Never underestimate the benefits of curb appeal when presenting your home. Too often a potential buyer will just drive by and not even stop to see all the upgrades inside if the outside of your home says – needs work! Or maybe you intend to stay in your home forever, but are planning an important event – like a wedding, – a new front entry door will have the biggest impact on your home’s curb appeal.

Nowadays, most entry doors come pre-hung in a frame and are often pre-drilled for a knob and lock. However, the hardware is typically not included since you will want to choose a style that matches other features of your entry way, such as external light fixtures. With an older home, you may have a single entry door and want to expand to double doors, or double doors with side lights and transom. In most cases, this would require engaging a contractor. But adding sidelights and transom, even to a single door adds significant light to the entrance way and can’t be topped for beauty and prestige.

If you are remodeling from one size entrance way to a much larger one, you will likely need a company to customize your door. Donatello Doors offers dozens of options for panel and glass designs, grille patterns, sidelights, and transoms and each door is hand crafted to your specifications. Donatello Doors even allows you to submit your own designs for the handcrafted grill work!

Homeowners who get involved in the choice of their entry door are likely to find the experience much easier than expected, especially when you can see all your choices on our website and experiment with the different looks at the touch of a button. In the end, whatever entrance system you choose, you want to be certain that it matches your personal aesthetic, your demand for superior workmanship and your budget. At Donatello Doors we guarantee that you will be thrilled with your choice and our service.

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The question then becomes, which kind of glass allows the most light in, but also protects your privacy. Transparent glass allows someone outside your home to clearly see through your front door. For some people, who want to see who their visitors are, this may be acceptable. Tinted glass, like sunglasses will filter the amount of light pouring in and can create a subtle color, like a stained glass window, that can be very appealing. Visibility from both directions is reduced, but not completely. Obscure glass only allows a view of shadows and distorted forms with no distinguishable shapes. Most obscure glass is patterned in some way that is attractive to look at and still lets in the full spectrum of natural light.

Whatever the glass configuration in your entry door, you should choose a high quality dual paned glass that is vacuum sealed with an inert gas between the two sheets to prevent fogging and give added insulation value from heat and cold. If you include a transom, that glass portion that arches over the actual door, there is no need use a heavily obscuring pattern and you can choose whatever pattern or design purely for it’s beauty. However, all the patterns used should be harmonious and complementary. Glass brings light and elegance to your entry way and really does help to bring the natural world a little closer.

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Energy flow in your home can positively or negatively affect the life and success of all members of your family. Feng Shui strives to create harmony, balance and a pleasing aesthetic in every room because every room corresponds to an important area of one’s life. However, nothing is more important than a home’s entrance door, because this is how energy comes into the home and, therefore, into your life.

First consider the pathway leading up to your door. Is  it clear and unobstructed? Does your entrance door have clutter or unkempt bushes that obscure it? If so, this can inhibit the flow of positive energy into the home so it should be corrected. The ideal would be a slightly winding path, with well tended but low shrubs, that leads to an impressive and strong entrance door.

Entrance doors should be well lit but the lighting should not glare into the eyes of your visitors. Lighting should come from several sources to create an ambience of welcome. Having glass doors within and on either side of the door is also excellent as it allows more light to come into the home where you greet your guests and family. Light is very important for positive Feng Shui and should always be considered.

Another common problem is when entrance doors are positioned on the side of the house and so are not seen easily from the front. This makes it harder for good chi to find you. But the very worst situation is if you use a back entrance door, or entrance doors that come in to the house through the garage. In both these situations Feng Shui teaches that success, good health and good fortune will not be able to find you.

Entrance doors make a powerful statement about the status of the family that dwells within. A wrought iron door with glass windows is considered to be the best Feng Shui because it says both that you are open to energy coming to you through the windows, and that  you are strong enough to repel any negative energy with the power of iron.

Glass doors without the iron are not so auspicious because they allow too much energy into the home indiscriminately. But glass doors combined with strong but attractive iron grillwork is enticing to good fortune. Glass doors that lead to a garden from a bedroom or dining area can be auspicious, but it is best to curtain glass doors at night time to keep the good chi inside. A screen door over your entrance door is also not auspicious because it obscures the doors attraction power and is a barrier to good chi.

All entrance doors must be clean, well lit, welcoming and easily accessible. Color can also make your entrance door more appealing to good fortune. Typically in China, the primary color recommended was always red, as red is the Feng Shui color of  good fortune. However, more recently, consultants are tailoring color choice to the specific business or life goals of the residents. Earth tones are excellent Feng Shui because they connect the entrance door to the power of the earth.

Glass in your entrance door should be obscured – not clear. This allows chi energy and light into the home but maintains privacy and modesty. Only when you open your door to allow in a guest should the inside be visible from the outside.

It is very important that entrance doors are solid and well maintained. An entrance door should be heavy but silent and very easy to open and close – they should be on smooth bearings that do not squeak. A rickety door interrupts the flow of chi and also signals to a guest that there will be problems inside. The sound of wind chimes or a small fountain as you stand before the entrance door will persuade only good energy to come in and dispel negative energies.

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Entry doors made with wrought iron are solid and durable through all conditions. They are made of 2″ thick 14 gauge steel, with 5/8″ wrought ironwork that will last for the lifetime of your home.  Although the windows on both our doors and sidelights open for cleaning and ventilation, it is only possible to open them from the inside.  Even with them in an open position, the wrought iron grillwork provides an effect barrier to unauthorized entry.

When you purchase a wrought iron exterior steel door, not only do you enhance the value of your home, but you protect what’s inside your home more effectively

When choosing a top of the line entry door with wrought iron, you are always safest to buy from a company that has an established history. Donatello Doors has been making wrought Iron Doors for 15 years.  We supply many of the top showrooms in the USA and, since January 2010 we also sell direct to consumer – allowing you to buy a top quality door at incredible savings.

All Donatello Door designs are developed by Italian craftsmen with an eye for beauty and balance.  Our doors will enhance the beauty of your home as well as provide the highest security.

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The first bit of information that you have to get, is that no matter where you are standing in relation to a door, it only opens one way. This confused the hell out of me because I expected it to be called something different whether you were coming in or going out. So now, we get to the door opening direction dance. Just imagine a person standing there instead of a door with their arms crossed across their chest. You pretend that their hand is the handle, so which hand do you reach for? If it’s their right hand, it’s a right opening door, if it’s their left hand – you get it, it’s a left opening door. The door remains classified as such, no matter whether you are coming in or going out through it. Mystery solved – all dyslexics feel free to breath a sigh of relief!

Now, with a double door, it’s basically the same principle. Even though both doors open, one door will open first and that door is the one that determines the left or right direction of the set. This detail determines where the hinges go and how the door installation will be done. Once you’ve got this straight you get to go on to ever more choices, of single or double door, straight top, eyebrow top or arched top, transom or sidelights or both, type of style of the iron work, type of glass and finally, type of finish. Whatever you choice, may you enter and exit with confidence and style!

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Fiberglass Entry Doors

Fiberglass entry doors and are made from resin reinforced with glass fiber.  Because this is an artificial material, these doors are usually made to resemble wood. A fake grain is molded into the surface and then it is colored to look something like wood.  However, fake wood is not the same as real wood and so fiberglass doors usually look cheap – especially up close. Harsh solvents and chemicals are required to make fiberglass doors and they generally retain that smell. The resins used are also highly flammable and so fiberglass doors do not act well as fire doors.

Wood Entry Doors

While some wood doors may be less expensive than steel entry doors, the really good ones are not. Wooden doors definitely have their own appeal and certain homes will look better with a wood entry door.  However there are some disadvantages.  Wood entry doors are not as durable as a steel. They are also subject to rot and the finish needs to be applied regularly to keep them looking good. Wood doors also dent easily and such dents are very difficult to repair without resorting to painting them over.  Wood, of course, is flammable and so they are not fireproof.  Unless you buy a really thick an solid wood door, it is also not much of a barrier to forced entry – both the door and the jamb can be splintered with enough force.

Plain Steel Entry Doors

Plain steel entry doors can be an inexpensive choice but they are usually of quite poor quality.  Plain steel entry doors are generally made of thin steel that is stamped into a shape that resembles a wooden door. These doors are easily dented. The jamb is also thin steel and both door and jamb can be easily bent out of shape. Some doors of this type are made of a heavier grade of steel and are considered a security door. If you choose this kind of door, just be sure you check the quality and the security rating.

Wrought Iron Entry Door

Wrought Iron Entry Doors have become more popular in recent years.  These doors are made of heavy grade steel (14 gauge) and are of welded construction.  They generally have glass windows installed behind a decorative and secure wrought iron grillwork.  Wrought iron doors are the most durable and beautiful doors you can buy.  Each door may weigh about 200 lbs but they are set on special roller bearings so they open and close smoothly and easily.  The best wrought iron entry doors have dual pane windows (double glazing) which also open to facilitate cleaning and for ventilation.  Wrought iron is the most secure choice, turning your home into a veritable fortress.  However the beautiful designs available in wrought iron also make them the most attractive and distinctive choice. The best are also completely rust proof, with a hot zinc galvanizing under several layers of nail hard finish.  Many finishes are available to match your home’s style and colors.

At Donatello Doors, we only make the finest, Italian designed, wrought iron doors.  With superb craftsmanship and unbelievable prices – you can do no better than to order your custom made wrought iron entry door from Donatello Doors

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