Interior Doors and Ironmongery: The Detail That Defines a Luxury Renovation

In most renovation budgets, doors and ironmongery are an afterthought. They are specified late, often by whoever is fitting them, and the result — plated hinges that turn brass after two years, hollow-core doors in a million-pound house — undermines everything the renovation was trying to achieve.

In a luxury renovation, doors and ironmongery deserve to be specified early, with the same rigour applied to kitchens or bathrooms. Here is how to think about them.

Why ironmongery matters more than clients expect

Touch points matter. A door handle is touched dozens of times a day. A light switch every evening. In luxury residential interiors, these repeated physical interactions are where the quality of the renovation is most viscerally felt — not the marble worktop that looks impressive but is handled rarely.

Heavy, properly fitted ironmongery on a well-hung door with a smooth latch action signals quality before a visitor has taken in anything else about the interior. A light, wobbly handle on an under-hung door signals the opposite, regardless of what the finishes cost.

Door construction: solid core vs hollow core

The most important decision in residential door specification is core construction.

Hollow-core doors (sometimes called "hollow-flush") use a honeycomb cardboard core between two thin MDF or timber veneers. They are light, cheap, and acoustically poor. They are entirely appropriate for budget residential construction. They are not appropriate for a luxury renovation.

Solid-core doors have a solid engineered timber or MDF core. They are substantially heavier (typically 25–35kg for a standard single door vs 8–12kg for hollow-core), sound-attenuating, and hang properly. The weight of a solid-core door is immediately perceptible when it closes — a soft, substantial thud rather than a hollow rattle.

Solid timber doors (as distinct from solid-core) are traditional and appropriate for period properties, but require more maintenance (expansion and contraction with humidity) and are more expensive. For most London renovations, solid-core with a real timber veneer gives the correct performance and aesthetic at a more manageable cost.

Door sizing and reveals

Period properties in London typically have openings that are not standard modern door sizes. This is important: buying off-the-shelf doors for a Victorian house will often require cutting down (which can compromise the core construction) or leaving oversized reveals that look wrong.

The correct approach is to measure every opening precisely and specify doors to size, or adjust openings to suit a standard. For joinery-supplied bespoke doors, lead times are typically 8–16 weeks. This must be in the programme from the start.

Reveals — the section of wall visible at the side of the door frame — should be consistent across a property. A mix of 75mm and 150mm reveals across different doorways reads as unfinished.

Architraves and door furniture

Architraves are the moulded or flat trim around the door frame. In period properties, architraves should match the character of the house: a simple flat architrave on an Edwardian property with substantial original cornice work is a mismatch that experienced eyes immediately register.

The options are: - Traditional profiled architrave (ogee, ovolo, staff bead): matches period property character; available in MDF, softwood, or hardwood - Contemporary flat architrave: appropriate for modern interiors, looks wrong in period properties unless the renovation is deliberately contrasting period shell with contemporary interior - Shadow gap detail: no visible architrave, just a shadow gap between wall and frame; gives a very clean contemporary finish but requires very precise plastering

Ironmongery specification

Handles: The most common mistake in ironmongery specification is mixing styles and metals across a property. A house with some rooms fitted with solid brass levers, others with chrome, and others with gunmetal is not coherent.

Decide on a metal finish for the whole house before specifying anything. Common luxury options: - Solid brass, unlacquered — patinas beautifully over time; traditional; high maintenance for those who want it to stay polished - Solid brass, satin (brushed) — forgiving, warm, works well with warm-toned interiors and timber floors - Antique brass — appropriate for period properties with traditional finishes - Polished chrome — contemporary, clean; shows marks; appropriate for modern interiors - Matt black — currently very fashionable; looks strong in the right interior; reads as dated in 10 years more often than classic metal finishes

Quality indicators in handles: weight and balance when held; the mechanism of the latch — it should engage and release smoothly with no play; the backplate fixing — solid fixings to the door, not just a couple of screws into thin timber. A quality handle from a reputable ironmonger (Turnstyle, Samuel Heath, Izé, Architectural Forum) costs £80–200 per door set. Budget handles at £15–30 show it.

Hinges: Hinges are typically invisible when the door is closed, but they determine whether the door hangs correctly and how long it stays correctly hung. Solid brass or stainless steel hinges of the correct weight rating for the door — typically 3 hinges per door for solid-core, 4 for anything heavy. Plated mild steel hinges will corrode within a few years in damp environments (which includes London).

Locks and latches: For internal doors, a tubular mortice latch with a matching handle is standard. For rooms requiring privacy (bathrooms, bedrooms), a bathroom/bedroom lock (with an emergency turn from the outside) rather than a standard lock. For front doors and external doors, a minimum of a 5-lever mortice deadlock to British Standard BS3621, plus whatever handle furniture suits the door design.

Lead times and programme implications

Bespoke doors: 8–16 weeks Ironmongery (off the shelf from major suppliers): 2–4 weeks Bespoke ironmongery: 12–20 weeks

Ironmongery must be ordered before second fix begins. This means it must be specified — with finish confirmed, quantities counted, manufacturer references identified — while first fix is in progress. On a well-run project, the ironmongery schedule is prepared during the design phase, not the fit-out phase.

ASAAN's approach

ASAAN prepares a full ironmongery schedule for every project we undertake, typically during the pre-construction phase. We have established relationships with London's leading ironmongery suppliers and can provide samples and recommendations as part of our specification service.

If you are planning a renovation where the finish quality matters, contact us to discuss specification.