Useful Ledge Doors

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 528, 28 November 1928, Page 7

Useful Ledge Doors

VARIED TO SUIT YOUR TASTE

Some Simple Designs

THE revival of interest in the decorative possibilities of the interior doors of a house has served to unearth a variety of the interesting forms of mediaeval times. American manufacturers and craftsmen, spurred on by the popular desire of this generation for something new, are no longer content to produce a mass of doors which differ in variety from each other only in the number and the moulding of their panels.

The Colonial or panelled door —de veloped in the pioneer periods ot American history—possesses the admir able quality of simplicity and unobtrusiveness; but there is little opportunity for variation in its design and consequently by universal custom and usage, this type has become commonplace and no longer satisfies the people who are always ready to intro duce fresh notes in the architecture oi their homes. It is for this reason that the various forms of ledged doors have achieved their recent popularity. Constructed in the simplest manner—as they were in the early Colonial and also the mediaeval days—they possess a quaint ness and individuality absent in the panelled door. EFFICIENT BRACING The simplest form of a ledged door requires bracing in order to prevent sagging. This is usually accomplished by means of diagonal braces, or by the use of bolts concealed in the thickness of the door. This latter method ot construction has long since weathered the experimental stages, having been used for years in shipbuilding practice, The head and nut of the bolt are con cealed with small wood plugs in the thickness of the door. This method of bracing obviates the need foi diagonal stiffeners, and also creates a door which has the same appearance on both sides. If diagonal braces are used, it should be remembered that one diagonal is stronger than the customary double zigzag, which, parti

cularly when the horizontal ledges are spaced unevenly. Is often unsightly. A better appearance is attained by the omission of diagonal bracing, the door being stiffened by screwing the horizontal ledges to the vertical boards. Although it is customary to use boards of even widths for doors of this type, there is nevertheless precedent for the use of random widths. Another interesting variation is the use of hoards of two different thicknesses, the thin boards being rebated into the thicker. An advantage of the ledged door is that it is eminently suited to the round-headed and Tudor shapes that are so difficult of manufacture in the panelled type. A note of warning is necessary concerning the hanging of ledged doors in modern jambs. If the hinges are fastened to the ledges, the door when opened will show an ugly space on the hanging side. When the hinges are on the side opposite from the ledges, it is necessary to see that the customary bevel of the swinging edge of the door also includes the ledge, which otherwise will on opening foul the jamb lining. HINGES AND LATCHES The simple outline of wrought iron hinges and door latches greatly improves the decorative qualities of all doors, showing in dark silhouette against the painted or stained woodwork. This utilisation of constructional necessities for decorative purposes may also take expression in the

The waste-paper basket, though it clings to its old name, is often no basket at all in these days, but merely a bucket. The fashion arose in the first instance through the adoption in England of old Georgian fire-buckets of leather as receptacles for odds and ends, and tlie vogue has now spread to quite modern buckets treated in various decorative ways. The Georgian affairs were gay with coats of arms and other heraldic devices, and the same themes are often exploited on modern substitutes.