Door Knobs - Not So Dumb
My little shotgun house has nine doors and just as many styles of door knobs. Many of them are antique, and while I don't know how long any of them have been in my house, they have probably opened a lot of doors over the years.
The bedrooms have beautiful glass knobs. The first bath has porcelain. There are plain and decorative brass knobs, and even a Bennington-style knob. A few have back plates, while others are set in rim locks with rosettes on the opposite side.
A few weeks after moving in, the door knob to my closet came off in my hand. Thankfully I was outside the closet! The set screw had come loose and both the knob and the spindle were stripped. I tightened up the screw and managed to hold off replacement for a few months by tightening every few weeks. Annoying? Yes. But the house had other more pressing priorities.
Now that the rush of the holidays is over, I finally sought a solution to my problem door knob. With visits to the local antique salvage shops (we're lucky to have more than one: Ricca's and The Bank, plus there are additional salvage finds at The Green Project), I found a great antique replacement for the stripped knob that even better matches the decorative back plate. No more knobs coming off in my hand when closing the closet door!
I also managed to track down a missing rim lock piece for the guest room door so that the cat can't push the door open anytime he wants. I'm sure a future guest will appreciate that small fix. (He likes to stick his nose right in your face and attack moving blankets.)
The bedrooms have beautiful glass knobs. The first bath has porcelain. There are plain and decorative brass knobs, and even a Bennington-style knob. A few have back plates, while others are set in rim locks with rosettes on the opposite side.
A few weeks after moving in, the door knob to my closet came off in my hand. Thankfully I was outside the closet! The set screw had come loose and both the knob and the spindle were stripped. I tightened up the screw and managed to hold off replacement for a few months by tightening every few weeks. Annoying? Yes. But the house had other more pressing priorities.
Now that the rush of the holidays is over, I finally sought a solution to my problem door knob. With visits to the local antique salvage shops (we're lucky to have more than one: Ricca's and The Bank, plus there are additional salvage finds at The Green Project), I found a great antique replacement for the stripped knob that even better matches the decorative back plate. No more knobs coming off in my hand when closing the closet door!
I also managed to track down a missing rim lock piece for the guest room door so that the cat can't push the door open anytime he wants. I'm sure a future guest will appreciate that small fix. (He likes to stick his nose right in your face and attack moving blankets.)
The salvage stores had so many interesting styles of knobs and door hardware from simple to ornate. Down the road, I'd love to replace the few modern door hardware pieces with something antique. Do you have any unique knobs or latches in your home?
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