REVEALED: The Secret Door Bookcase

​by FaithTeel

The secret door is in, and we're finally done teasing you with "before" photos!

Well, maybe just a couple more to remind you first...

Our client is a book lover - she loves them so much that she stacks them double-deep on the shelves. And like any true book lover, she's always dreamed of a library with a secret door.

This hallway was the perfect spot for one, especially since it had a rarely-used entrance to their attic storage.

We started with a drawing... you've probably already seen this...

...and put it all together in the shop...

... then got onsite to install it.

Here's Glenn (my dad) holding up a sample of the fancy trim we used. Can you see the swoops in the plaster ceiling? This house is almost 100 years old and nothing is straight or level...

... except for these beautiful new bookcases!  🤩

You can hardly tell which one is the secret door.

By the way, fun fact: if you scroll back up to look at the drawing, you'll see that the three bays of bookshelves aren't the same size. We had to do it this way because of the location of the attic entrance.

But the funny thing is that since you always see the bookcase from one side or the other because of the narrow hallway, you never notice. It just looks like a trick of perspective.

Our client also had us replace two other, smaller bookcases as part of the same project. The first one was next to the stairs:

And there was another one at the far end of the hallway.

We designed the one at the end of the hall to match the part with the secret door, with the same trim and molding details.

​The one next to the stairs would have looked odd with such heavy trim, so we sourced a more slender piece of crown, and also scaled down the trim.

And just like the others, this one is extra-deep, with thick shelves, to accommodate a double layer of books.

The one at the end of the hallway turned out particularly well. It's almost grandiose, but this is a homeowner who decorates with panache, so I know she can carry it off.

By the way, notice how these bookcases all have a double trim detail, as if there is a "case inside a case."

This detail was a real head-scratcher to install, but it was necessary to match the way the bookcase-door is built.

In fact, that's what hides the fact that there's a door there. Here's a couple of pics from the Murphy Door website to show you how it works.

In this illustration, the left-hand part of the trim is attached to the bookcase. When you pull on that side of the case, it pivots on a pin hinge. Part of the doorway is blocked by the shelves, but there's plenty of room to duck in through the remaining gap.

Our client was very happy with the project - so happy that she told Arthur that she sat in the hallway for an hour one evening, just drinking in her awesome new library.

If you've got a special project you've always wanted to try, whether it's a secret door in your home library, or maybe the entertainment center of your dreams, give us a call. We love this stuff. ​

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