Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Decorate My House With Crown Molding & Wainscot

Crown molding adds a finishing touch to a room.


Crown molding and wainscot paneling are two architectural details that add style and flair to your home. These additions can transform a room from drab to sophisticated, sometimes with minimal expense. Crown molding and wainscoting can be used in any room, enabling you to decorate your entire home with one particular style or complimenting styles that reflect your preferences.


Instructions


1. Choose the rooms that you would like to decorate with crown molding and wainscoting. If your home lacks crown molding entirely, start by focusing on high traffic areas such as the entrance, kitchen and living room areas. Although sometimes overlooked, crown molding and wainscoting can even be used in bathrooms, closets and utility rooms for added elegance and old world charm.








2. Choose the type of crown molding that you would like to use. Moldings are made from different materials including solid wood, medium density fiberboard or MDF, plaster, polystyrene, polyurethane and PVC. Solid wood and plaster moldings are the most expensive and can be more difficult to work with. Solid wood moldings expand and shrink with temperature changes, and plaster can crack. Polystyrene and polyurethane must be painted and can be very basic in style but are more cost effective.


3. Choose the type of wainscoting that will complement your home and décor. Your options for wainscoting are numerous, from simple bead board to elaborate and custom-designed panels. If you are new to this type of decoration, leaf through home décor magazines and browse local showrooms or displays at a home improvement store.


4. Determine the color scheme you want for each room. If the rooms are already painted a color that you like, decide what color your crown molding and wainscoting will be. if you want to change the color scheme, wall painting should be done before the molding and wainscoting are installed. A popular choice is to keep both additions a bright white color for added contrast against the painted wall. You can also choose a complementing color for both accent pieces or contrasting colors if you are really adventurous.

Tags: molding wainscoting, crown molding wainscoting, your home, Choose type, color scheme, crown molding, Solid wood