching and Chiseling
04:53 - 06:08 Frame Installation
06:09 - 07:05 Door Installation
07:06 - 08:15 Final Reveal
08:16 - 08:49 Credits + Bloopers