Many homeowners are looking for ways to update and personalize their homes, searching through dozens of catalogs and sites for the perfect solution. However, making your space more interesting may be as simple as layering wood on your walls. An elegant option that packs a lot of visual power is adding wainscoting: wooden paneling or trim installed over the lower part of a wall. Visually, it divides a room in two, creating an upper and lower level in an architectural scheme. Wainscoting can be designed in any way, but much of the design depends on the walls and architectural style of the home. To achieve a look that works well with your style, hiring a woodworking professional who can help you make design decisions will help ensure you love the outcome.

In a bathroom remodel, we decided to install wainscoting as a more cost-effective way to refurbish a torn up wall. There had been outdated tile layered over half the wall—by tearing it out, the wall was left scarred and ugly. However, the usual repair option would be to take out the wall entirely and add a new drywall. This process would have been costly and messy, not to mention requiring quite a bit of manpower; adding wainscoting was a stylish, simple alternative, and less expensive.

The owner of this dining room wanted to create a more formal atmosphere. With a minimalist approach we created the illusion of wainscoting, painting the lower wall a different color and framing it with custom trim that matched the home’s style. This type of square wainscoting takes a woodworking professional with good math skills to build such an evenly spaced design. To create consistently-sized frames can be tricky.  If the math isn’t done right, the design might have to be squeezed or added onto, leaving you with an awkward skinny frame at the end of your wall. Lopsided wainscoting is not a joy to behold.

The great thing about wainscoting is that it adds a big bang without a lot of fuss. This staircase and plain-looking hallway now have an impressive visual impact when you first walk in the door. High wainscoting like the above is becoming very trendy in modern homes, though the idea is centuries old. Tall wainscoting works well in houses with tall features; this home had nine foot ceilings and an overall grand look.

Wainscoting’s relatively simple, less expensive process gives such a pay-off in lasting visual impact. All around, wainscoting is a fabulous way to spice up any area that lacks interest. We at Marvelous Woodworking have had plenty of experience with designing custom wainscoting that perfectly fits our clients’ rooms and gives them the architectural elegance they were looking for. To schedule a free consultation, send us an email or call us at (317) 679-5890.