During the chillier months bi-fold doors create the perfect frame to showcase a wintery garden, especially when the outside view is coated with a sprinkling of frost or crisp, fresh snow. Shorter daylight hours contribute to the scene, as outdoor decorations can be viewed to their full potential against a dark backdrop—even more magical when viewed from the comfort of a toasty warm room.
This time also presents a great opportunity to add some seasonal styling to bi-folds to enhance the cosy interior of the room. Experts in the interior design world Elizabeth Parker, Katy Aston, Rebecca Dupere, Louisa De Paola, Gilly Craft and Steph Briggs share their tips and advice on making the most of bi-fold doors during the winter months.
Layering up bi-fold doors with different options creates flexibility and enables you to adjust how they are dressed at different times of the year.
Katy Aston
Decorations
Fairy lights or hanging glass candle holders are the perfect way to add a little festive glow. Invisible fishing wire will help the baubles look like they are floating in mid-air. Use suction hooks to suspend a curtain of clear led lights from your bi-fold frames without damaging the walls.
Elizabeth Parker
If you're not needing to open the doors regularly, beautiful glass baubles individually threaded on velvet ribbon and hung in the window give a simple classic look and you can opt to use all of your favourite from years gone by or colour co-ordinate with your room scheme. Vary the height of each bauble to move the eye and add interest.
Steph Briggs
Window art
Get festive by using a simple white chalk pen you can create a Scandinavian inspired wintery scene, it's fun to do and simply wipes off with window cleaner when the season is over. If you aren’t feeling artistic you can simply attach an image on the other side of the glass and trace the outline. Remove the image and ta-dah! You can also get the chalk pens in a range of subtle colours if you fancy being a bit more creative.
Steph Briggs
There are some stunning etched window films available. Choose a semi-opaque design which will only cover the lower third of the windows, so that light will still flood in while also providing you with some privacy. Snowflakes or the silhouette of a pine forest work well for winter.
Elizabeth Parker
If you have small children you could get them to make paper snowflakes that you can stick to the windows.
Rebecca Dupere
Lights
Use copper wired fairly lights and drape them around the edges of the doors.
Rebecca Dupere
I use lots of lanterns with faux candles either side of my bi-fold doors at Christmas. Arranging them in different heights and grouping them in odd numbers can be really effective.
Louisa De Paola
Curtains and blinds
To make bi-fold doors cosier, particularly at Christmas time opt for a wool fabric for curtaining — it is guaranteed to help create a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
Katy Aston
Textiles are a sure-fire way to soften a space. Curtains may not be practical when you’re regularly opening and closing your bi-folds, but a temporary rail can easily be fitted during the festive season. Swag it with a luxurious fabric such as velvet and let the draped material pool onto the floor. Your window will feel like a stage with the garden as the show.
Elizabeth Parker
Opt for screen blinds in the recess of your bi-folds. These are great for generally creating privacy but also enable you to diffuse the sunlight, whilst still not eliminating light from the room altogether. They are also discrete and can be pulled right up and out of the way for when you want the doors to be opened.
Katy Aston
Having shutters integrated into the bi-folds at time of manufacture means you can have them open, semi open or closed throughout the day to make the room feel cosier.
Gilly Craft
Get some festive swag and put it in the recess above the doors.
Rebecca Dupere
Because bi-fold doors are usually fairly large, dressing with a curtain requires a lot of fabric. I would always suggest to dress them with a wave heading curtain on the outside of the recess. This way, the fabric folds really neatly and stacks back away from the window without obstruction.
Katy Aston
Sheers can work really well with bi-folds, I would suggest hanging them from a hidden track in the ceiling. Make sure you have enough wall space for the curtain to stack back.
Gilly Craft
The outside view
Bi-folds are usually installed for the view they give so extend your Christmas decor outdoors. A small planter, such as a vintage olive bucket with a small fir tree decorated with warm white LED battery operated lights, means that you can have cute and stylish trees anywhere in the garden. Choose lights with an in-built timer function programmed to go on and off each day to save you going outside to operate them.
Steph Briggs
I like to decorate an external plant trough with lots of twinkling fairy lights. If possible, find one that fits the entire width of the doors to extend the festive decorations to the outside.
Louisa De Paola
If you have a well-planned garden it will still be lovely to look out on during the winter months. Put Christmas lights in the trees and shrubs and time them to switch them on as soon as darkness falls to create your own winter wonderland!
Gilly Craft
