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Dress Up Walls

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Nothing attire up naked paries like wainscoting , an umbrella full term for any case of decorative wall panel that occupies the downhearted portion of a wall . Originally all wainscoting was high - quality oak ; it may have developed as part of wagon construction , and started to realize popularity in sixteenth - century England to keep out the cold and stave off moisture - relate damage . Today , wainscoting is chiefly used to tote up interest group and allure to an interior sustenance blank .

Wainscoting can be either pre - made or custom - built , and made from a variety of textile . If you are look at using wainscoting in your household , the accompany inspired wall panel ideas may avail you make the best choice for your interior decoration . contain out these 19 wow - suitable ways to use this adaptable , versatile wall surfacing .

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Build with Beadboard

Experience New England living with this traditional wainscoting style common in Cape Cod - style houses . Featuring thin vertical wooden stripsthat ignition interlock in a glossa - and - groove systemwith the knife ( protruding bound ) of one strip fitting into the groove ( slot ) of another , beadboard makes such little spaces as breakfast nooks and bathrooms room look taller . The Milk River - white beadboard in this tub was built up to a few inches above the countertop to repeat as a backsplash and draw the eye toward the cheery leaf mustard pigment and twin goldsconces .

Add Elegance with Raised Paneling

A striking in 17th - century Colonial and Queen Anne - style dwelling , this traditional wainscoting choice play individual chamfer substantial or rectangular wood ( or MDF ) panels . The panel are divided by thin perpendicular strips and cease with an upper horizontal rail of molding . This formal look befit live room , dining rooms , and other distance where invitee gain . White raised paneling lends depth to this dining room while maintaining its frizzly , clear aura .

Create Clean Lines with Board and Batten

Zillow homein Kirkland , WA

First used on the siding of barns , board and battenconsists of interchange all-inclusive wood or MDF panels and narrow-minded wooden strips between upper and low-spirited horizontal rails of modeling . It attractively commingle traditional and New elements in transitional infinite , from kitchen to mud rooms . The old human race - root on flax control panel - and - batten wainscoting , wooden table , andchandelierin this stately dining room lend it lovingness and make the modern art seem as a true freshness .

Put Up Picture Frame Molding

scene frame molding gravel its name from its early use as a divider for paries - mount framed portrayal . It usually consists of a series of frame - like units made of individual strips of beveled woods or MDF moulding joined into a square toes or rectangle . While square picture framing moldings arouse a traditional flavor that suits schematic dining or living way , the orthogonal blanched clay sculpture in this stairway exude modernity .

Appreciate the Original Beauty

When it comes to color options , you may paint wood or MDF wainscoting in any hue of your choosing , or let it go bare to reveal its original beauty . varnished wainscoting is in particular worthy in traditional entree and hallways with a yesteryear flavor , which the raw patina of the wainscoting only enhances . Paired with ornate mirror and grand pendent , dark and dramatic woodgrain makes entering this Victorian - flair foyer sense like stepping into another era .

Select Soft Neutrals

Neutral color strategy , boring ? As if ! perpetually tonic wainscoting hues like ashen and ointment really draw the eye to more venturous design element in traditional , transitional , or modern rooms across the home base . Just be sure to opt an equally master bulwark blusher gloss and wainscoting style so as not to overpower the space . Here , white recess ( recessed ) pane and low-toned - paint pick - colored wall serve as an elegant backdrop to a vintage table ignite by a glitzy pendant .

Go Bold

Is your hallway , mudroom , or reading room not getting the attention it merit ? Eye - pop wainscoting color from fervency - railway locomotive red to magenta inject fun and modernistic genius into what were once purely functional space . Electric blue recessed ( sunken ) paneling is an energizing and welcome mountain amidst the gray carpet that line this winding staircase .

Whiten and Brighten

If you pass in love with a dark rampart color but worry about turning your elbow room into a cave , paint the wainscoting below with a bright lily-white . This crisp classic willbrighten any roomthat might otherwise gettoocozy ; just run it one - third of the agency up on the rampart for a pop or two - third to make the elbow room extra airy . The white control board - and - batting wainscoting in this multipurpose room shifts the regard of node to the paint emphasis above it — a velvety navy — and accordingly highlight the gamy ceiling as well .

Match the Walls

sherwin-williams.com

choose a wainscoting coloring that coordinates with your walls is a simple but often overlooked proficiency for attain visual cohesion in living , family , and dining rooms with piece of furniture and interior decoration of diverse styles that you want to attach together . Despite the distinctive nonfigurative rampart art , industrial ignition , and modern-day mesa in this dining elbow room and taproom , the room asseverate a unified look thanks to the slate - colored raise paneling and matching wall .

Target Your Color

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Whether the rail of board and batting or the indentation of recessed paneling , many wainscoting features worth admiring may not be noticeable unless you ’re up close . One way to emphasise them is to apply color only to the architectural item you wish to emphasize and leave the residue of the elbow room white . In this New sitting elbow room , the homeownersapplied black paintonly to the indentations in the recess paneling and along the perimeter of the threshold and ceiling to set them aside . The wonderfully flaky pitch-dark - and - white theme spill over onto the story with a smutty Art Deco - fashion hot seat and striped carpet .

Take Wainscoting to New Heights

Zillow homein Howell , MI

From dressers to tables , many furniture pieces might be of thesame peak as wainscotingand would therefore track it up if pose in front of it . One solution for traditional , transitional , or advanced rooms is to increase the height of your wainscoting . These homeowners raised the height of their kinfolk room ’s board - and - batten wainscoting to roughly two - thirds of the meridian of the wall , allowing it to glint out above an passee bureau put a few inches in the foreground . Even good ? The improbable wainscotting insure spot , incision , and other blemishes at the midplane of the paries .

Camouflage Wall Cabinets

Have a set of cabinets on one bulwark that take in bare fence in walls stick out ? Consider installing wainscoting on the other walls to stave off the wonky look and achieve a more cohesive and modern dining room , biz room , or den . These homeowner cleverly installed white recessed paneling against a dismal - gray dining elbow room paries at the same tiptop as an adjacent set of usance ashen cabinet for a beautifully balanced issue . From afar , the wainscoting looks like a cabinet unto itself !

Remember that Less is More

Fort wainscoting to have maximal wallop , only install it in quality orbit , which lets it make a secure affirmation than overdo it all over the house . Empty bay , uninviting hallways andentryways , and rooms with minimum article of furniture all make great nominee for wainscoting . Take a pageboy from these householder , who installed cream - colored raised paneling to lend oomph to an emptytraditional entrywaybut left the walls bare in an adjacent living elbow room that was already well furnished .

Safeguard Stairways

Zillow homein Los Angeles , CA

As a wall covering , wainscoting can do as much to protect your walls as it can to raise their beauty , especially when it ’s installed in entryways , hallway , and other high traffic spaces that get hump up on the daily . Here , white circuit board - and - batting wainscoting in the staircase staves off wall scuff print from heavy appliances or equipment the homeowner might carry upstairs .

Don’t Shy Away from Angled Rooflines

Zillow homein Bainbridge Island , WA

When design wainscoting in a elbow room on the top floor , its tallness may feel taller in the section with a low-down ceiling than elsewhere in the room due to the incline of the roof . Generally speaking , wainscoting will span one - third of the tallest rampart and go all the elbow room around the room . Mark this height oneverywall , including shorter ace located under the eaves , before you instal it to see that you ’re glad with the placement and make adjustments as needed . Keep in judgement that you ’ll also make out the wainscoting where a wall feature impedes you , like these homeowners who work on around the central window in their bungalow - chic design .

Paired with Paper

make a custom look for a Hellenic body politic - styled room by pairing painted beadboard with patternedwallpaper . This racy - bleached beadboard is outline by hopeful lily-white baseboard and chair rail for a refined appeal . The stripy wallpaper mimics the lines of the beadboard below , but creates a less formal spirit from its multicolor stripes correct in a duplicate design . pair with an oversized floral wallpaper , a dark - painted beadboard can provide a more mod flair .

Corner Curves

Not all wainscoting is rectangular . A r corner particular breaks up the straight telephone circuit of the rest of the bulwark ’s components , and impart refined character to the way . This illustration of spoke corner molding has a delicate and thin profile , further tot up to the lightness of the wainscoting . paint in the same color as the rest of the rampart , the shadow line define the line of the molding and provide a textural backdrop to the rest of the space .

Top to Bottom

While wainscoting typically covers about one - third of a wall , sometimes it makes sense to poke out pane from floor to roof . Using the raised jury mojo of traditional wainscoting , this example demonstrates how to use these elements to increase the feeling of top in a space . The low-spirited trim ’s longsighted side of the rectangle extend left to right , and the top trim ’s long sides protract down to up . Painting the entire paries the same color also helps make the space seem more expansive .

Create it With Paint

If there ’s no budget for wainscoting but you like the looking at and require it for a room in your home , paintcan help . This is n’t a time to employ elusive colour choices for both the top and bottom parts of the walls . In orderliness for the paint to wait purposeful , and not a color - match stroke , render a color that is very different from the paint on the top portion of the bulwark . This also is a budget - friendly way to try out the wainscoting flavor , before give to the actual panels or cut back .

This Is the twelvemonth for a Kitchen Renovation

Whether you ’re deal or staying , everyone can get something out of a kitchen update . see why we consider this renovation the Most Valuable Project of 2025 and how to ride out on budget .

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