Courtesy of CIL Paints
Natural brights, such as Peacock’s Plume teal by CIL paint, deliver a tranquil feel to a living space.
The reason I chose this photo to review is because of the details in the room. The decorative trim, via the wainscoting and crown molding, are part of what make this room scrumptious. The lovely wall colour, CIL’s Peacock’s Plume (16BG 24/357 DL28), is a trendy and vibrant colour that works beautifully with these architectural elements.
Adding decorative trim to a room is not as difficult as you might think. Recreating a wainscoting look can be done with some inexpensive decorative trim and a length of chair rail. You are basically making simple picture frames with the slimmer trim and attaching it to the wall with small finishing nails. Use a mitre box and a sharp saw to make the 45-degree cuts at the corners. Pre-drill holes in the trim if you don’t have an air nailer, otherwise the trim might crack when being nailed to the doors. Add in a chair rail about a third of the way up from the floor and paint the entire area white to finish the look. I used a similar technique on kitchen cabinets in our former home to give them an update and it looked great. It wasn’t difficult at all, just a little time-consuming.
You can create a more informal, cottage-style look by using bead board cut to chair-rail height. (Some hardware stores carry it in precut chair-rail height.) Finish it off with a chair-rail moulding. A less permanent and inexpensive way to go is to use white, textured wallpaper in the wainscoting area. Again, install a chair rail to finish the look. This might be a great application for renters. Check with your landlord beforehand, of course.
Crown moulding can be a little more difficult if you’re using a concave trim. Instead, opt for a straight board for a more modern look and paint it white to match the wainscoting below. Or, bring the white ceiling paint down onto the wall to mimic trim. You only have to create a straight line using painter’s tape in place of real boards.
The piece de resistance will be the choice of wall colour. The bold wall colour in our feature photo is stunning but any vibrant colour will do. You can also go with pale wall colour for a more spa-like feel, but don’t be shy about using a strong colour — even black.
Speaking of black, the black accents in this room help ground the entire look. (Notice the two tables are completely different styles— love it.) Black is often forgotten or overlooked in the accessory realm, so keep it in mind, because it really does finish off the look. Use it strategically and in small doses, so as not to overwhelm when using black in accessories. The trio of black — photo frame and two tables — is perfect for this space. The placement of these items carries the eye around the room.
As mentioned, you can also update cabinet doors with trim. Consider giving your kitchen an update by adding decorative trim or crown moulding to the cabinets. Flat, interior doors can also be adorned with trim by creating faux panels. You’d be amazed at how much more elegant doors and cabinets can look with these added details.
Many rooms in the home can benefit from a wainscoting treatment. The dining room is one room where this treatment can make a dull room formal and elegant. The bead board wainscoting treatment mentioned above could look charming in a bathroom or powder room and even in a rec room. Even the master bedroom would look grand all trimmed out. A ho-hum entryway could benefit from this wall treatment and turn boring into eye-catching, especially if you also adorn the interior of the door. Imagine the nursery with white wainscoting and a soft neutral wall colour — how calming.
Start with a small space or furniture piece to see how it goes. Perhaps a flat panel cabinet, such as a bookcase, is a good place to start. A small guest powder room might be next on the agenda and go on from there. You don’t have to do every room in the home, but once you see how lovely it looks you might end up doing just that.
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