Home accents: Crown molding and Wainscoting
Decorative accents can really help make a house a home. A few that always catch my eye are crown molding and wainscoting. They are subtle additions that enhance almost any room.
Crown Molding
Crown Molding is installed to hide the corner where walls and ceiling meet. It can really dress up a room. Molding comes in a variety of materials like plaster, wood, PVC and many more each with pros and cons. Be careful to select a size and pattern appropriate for your room, otherwise, it might make a room feel much smaller. Molding templates are a must have for the first time do-it-yourselfer.
Wainscot (wān-skət)
Wainscoting is wood paneling lining the lower portion of a wall. It will make a bold statement and can make a room feel larger. Framed beaded board and raised panels are the best applications. The panels are fixed using nails and adhesive. Beaded board also has a tongue and groove for a snug fit. Wainscoting not only looks great but helps protect your walls. Here is a helpful guide from This Old House for installation.
What do you think? What home accents do you prefer? Ever use a pre-fabbed install kit?
March 11th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
I love crown molding and beadboard and wainscoting!
I think we are going to beadboard the ceiing of our bedroom when it is finished…
I’ve never used the prefab kits…
March 11th, 2008 at 8:49 pm
We like crown molding and plan to put it up in almost every room.
I also really like tin ceilings.
March 11th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Prefab is the way to go! I’m using it on my current nearly-50-year-old house and it is a huuuuuuge time saver. Coping angles is a major downer to me. Maybe if I did crown molding full time, I’d be better. But I get upset with myself when those corners come out a fraction off.
Prefab worked really well for me, and I plan to do it in all my rooms moving forward. Huge huge huge time and frustration savings by using them.
-Jon
March 12th, 2008 at 7:31 am
jennifer
I never thought about the beadboard ceiling but I really like that idea.
aimee
I think crown is less of a commitment to install (even though I love wainscoting) and plan to add it to my living room
jon
Coping angles is tough. I tend to use guides (where available) for projects like these too.
March 13th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
A really great way to make elegant wainscoting is to use MDF panels combined with your choice of moldings to create a raised panel look. We did that in our new home and it looks amazing. The nice part is MDF is cheap and it paints VERY well.
March 14th, 2008 at 5:31 am
Todd: The method you describe is the one we’re planning on for the dining room. We’ve seen this in a few other areas and it produces a very nice look at a low cost.