Because I’m a glutton for punishment, I took on yet another paint project (have I ever mentioned how much I HATE painting???!!!). Actually, this was one of the easier projects…but really stressful because I was convinced that I was going to mess it all up and we’d end up having to go out and buy a new $400 garage door. Painting your garage door sounds weird, but it’s actually no different than painting anything else.
BEFORE: 
AFTER:
Step 1: pop out the window inserts and hose down the door. (Note: save yourself A LOT of heartburn and do this at least a day or two before…)
Step 2: Prime the door with primer that has been tinted with the base color.
Step 3: Freak out because the primer looks awful and be convinced that you’ve just completely screwed up.
Step 4: Apply the base coat. In our case, I used the same brown color that we used on the darker accents on the house.
Step 5: Mix 4 parts glaze and 1 part DARK brown (almost black) paint and apply with a wet rag…and immediately wipe off excess with another wet rag. Repeat 4 times (waiting for each layer to dry). This gives the door some dimension and makes it look more like real wood. No pictures of this part.
Step 6: Step back and admire your new garage door! 
I'm a mom to four. A wife to one. I believe in story. I love telling you about mine and would love to hear yours. There's really no sense in wasting our suffering and not sharing in each other's joy. We're all in this together...even if it doesn't always feel like it.
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that looks SOOOOO good!! you guys did a GREAT job!
now can we see a complete before and after…before: right when you moved in and hadnt done anything to the house; after: now – all done!
did I ever tell you that once when I was in Santa Maria I thought I’d drop in on you for a visit. When I realized my cell was dead I thought I’d just drive around until I found your house since I had seen pictures from your blog … no luck I think I found your neighborhood but all the houses look pretty much the same (is that creepy?). Maybe I’ll call first next time . . .
Jacquelyn…I don’t know if creepy is the right word, but the entire reason we have been painting the exterior is to make our house stand out and be different than every other house in the neighborhood. It’ll be interesting to see what happens…a couple of neighbors have commented on how good it looks and that they might undertake their own painting projects!
i am very impressed!
It really is amazing what a little paint can do for a house. I think the flowers add a lot too! I love the look of ivy/”vine” type plants (i’m not good with actual names of plants!)growing on the outside wall of a home. I have a vision of something like that near your outside balcony. Anyway, good job!
It looks great! I think I mentioned it on a different post, but garage doors always match the house here and are never white. It was one of those things I had to get used to moving from CA.
the door looks great! you are such a go getter :)
The color of the garage door really fits the color of the house. Can you suggest what other colors fits for the house?