40+ Wooden Fence Gate Ideas & Designs for Your Backyard
As gorgeous as it is indestructible, the wooden fence gate has proven its place throughout the years, guarding palaces and provincial estates correspondingly. Now, thanks to today’s inspirations, and maybe on a much smaller scale, you can protect your own modern domain.
There’s more to the wooden gate than the simple picket fabrication most of us are acquainted with; on the contrary, the latest designs seamlessly blend timeless significance and a modern appeal. Starting with every possible material, such as fir, pine, cedar, cypress, and many more, a wooden gate is a perfect addition to your dream home and yard.
From archways overgrown with and framed by your yard’s luxuriant flora and greenery to sleek woods, metals, and bamboo, there is no boundary to where the wooden fence can lead your home in its closing impression.
While the wooden gate serves a dual purpose–protecting your garden or lawn while also drawing the admiration of the people passing by — there’s no denying the ease with which a classic wooden gate represents the best of both form and function. Your home is more than just a residence but is a haven you work hard to perfect.
While the intention of a gate is to protect the garden and all that’s growing in it, wooden gates do so much more than divide. Much like the front door to your house, the gate to your backyard should also be friendly and welcoming so guests feel comfortable coming through it. Set the tone for your backyard with these wooden gate ideas, which are perfect for a range of outdoor spaces, from cottage-style gardens to formal lawns.
Just thinking of the concept of wood gates can bring about a sense of peace. We imagine an untouched English garden, a rural field, a stone patio at sunset, or a wandering tree-lined drive.
There’s tons of inspiration to be found for cool wooden gate designs you could try out in your own garden or backyard. From white-painted picket fences to rustic natural wood, gates seem to appear like magic from overgrown hedges.
Peek Through Design
Gates don’t have to be all concealing. This slated peek through white wooden gates allows for light to pour through and doesn’t block off this small patio space, making it seem even more confining. By allowing the gate to have thinner diagonal slats, the space can feel larger than it actually is.
A Swoop of Style
Rather than having a square or rectangular style gate, this designer added a swoop to the top of the gate. This slight curve in the gate gives this patio space more style and fluidity, making the space less boxy and more welcoming and charming.
The Traditional White English Garden Gate
There’s something so relaxing about a traditional white picket fence, especially one surrounded by rose bushes and vines allowed to grow wild. This gate is encircled by lush greenery and is doubly attractive thanks to the trellises overhead that will someday be covered with flowers and vines.
Simple Garden Gate
Red brick herringbone pavers lead past a beautiful garden to a white Chippendale gate that is welcoming and quaint, keeping this space open and airy for a light yet romantic garden feel.
A Short and Sweet Gate
This cottage-style home with a mini gray front wooden gate is the perfect look. The gate is short, allowing the beauty of the home to be seen, and the vintage mail slot completes the look like icing on a cake.
Rustic Wooden Criss-Cross Gate
This criss-cross gate is almost hauntingly gorgeous. The spider-like trees that line the dirt road add a storybook feel to this property, and we can only guess that it must look bright and inviting during the spring and summer months. We love that this gate doesn’t obscure any rural scenery and feels rustic and hand-crafted.
Pretty and Quaint
This charming gate for this back garden really takes the cake! The florals growing around the oval arch are like something straight out of a magazine, creating a swoon-worthy space that any passerby would stop and stare at.
Much like the gate we just shared, this gate also has an arbor, and in our books, there is nothing like a beautiful floral arbor on top of a white gate and picket fence.
Gate and Stonewall
This stylish and exquisite wood gate by Jeffrey Gordon Smith is more of a door, but we’re not ones to split hairs. We love the distinction between the heavy wood and the rough stones—it creates a lovely passageway leading in and out of an idyllic outdoor location.
Small Rustic Gate
Rustic stone pavers lead to a salvaged wood gate accenting a light gray shingled beach cottage home. This gate is perfect for this space. It adds some much-needed character without going over the top. It keeps with the simplicity of this space but also allows for some rich texture.
Quaint Modern Farmhouse Gates
The farmhouse “X” gate is sometimes all you need for a space. These simple and quaint gates do not detract from this home’s beauty but set a distinct frame for keeping the patio sectioned off.
Hidden Garden Gate in a Lush Hedge
The blogger behind Coco Cozy photographed this hidden garden gate at the Parker Hotel in Palm Springs. We love how it seems to have emerged out of nowhere in this overgrown and exceptionally high hedge. The Parker is a favored hotel in the Palm Springs area because of design elements like this that make you feel like you’re a world away from the hustle and bustle.
In Amongst the Pergola
This ivy-wrapped pergola leads to a brown wooden gate that creates a serene and relaxing space. This vertical, slender wooden gate perfectly complements this humble garden space.
Asian-Inspired Pergola-Style Gate
We love noticing how design leverages from around the world and how it can be translated and intermingled with other types of architecture and local flowers, and unique gardening preferences. This wood gate with a pergola reminds us of some of the ancient and historic architecture of China and Japan, which inspires a soothing, zen vibe in your outdoor space.
A Sweet Garden Gate from Joanna Gaines
By now, we have surely all heard of Joanna Gaines, so it’s no secret that we would look to her for design ideas, and her simple yet stunning wood gate completes this space and gives us all the scope for imagination that we need.
A Statement-Making Oversized Wooden Gate
Definitely not subtle, these oversized wood gates serve as much as a piece of art as they do an entrance. We love the daring, statement-making size and magnificence of these gate pieces. Just keep in mind that you need to have a large enough property, like a farm, to support such an eye-catching architectural feature adequately.
An Ivy-Covered Gate
Framed with lush ivy, this arched gateway looks like it leads to a magical secret garden.
Wrapped Up in Grape Vine
A lovely grape vine climbs and curls around this rustic wooden gate, hiding compost bins on the other side and providing its owners with delicious grape jelly.
A Small Wooden Gate In A Stucco Wall
There’s a lot to love about the definitive architecture of the Greek islands, from the remarkable contrast of white stucco walls, bright blue doors, and blooming pink bougainvillea. Perhaps more modest but still substantial are the waist-high gates that line the cobblestone streets—sectioning off stairways, homes, and hotels but not daring to conceal the miraculous views of the seas and further islands in the distance. We love to see these low gates and fences in locations where you still want to be capable of seeing the scenery or neighborhood around your home and property.
Climbing Clematis
Autumn clematis climbing across the top of this white garden gate provides an elegant and romantic vibe. There is nothing like seeing a picturesque view like this when you walk into the garden.
Green Hyacinth Gate
Add a Shining Detail
To add a pop of color to your garden, drill small holes into your gate’s wood and seat vintage marbles of varying sizes in the holes. As an added bonus, the marbles will glow like multicolor constellations when the sun illuminates them from behind.
A Large Farm Gate Overlooking a Field
Few things are more pastoral and picture-perfect than a well-worn wooden gate flanked by wild trees, rolling fields, and hills. If you’re fortunate enough to live on an extensive amount of property or a farm, you might have one of these gates dividing fields and crops or the wildland from your maintained lawn and gardens. We like how big gates like this are as useful as they are visually attractive.
An Arch Gate
This sleek white door with a pointed arch is built into a brick wall with Boston and Virginia creeper ivy. The two components work together to evoke an old-fashioned, gothic feel suitable for a secret garden.
Celtic Knots
Add a touch of whimsy to an otherwise simple wooden gate by carving a fun, decorative accent like a Celtic knot or other fanciful design.
A Peek-a-Boo Gate
If you’re looking to keep your garden or backyard fairly private but don’t like the look of solid wood, try adding a peek-a-boo insert. Here, an intricate black Nuvo Iron decorative window insert adds a bit of flourish without surrendering functionality.
A Pop of Red
Express some barnyard style into your garden with a small red door beneath a crisp white vine-covered arch, a variety that shows just how refined country style can be.
A Sturdy Wood Gate in a Lush Hedge
Wooden gates cradled in large, dominating hedges always make us think of The Secret Garden. A gate like this can’t help but encourage wonder and curiosity from anyone who passes by. This design feature makes a garden or outdoor space feel truly magical and special, no matter what lies on the other side.
Repurposed Garden Tools
This garden gate was built by attaching second-hand garden tools as diagonal “rungs” and “slats” on a swinging cedar frame. Though this gate won’t afford you much privacy, it will certainly give you a chance to showcase your creativity.
A Touch of Willow Sticks
This family’s gate was designed to deter chicken-eating dogs, but we think it’s so darn cute! The willow sticks were gathered along the Animas River. This is a great example of how you can add uniqueness and style to your gate without sacrificing function.
DIY Wooden Gates You Can Make
If you’re of the DIY mindset and you want to make your own wooden gate, here are some DIY ideas that you may love!
Related Articles:
- Creative Yet Cheap Fence Ideas for Your Backyard
- Types of Wood Fences: How to Choose The Right One
- A Helpful Guide for How to Use a Post Hole Digger
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Holly Antoine
