For this dollhouse, I wanted paneled doors. I hinged the bathroom door and it's closet door but kept the bedroom doors non-moveable.
I created the paneling using very thin strip wood. The bathroom and bedroom doors have five panels on each side and I did a different panel design for the bathroom closet door.
All of the paneling is eyeballed. Remember, all of these doors are different sizes and they are not square. Measuring exact panels on each door might cause issues with the hardware, down the line. Just eyeball your pattern so it looks straight and even and make sure you make leeway for the hardware.
When you hinge a door, all interior door opening edges must be finished with spackle, sanding and paint. On fixed doors, you must also use spackle and paint along the edges of the door and trim since there will be a gap.
Finishing these doors is not an easy thing to do in this inaccessible second floor hallway and that's why my windows are yet to be installed. I had to reach in through the front windows to access the bedrooms double doors on the hallway side. Again, use a hand held mirror to be able to see all of the edges.
For the bedroom double doors, I did not apply spackle to the middle seam where the two doors meet. I want there to be a slight gap so the doors look more detailed and like if they were real moving double doors.
I can not stress this enough, so here I go again. Tab and slot hinged doors are a novelty. These are not pre-hung, pre-assembled doors on treated wood. They are handcrafted. Being able to move a door is just a nice detail on a dollhouse like this. They are not made to work like real life doors. Treat them gently. You do not want to damage your miniature hinges because it will be extremely difficult, if not impossible to fix once installed. Remember that the wood is very thick and heavy, especially if it's laminated together like exterior doors are. Your miniature hinges are very small and fragile.
Do not force doors closed, that do not close all of the way. Your doors will not sit perfectly in the openings. This is not caused by anything you did wrong. This has to do with nature of tab and slot assembly. Components are never square, plumb or level. Wood expands and contracts. Your doors must be hinged on the door trim before installation so once installed, the trim has to cover the doors opening and this can cause slight warping of the trim, affecting the doors movement. That is why you never truly know how the door will move until installed. All you can do is make sure you sand it enough so that it does not snag along the openings edges. Dry fit as many times as needed and then let it be.
If your door continues to swing open because the door opening and wall is not level, like my bathroom closet door does, add a repositionable, non-permanent, glue dot (the type used in scrapbooking) to the inside frame. This will give the doors a little snag so it stays closed but can still be opened easily when you want it to. Adhesive wax will also work but might wear down with time.
