The Front Door Mistake That Makes Your Home Look Tacky

Your front door is the focal point of your home's exterior, but it's easy to make mistakes with the design that can end up looking tacky. While it may be tempting to treat your front door as a statement piece, going overboard with design choices can leave the wrong impression. Overly ornate front doors are one of the more common mistakes that people make when choosing a front door, often implementing too many bells and whistles in an attempt to make an entrance look fancy. 

Front doors with elaborate glasswork, multiple colours, or ornate detailing can clash with the architecture of your home and make the entire facade feel off-balance, especially if the rest of your exterior is relatively plain. Instead of enhancing the look of your home, these features stick out awkwardly, creating a look that's mismatched or busy. Ornate designs and super trendy materials may also weather poorly over time. The solution is to choose a simpler, more cohesive front door design that complements your home's exterior and feels intentional without trying too hard. A well-chosen front door will quietly boost the overall appearance of the whole building.

When choosing a front door, try to coordinate with the existing trim and window styles of your home. Consistency is important to select the right type of door that will amp up your curb appeal and look well-considered, rather than chaotic. Any glass panels should fit in with the surrounding window style — so if your windows are plain, don't go overboard on the door. When in doubt, a low-maintenance design will always serve your home better than something flashy or tacky that ages poorly.

The material of your door is another one of the most important details. While steel is modern, it can rust, and that's a mistake that adds more work to maintain your home. Aluminium is a better low-maintenance choice, but beware that it can dent easily, which isn't ideal for a busy front door. For traditional or vintage homes, wood offers an appealing natural finish and looks great with simple glass panels. Homes like these are perfect for beautiful front door ideas that suit a cozy cottage-style home, but they do require a little extra effort because wood doors need to be protected from the elements. 

Paint can easily dress up a boring door. While doors in classic shades like navy and black tend to age well and don't fight for attention, it's easy to make a statement with a complementary color (a color on the opposite side of the color wheel from your main exterior). A more modern home may already have a boldly painted exterior, but if you have a white exterior, you can get away with nearly any color for your front door.