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Give doors easy makeover

Matt Fox, Scripps Howard News Service

Published February 3, 2007 at midnight

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Painting a paneled door will spruce up your home.

You'll need the following:

Painter's blue tape

120 grit sandpaper

Cardboard or a plastic drop cloth

2-inch sash brush

4-inch roller

Paint tray or bucket with screen

Latex paint (semi-gloss or glossy)

• Wedge the door open with a rolled-up newspaper. To protect your floor from paint spills, use newspaper under the door.

• To prep a door for painting, begin by lightly sanding the surface with 120 grit sandpaper.

• Using a mild detergent and water, wipe down the door. Then wipe it with a clean, damp cloth and allow the door to dry.

• Next, remove handles and locks, or protect them with painter's blue tape.

• Start painting with the sash brush on the panel moldings and recesses, making sure not to get any paint on the frame. If you do, wipe it off with a damp rag.

• Next, paint the flat panel front with the roller. Follow immediately with the sash brush, laying off the surface vertically to get a professional brush stroke. Continue until all the panels on the door are complete.

• Paint the frame's central vertical sections (also called stiles), moving from the top of the door to the bottom. After rolling paint on the central stiles, lay them off immediately with the sash brush. Then address any paint that exceeds the top and bottom edges by laying it off in the appropriate horizontal direction.

• The horizontal frame sections, or rails, come next, followed by the outer stiles. Continue with the same technique used when painting the stiles.

• Finally, paint the latch edge.

Matt Fox and his co-host, Shari Hiller, appear on HGTV.