11

We are renovating our house and we have a door in my office that is going to conceal a small bar. It's supposed to be hidden so we are planning on wallpapering over the door and using a push-to-open latch.

It's modeled after this design:

enter image description here

Anyway, the door is installed but the contractor is saying that we need to have door trim around it. Obviously having trim around it is going to make it pretty obvious that there is a door there, kind of spoiling the effect. He said we could wallpaper over the trim but that seems a bit odd too. Is there no way to seal up the gaps around the door with putty or joint compound or something to make it flush enough with the wall so that we can wallpaper over it?

Here is what the door currently looks like. Note that it was not supposed to have a hole for a knob so we are going to have that filled in.

enter image description here

Fredric Shope
  • 4,955
  • 4
  • 22
  • 35
d512
  • 641
  • 2
  • 9
  • 21

4 Answers4

27

You can use a flat tear-away bead to provide a clean finish to the drywall edge around the door.

Before mud: enter image description here

After mud: enter image description here

Finished: enter image description here

pdd
  • 6,609
  • 17
  • 28
5

starting with, you need new hidden hinges. Then you can fill the gaps between the door frame and the stucco wall.

To cover the gap and make the mud stick, use stucco mesh. It is slightly adhesive on one side so it will stay in place while you work.

It looks like this

mesh

Finally the great deception trick would be to install wall (door) mounted lamp, or hand a painting.

DIY75
  • 20,686
  • 3
  • 23
  • 47
5

If you are willing to do some rework (or for those future people who haven't done any drywall yet), you can use J-trim, sometimes called U channel or J bead.

For example, here's the first link that I can find that should be semi permanent to what I'm talking about:
https://www.trim-tex.com/products/j-bead

It's used to dead end drywall into another material, but can be used to help prevent contact damage when transitioning to a doorframe. I've used it for that, myself.

Random video on how to install the trim: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akeOM_EKkwU

Once you have that on, you can simply use drywall tape and mud to bridge the gap between the trim and the doorframe.

I did this on the inside of my front door 3 years ago and it looks a lot cleaner than standard molding. I'm planning on doing the rest of the house this way. There are places where I will need hidden hinges simply so they aren't sticking out and in the way, like in hallways, but I didn't bother with that for the front door. That is obviously a door and the hinges are protected by a set of shelves behind the door, so no one is likely to run into them.

computercarguy
  • 1,899
  • 1
  • 12
  • 18
0

yes I would use drywall compound to finish the area where the trim would go and then cover it with the wallpaper.

Frank O'Donnell
  • 55
  • 3