Making Your Own Door, Part III

The third basic kind of door we're going to make is an inset panel door. This is probably the trickiest kind of door to master, not because it's so challenging but because it requires a high degree of accuracy and quite a bit of patience. If you can master these three kinds of doors, then you have the skill set you need to reproduce any door you want.

I personally find the inset panel door to be very fulfilling. It's fun to make, and it looks really beautiful when its done. As before, you want to start with two door panels. Here, I tend to use one 1/8" thick panel and one 1/16" thick panel. The 1/16th panel is going to become the inset side of the door.

Again, start by marking out guidelines on the door panel (see above). Then, cut and glue trim to form two panels. Here, instead of an applique, we're making an inset; look for trim with a small lip, such as wainscoting trim. When you cut the trim, make sure that the lip points outwards--when you set the completed trim panel into the door, it should be flush with both the outer panel and the inner part of the door. After you assemble the panels, place them on the door. You're now ready to form the outer panel.

First, cut and assemble the outer panel. For this step, I use 1/32" thick wood, because its exactly the same thickness as the lip on most trims. I'm a perfectionist, so I really want all of my pieces to fit together tightly.

When you assemble the outer panel, it should be flush with the edges of the inner part of the door. The completed trim panels should fit comfortably inside. Be careful not to make the fit too snug--wood expands and contracts when wet, and you don't want to carefully stain and varnish the trim panels, only to find that they don't fit! A good tip, here, is to stain and varnish the trim panels before you create the outer panel.

Now, using your glueing jig, very carefully glue the outer edges together. Here, I'm using a piece of scrap wood to make sure that the bottom edges line up.

Now, insert the completed trim panels into the outer panel. Make sure they fit, and that the fit isn't too tight. Very carefully, mark the edges of the panels, just under the overhanging lip of the trim.

Now, you're ready to cut the center section of the outer panel, and glue it in. Usually, I glue the center section with the completed trim panels in place, to ensure that, after my outer panel dries, they still fit. The fit should be snug, but not too tight--there should be just the slightest amount of wiggle room. Here, I taped the center section to the rest of the outer panel, to make sure that the pieces dried flush together.

At this point, you should have four pieces: the inner part of the door, the outer panel and two completed trim panels. Set the completed trim panels aside, and stain (or paint) the two remaining panels.

After they're dry, it's time to glue them together. When I'm staining a door, I prefer to finish the outer panel before I glue it on; I apply three coats of spray. However, I wait to sand the outer panel, or apply a finish coat, until after I assemble the door. Spread the back of the outer panel with quick grip, and lay it gently onto the inner part of the door. Hold the two panels together for a few minutes, and then weight them together. I, personally, wait until after the quick grip sets (about 45 minutes) to sand, because I think the final finish comes out much smoother. I sand the outer panel lightly, and then, using a small amount of tacky glue, I attach the completed trim panels. then, I apply a last, light, finish coat of spray.

Your inset panel door is now complete. This is a basic strategy you can use to create almost any door. Here, we used it to create sunken panels; if you reverse the direction of the trim, i.e. point the lip inwards instead of outwards, then you can use it to create raised panels. Also, depending on what kind of trim you use--thin or thick, ornate or simple--you end up with a very different look.