Changing our own front door colour has become a bit of a Hera Ray tradition. For the past four years, we’ve taken a brush (and a little bravery) to our door annually, pairing it with a new hardware and a bold colour. It’s a ritual we love — and one that always sparks conversation across our community.
Last year’s Pepto Pink door was a showstopper. Paired with brass hardware, it radiated fun and confidence — and we adored it. But this year, we felt it was time for a shift.
Why Aubergine?
We're a big fan of using the colour wheel when it comes to door colour choice and marrying the paint colour with your brick tone. Its a great way of narrowing down your choices and guaranteeing the colours you choose compliment each other. Our home’s yellow brickwork naturally sings when set against purples, lilacs, and blues. They just belong together. As much as we loved the pink, we wanted something more complimentary to the exterior this time around.
And then there’s the season. With autumn rolling in, we were craving a darker, more luxurious vibe — a colour that feels dramatic, elegant, and even a little mysterious. Aubergine has always been on our shortlist (we’ve painted plenty of doors in it over the years), and it finally felt like the perfect moment to bring it into our home.
The Hardware Shift
No door makeover is complete without a hardware rethink. This year, we traded brass for nickel. Brass against aubergine works beautifully, but we wanted sharper contrast — the cool tones of nickel really pop against the richness of the purple. It gives the whole door a crisp edge, setting the stage for our star piece.
Swallow Out, Bat In
Our much-loved Swallow Knocker came down, making way for the launch of our brand-new Bat Knocker. The Bat demanded something bold, and Aubergine delivered — deep enough to match its drama, but elegant enough to balance the playful gothic energy. With Halloween on the horizon, the timing couldn’t have been better.
From Pink to Purple — and 15 Million Views Later
We filmed the whole makeover — from rolling over the Pepto Pink to hanging the Bat in its new home — and shared it on our socials. To our delight, it’s now been viewed over 15 million times. Proof, if ever it were needed, that people love a door transformation as much as we do.
Here's the final result
For those wondering what colour we used, the Purple is a colour called Dark Aubergine by Dulux Heritage. We had it mixed into an exterior paint by Dulux Weathershield. Even though we have used this colour numerous times on our door it felt a touch dark (to close to black) so we ended up adding a hint of white paint just to lighten the tone a touch. We know this makes it tricky to now copy (we're sorry!) it was a last minute change that we weren't expecting but sometimes you have to adapt.
Tips for painting your door
If you're thinking of giving your own door a glow up, you can find our Step-By-Step guide blog below, simply click image.
