I have heard some whispers that sliding barn doors are so yesterday. But yet, perusing on Pinterest, I see them everywhere. How can a door that is both functional and beautiful lose it’s appeal? I don’t believe it has. And if you love it, I say go for it! It’s your house. You get to choose what you like and don’t like. For me, I love a modern sliding barn door. So, when making over my master bedroom, I knew I wanted to incorporate a sliding barn door. I fell in love with the look of the frosted glass sliding barn door and knew that was the one! Nailed it! The perfect fit to our midcentury modern styled master bedroom….
And just for fun, here’s how my brain works….I need to “see” it before I build it. So, this was my visual of how I wanted my frosted glass sliding barn door. I know! It just looks like a bunch of sticky notes–and it is, but in my crazy brain, I can see it! 🙂
HOW TO BUILD A FROSTED GLASS SLIDING BARN DOOR
Materials Needed:
(Instructions are based on an 87″ tall x 37.5″ wide door) If building a different size, be sure to adjust measurements accordingly).
1/2″ plywood (4×8 sheet) I like to have Home Depot cut my plywood in half to make it easier for me to manage (i.e. getting it up onto my table saw). If you choose to do this, make sure they cut it into two 2’x8′ boards. If you don’t have a table saw, Home Depot and I believe Lowe’s will sometimes make the cuts you need. Another option would be to use 1x6x8 pinewood boards-note: this will slightly change the dimensions of your door).
Plexiglass sheets (You’ll cut these down to 11.5″ x 28″ sheets, so if you can get a larger size to get more sheets out of it-that would be a good option). These sheets from Amazon are pretty reasonably priced though. I went with 1/8″ thick x 24″x36″ sheets. If going with the linked Amazon option, you will need 5 of them.
Acrylic Sheet Cutting Tool (to cut your plexiglass)
Rustoleum Specialty Frosted Glass Spray
FlexShot (to attach your plexiglass)
3/4″ finishing screws
Sandpaper
Paint
Poly
Amazon Affiliate Links Included
Tools Needed:
Step One: (OPTIONAL) Rip your boards
If you’re going with the plywood option rather than the 1x6x8 pinewood board option, you’ll need to rip two 6″x96″ strips, using your table saw. You’ll then rip your remaining plywood into 5″x96″ strips. Here’s a picture of a few of mine….
Step Two: Build the Frame x’s Two
Here’s a quick visual of what we’re going for. We’re actually going to build two of these that will sit on top of one another with our plexiglass sheets in between….
Let’s make the cuts for both the front and back side of the door….
Cut four of your 5″ wide plywood strips @ 87″ using your miter saw.
Cut eight of your 5″ plywood strips @ 27.5″ using your miter saw.
Cut four of your 6″ plywood strips @ 27.5″ using your miter saw.
Using your Kreg Jig (Here’s a great tutorial on how to use a Kreg Jig-so easy!!), drill 1/2″ pocket holes on both ends of ALL of your 27.5″ boards.
BUILD THE FRONT SIDE OF THE DOOR….Lay out two of your 87″ plywood strips and attach your bottom 6″ wide 27.5″ strip and top 6″ wide 27.5″ strip using 3/4″ pocket hole screws. Below is a picture of one of the end boards attached. Do this to the other end too and you should now have a rectangle….
BUILD THE BACK SIDE OF THE DOOR….Repeat the front side door steps. Make sure your back side door boards line up perfectly with your front side door boards. (Note: I did not do this, and therefore, the spacing for my windows was off. I highly recommend mirroring both doors together while building—I.e.: when you complete a step for the front side of the door, repeat that same step for the back side of your door by setting your back side boards on top of the front side boards to make sure they line up perfectly, before attaching.)
Now you’re ready to fill in all of the 5″ wide boards. Measure 11″ from the bottom of your top board and attach a 27.5″ strip, using 3/4″ pocket hole screws. Make sure it’s square, before attaching. Remember to mirror this with the back side of the door, as I mentioned above. Build both sides of the door, simultaneously together making sure they line up perfectly, as you go. Measure another 11″ and attach your next 27.5″ strip. Repeat with two more 27.5″ boards. It should now look like this; but you should have two of these built….
In the picture below, you can see how I have both the back side and the front side of the door on top of one another and they line up together perfectly….
Step Three: Cut and Add the Plexiglass
I found the easiest way to do this was to draw my measurements on my plexiglass, using a sharpie. 28″x11.5″
I then carefully ran my plexiglass cutter down the sharpie drawn line against a metal ruler and repeated this several times. After several swipes, there was a deep enough cut that I was able to snap it apart….
When finished, you should have 5 windows cut at 28×11.5″.
Let’s attach the windows….Outline the edges of one of your plexiglass windows with FlexSpot and attach to one of your door frame windows. Repeat this with each window and allow to sit for a couple hours. I placed a heavy object on each end of my plexiglass to give it a firmer hold….
Once dry, mirror your other side of the door on top of the door with the windows and screw together, using 3/4″ screws….
Step Four: Finishing Touches
Sand any rough edges.
Spray plexiglass with Rustoleum Frosted Glass Spray. I gave mine 4 coats on both sides. Allow to dry between each coat.
Tape off windows and paint both sides of door; front and back….
Now it’s ready to hang. (Here’s a great post on how to hang your frosted glass sliding barn door)….
That’s it! I love how this frosted glass sliding barn door is functional, beautiful and provides privacy, separating our bathroom from our bedroom….
PIN IT FOR LATER….
Until next week,
Happy Building, Friend!!
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Other RL Sliding Barn Door Posts:
Easy How to Build a Modern Sliding Barn Door
How to Make Your Own Sliding Barn Door
