Why pocket doors are no longer just a retro classic

In the interior design World, you are never far away from another ironic retro feature making a comeback. It might be dado rails, flowery wallpaper or a serving hatch leading from the kitchen into the dining room. At one time or another, many features will show their true worth and become popular again, and the same has happened with pocket doors in recent years.

Pocket doors were initially popular in Victorian homes as a means of closing off spaces such as sitting rooms. But gradually architectural tastes changed and they became impractical, outdated and effectively obsolete. Our modern day hunger for retro items, however, has seen interior designers identify new value in the pocket door, and while it is cool to upcycle old furniture and bring retro items back to life by repairing, re-covering or re-upholstering them, the pocket door has transcended the retro revolution to completely re-invent itself.

Pocket doors are the perfect 21^st century design feature

The recent triumphant return of the pocket door has seen people wake up to the stunning practicality of it, and no longer is it a quirky, period feature and a talking point exhibit when visitors pop round, it is now a perfect fit for 21^st century minimalist design and cost-saving functionality.

In today’s property market, everybody is looking to save money, maximise their return and yet still get the most out of what they are buying. This goes for architects, housing developers, rental landlords and of course, homeowners. Pocket doors allow house builders to incorporate extra rooms and add value to a property using the same footprint of land. They also allow landlords to rent an extra room in a house, flat or apartment.

An interior design solution

And for homeowners, you get added functionality through en-suite bathrooms, a home office, a utility room or maybe having the option of closing off an open plan dining room and kitchen during the week, and opening up at the weekend when you are entertaining guests?

Add to this the contemporary designs now available, with no architrave or door frames, with glass pocket doors, or with double pocket doors that create a wider, sparse and clutter-free expanse in a room, and you have the perfect modern solution to many interior design problems.

So the pocket door is far from the awkward and clumsy, Victorian by-product that nobody knew what to do with, it is the embodiment of modern living; stylish, practical, money-saving and all with a respectful nod to the past. But make no mistake, this time the pocket door is here to stay.