Interior Trim Projects Worth Tackling This Fall
Once November arrives in Michigan, the backyard project list tends to lose some of its appeal.
Fortunately, a project doesn’t have to involve tearing out a whole room to make your home feel noticeably more finished. Interior moulding and trim can change the way walls, doors, windows and ceilings relate to each other, making this a category worth considering when project season moves indoors.
MANS carries moulding and custom millwork and helps homeowners and builders choose trim for new construction and renovation projects. [manslumber.com]
Here are a few places to start.
Start low: take a look at the baseboards
Baseboards create the transition between the wall and floor. MANS describes baseboard as the most common type of moulding in homes and businesses. [manslumber.com]
They’re also easy to stop noticing.
Walk through your house and look at them intentionally. Are the proportions right for the room? Are you remodeling a space where the existing trim no longer works with the new flooring or wall finish? Does one room have a completely different trim personality from the next?
You don’t necessarily need more ornamentation. Sometimes the cleanest improvement is simply choosing a profile and proportion that fits the space.
Look up: crown moulding changes the transition
Crown moulding sits where walls and ceilings meet. MANS notes that it can give the appearance of higher ceilings. [manslumber.com]
That makes crown less about adding decoration everywhere and more about deciding where you want architectural definition.
Dining rooms, living spaces, entries and other gathering areas are natural places to evaluate. A simple profile might suit a restrained interior, while a more detailed treatment could make sense in a traditional room.
The goal isn’t to make everyone notice the trim first.
Good millwork should feel like it belongs there.
Don’t overlook door and window casing
Casing is doing a job even before you consider the style.
MANS explains that casing conceals the gaps between drywall and a door or window frame while also providing an architectural detail. [manslumber.com]
If you’re replacing windows or doors, changing wall finishes or undertaking a larger remodel, casing deserves to be part of the discussion rather than a decision left until the end.
Its width, profile and relationship to nearby baseboard affect whether the finished room looks intentional.
Add detail where it earns its keep
Not every wall needs an elaborate treatment.
Chair rail, for example, can protect walls from scuffs while creating a transition between finishes. MANS notes that it is often used in kitchens and dining rooms. [manslumber.com]
Wainscoting combines decorative paneling and trim and can be used to visually break up a wall. MANS notes its use in bathroom renovations as one example. [manslumber.com]
Picture rail offers another possibility for spaces where artwork or photographs are part of the room.
These details work best when there’s a reason behind them. Use trim to solve a transition, create proportion, protect a surface or reinforce the architecture of the home.
Stock profiles or something more specific?
One benefit of thinking about millwork early is that you can evaluate how much customization the project honestly needs.
MANS offers both moulding and custom millwork and identifies categories including baseboard, crown moulding and casing. The company’s broader product offering also includes lumber, millwork and architectural detail as part of its Southeast Michigan home-improvement resources. [manslumber.com][manslumber.com]
For a single-room refresh, that might mean finding a trim profile that ties the space together.
For a renovation or distinctive older home, it may mean looking more carefully at how new work relates to existing details.
Either way, the trim conversation is easier before everything else is finished.
A good late-fall indoor project
Michigan gives us plenty of reasons to move projects indoors once colder weather arrives. Trim is one of those improvements that can be considered room by room rather than turning the whole house upside down.
Take a walk through your house this weekend and look at the edges: floor to wall, wall to ceiling, door to drywall, window to wall.
Those transitions are small, but they do a lot of visual work.
Thinking about an interior trim project? Stop by MANS Lumber & Home or talk with our team about moulding and millwork options that make sense for your room and renovation.
