4 Simple Tips To Make The Most of Interior Trim

Trim work in a home’s interior can run the gamut from ample and ornate, to modern and minimal and anything in between. A wide range of options is also true when it comes to color, from clear to tinted stains to paint colors from traditional white to high contrast and/or vibrant color. So, when it’s time to freshen up your trim work, where do you start?

Step 1: Determine Your Home’s Style

Classic colonial? Mid-Century modern? Arts & Crafts/Mission Style? Modern Farmhouse? Your home’s style will have often influenced the type of trim work you have, whether it’s the clean, minimal lines of a contemporary home or the crafted millwork of an old Victorian and this will help you to determine how much of a visual role your trim work plays in the look of your room.

Step 2: Determine the Quality of Your Trim

Trim work falls into one of two categories; paint grade or stain grade. Stain grade is of a higher quality, with graining that looks beautiful when enhanced and protected with stain. You can still paint stain grade wood if that is the look you prefer. Paint grade is often a lesser quality wood with little or no grain, making it the perfect choice for paint.

Unless you’re purchasing the wood trim yourself, you may not know the quality of the trim you have unless it’s stained and not painted. You can always remove a small spot of paint from painted trim to see if it is stain quality (e.g., well-grained).

Imperfections like gouge marks or deep scratches are easy to fill, sand, prime and paint but there are also wood filler products that can help hide imperfections if you prefer a stain.

Step 3: Consider Stain Options

Stain options typically include transparent, semi-transparent and opaque stains.

Transparent stains: protect the wood but offer minimal or no pigmentation for color, allowing the basic wood color to come through and have the grain enhanced by the stain.

Semi-transparent stains: offer more color options and slightly more coverage than transparent stains, but still allow the wood grain to show through.

Opaque stains: offer full color coverage but allow the grain of some deeply grained woods to remain visible.

Step 4: Consider Paint Options

Paint gives you the greatest versatility in terms of color options and sheen.

Sheen: Paints come in a variety of sheens, including flat, matte, eggshell, satin, semi-gloss and high gloss. In general, the higher the sheen, the easier it is to clean, but also the more likely it is to show imperfections. For trim, eggshell, satin or semi-gloss offer a good balance between functionality and style. A high-gloss finish can be used as a design element as well as a practical option for high-traffic spots.

Color: While white or off-white are classic trim colors, don’t limit yourself! Trim color can be used to define elements such as windows and doors, help make a room look larger, balance an open space add color or tie together a room color palette.

Inspo Ideas for Trim

• ColorReader EZ can help you select the right paint colors for your trim work to coordinate with your walls, flooring, cabinetry – anything! It can even help you identify the underlying tones of wood stains to point you in a clearer color direction.
• To make a space such as a small bedroom feel larger, paint the baseboards, window casings and doors the same color as the walls. Opt for a different sheen level for subtle definition.
• The modern farmhouse look of minimal trim in matte black or charcoal works well in contemporary style spaces, too.
• Consider wainscoting as an opportunity to work color into the room. Choose a deeper shade of the same hue as your wall color to give the room a cohesive “grounded” feel.
• Trim is a great place to bring a touch of bright color into places, especially a kid’s room. A high gloss finish will really make the color pop and make clean up easier, too.
• The wide, wood moldings found in older homes add character as well as authenticity to the home’s style of architecture. That said, if they are stained a dark color, they can make a room look and feel smaller. You can consider sanding/removing the stain and replacing it with a clear coat or painting it a light neutral or white color.
• Molding and trim work help give a room a finished appearance so, consider adding some to rooms that have little or none. A substantive baseboard, decorative crown molding, even the addition of a simple quarter round strip to existing trim can elevate the look of any room.