Dutch Doors for Your Kitchen
Originally used in rustic, farmhouse settings, Dutch doors have two independently swinging halves. These components once allowed farmers to leave the top half of the door open while keeping the bottom half closed. This ensured that children stayed inside, farm animals stayed outside, and a healthy breeze cleansed the home’s interior.
Dutch doors are still used today, and they work especially well as kitchen doors, especially for homeowners who seek a distinctively rustic tone. Dutch kitchen doors, especially those leading outside, still allow you to keep unwanted intruders from messing around your kitchen while maintaining a steady influx of fresh air. This fresh air is particularly important, as it prevents mold from growing and compromising the cleanliness of your kitchen.
Sliding Barn Doors (or Pocket Doors) for Your Kitchen
Barn doors are the rising stars of the door world, as today more and more homeowners are choosing to include this style in their home. Essentially, barn doors are exactly what they sound like: a rustic door styled after the wooden doors used for the entryways of barns.
Barn doors for your home are most often installed on sliding tracks, so that they open and close by sliding back and forth. While barn doors make for great kitchen entryway doors, they are also good choices for your cupboards and pantries. Since barn doors slide back and forth, they don’t take up as much space as conventional doors that swing out to open.
Like sliding barn doors, pocket doors also open by sliding back and forth. The major difference is that pocket doors open by sliding into a wall, whereas barn doors open by sliding back and forth across a wall. While barn doors fit well in rustic settings, pocket doors fit better as kitchen doors in more contemporary or modern homes. Pocket doors are also an excellent choice for pantries or other cupboards.
French doors are a classic choice for the kitchen. | @ fotolia.com / Iriana Shiyan
French Doors for Your Kitchen
With their classic glass panels, French doors make for great kitchen doors, and are one of the most popular and the most commonly-used kitchen doors. French doors are especially good choices in kitchens (or dining rooms) that look onto beautiful backyards, gardens, or patios. French kitchen doors can make the kitchen more inviting, as they will provide the space with plenty of natural light and pleasant views of your landscaping. They can also easily open onto a patio, deck, or porch off of your kitchen.
