thanks How2girl and siriuskey for comments. I've since found out the shellac underneath the lead paint is more easily removed with metho, but the timber is still uneven - bleached in parts, and then when I tried to wash the metho off with water, it's left grey stains and water marks! What a learning curve. Siriuskey, getting painted items professionally dipped seems sensible with hindsight, given the total chore of safely removing lead paint, then the shellac.... then the resulting stains I note also there are two types of timber, one for the framing and another for the infill panels....glad to hear these came up well for you SK Looks like I may have to stain the bleached timber to get some warmth back, but then will try polyurethane you both suggest.

You can still buy flush panel timber veneer doors, and have them stained to match the existing architraves. If the door hardware is in good condition you may be able to re-use it. When replacing bedroom doors I always suggest to my clients to see if the budget will stretch to solid core doors as they are more durable and better at stopping sound transmission. Best of luck, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls and Dr Retro Virtual Visits

This can be because the raw material is different between the architraves and doors, or perhaps they were not primed properly and needs more coats.

If you paint all entry doors same colour as walls they tend to ‘disappear’ and won’t compete with the robe doors. Re the drawer set up fold some of your own & partner’s clothes the way you want them to fit in your new cabinetry and measure from there. A 9cm height could be a great underwear drawer, or if you have power to the back if it a charging station for phones & laptops. Make a careful inventory of everything that needs to fit and decide from there.