Front door help

[Kahu]

My front door opens into my living room. Currently the door is white both interior and exterior with white trim. I would love to paint the exterior of the door a bright, high impact colour - I'm thinking chartreuse or orange.

Now if the front door opened into into a hallway I would make a statement inside and out by painting both sides of the door. But there is no way my small, neutral living room can handle anything other than a white door.

Is it odd to have just one side of the door painted? Where do I end the colour - do I paint just the exterior face or do I bring the paint round the edge of the door? How do I stop the edge looking messy?

Many thanks for any advice.

It's common to paint a front door differently on the inside.

For precision, the opening edge of the door (which comes into the room) should be painted to match the indoor side, as should the edge of the doorframe that the lock goes into, because it is not "outdoors"

The hinge edge can be painted outdoor colour, because it is seen from outdoors but not seen from inside. Not many people know/bother.

The top and bottom are the most important parts to paint, because they are most exposed to wet from rain, and are usually neglected, so are the first parts to rot or get woodworm.

Door furniture should be taken off before rubbing down or painting. If you have a mortice lock it should have an ornamental polished front plate that can be removed so you don't get paint on it.
To prevent the wet paint sticking when you close the front door overnight, remove the "keep" from the frame. This will make the lock a loose fit. Stick a matchstick into the recess of the frame at the top, bottom and middle to prevent to door touching.

When you refit the keep next day, wipe a little Vaseline with your finger on the touching edges of the door and the frame (lock side and hinge side). It will prevent the paint sticking. Not great greasy gobbets, just enough to make it shine, on your fingertip. It will polish off once the paint is hard. If you want to apply adhesive draughtproofing strip, give the new paint a couple of weeks to harden, or it will stick immovably. The furry "brush" strip is very good.

Thank you so much Piglet John, that is really helpful.

I have the whole exterior of the house to paint first (wooden siding) before I get to the door but hopefully I now know how to go about it all.

Am I best to use a brush or small roller for the door? I have never used full gloss paint before and not sure if I will be able to achieve the smooth perfect finish I want.

certainly a brush

I find two-inch convenient

If a panelled door, so the top and bottom and side edges first, then the mouldings, then one panel at a time, then the horizontals, then the verticals.

You may find it easier if you thin the paint a little and apply two thin coats a day or two apart.

Practice, and wear in your new brush, on the undercoats and on unimportant parts before you do the finish on the front door. A used brush, properly cleaned, paints better than a new one.

I've just had a new composite front door installed - grey on the outside and white on the inside. The fact you can buy them like that shows it's not unusual at all!

@MizCracker where did you get your door from please? Would you recommend them or not?

Thanks PigletJohn. Hopefully I will be an expert by the time I get to the door!

I got mates rates from a friend of my dad, but the brand is Distinction Doors I think

Thank you