How does crown molding work

Consider the room's purpose. Traditionally, crown was incorporated into impressive cornices in public rooms, such as entry foyers, dining rooms, and parlors. The size would remain consistent from one first-floor entertaining space to the next. By contrast, smaller, less elaborate crown was generally used for private spaces—a powder room or bedroom. Play off the existing trim.

Look to your baseboards and door and window casing to determine the right scale. An appropriately sized cornice is either the same height as, or slightly smaller than, the baseboard. Measure the ceiling height.

Ceiling height is the ultimate arbiter of size, according to architect Richard Sammons, coauthor of Get Your House Right. In the tradition of ancient Greek and Roman crown, this molding has both acanthus leaves and egg-and-dart detailing.

In place of the typical cove, there's a bead beneath the elongated S curve. This crown is solid, making it a good choice in locations that don't touch the ceiling, such as cabinets and casings. Delicate acanthus leaves are commonly seen on trim used in Classical Revival—style homes.

This flexible, paint-grade polyurethane crown is topped with a large bulbous curve, called an ovolo, that creates a clean shadow line. Overlaid strips of solid stock form a crown that would complement s Art Deco or even contemporary interiors. A scene-stealing frieze with a flowering vine motif tucks neatly beneath a rippled crown. This ancient crown profile is simply a graceful S curve set above a concave-shaped cove.

To get intricate details like ropes or beads in a wood crown, these components are often machined separately and then inserted into a groove cut into the crown. This impressive one-piece cornice has a meandering Greek key design of interlocking geometric shapes. A dough-like mixture of sawdust and resin forms the decorative beading and the "lamb's tongue" motif on this paint-grade crown.

The earliest crown was planed by hand from the New World's plentiful supply of wood. Simple profiles predominated, owing to the high cost of adding complicated carved details. The use of crown waned in the s, but simple strips are a handsome upgrade to more modern ranches and split-levels, as long as they are in proportion to the ceiling height. In the late 19th century, Americans favored crown that was big, bold, and often encrusted with classical details, such as dentils and acanthus leaves.

This earlyth-century style supplanted Victorian-era excess with clean lines and no-fuss shapes. Crown could be painted or, if milled from quality wood, such as oak, stained to highlight its beauty.

When you can't find a matching profile at a lumberyard or home center, the easiest way to get a copy of your existing crown is to send a cutoff to a wood millwork shop or a maker of foam or plaster moldings, such as Fypon or Hyde Park. But if a scrap isn't handy and your crown doesn't have details like dentils and leaves, make a template using a profile gauge left. Press the comb-like device against the crown, then trace the shape onto cardboard, noting which edge is the crown's face.

Dixon himself loves moldings from the s, when rooms started getting more modern and molding became flatter, with less detail. He does like to see people experimenting with materials. But what Dixon really admires is the persistent tradition of historically appropriate molding. Among them: C. But there are still opportunities to be creative.

For example, an elaborate crown might be a fun trick in a tiny powder room, drawing the eye up to distract from the fact that the room is very small. But usually, a heavy crown in a small room will only feel oppressive. I encourage people to keep it simple; ornate is just a distraction. Dixon also prefers to see molding of the appropriate era. Paint color can really make a difference in how the high the ceiling feels.

Fans of modern architecture often want to dispense with molding altogether. That depends on when the molding was installed. But again: Moldings are there for a reason.

Remodeling projects large and small come with lots of forks in the road. A better solution is to choose a well designed crown moulding that is proportionate to the scale of the room, and choose other trim elements such as a paneled wainscoting and grander door casings to add a touch of luxury. Here crown WOCM see more details below has classic craftsman design elements.

The square footage and level of formality of the room can help determine what crown size in that range is appropriate. For ceilings that are 10 feet or taller, a larger crown is necessary in order to make a visual impact. By following the guidelines above you can ensure that next room that you create is both pleasing to the eye and follows the classic proportions of craftsmen throughout history.

Here at Horner Millwork we are experts when it comes to interior finish, please contact us to discuss how we can help you create an interior trim package that is architecturally correct and works for your next project.

The concave cove side goes down, and the convex rounded side goes up. Step 2 Set up your miter saw to cut at a degree angle. The cut on the right will angle to the right. The cut on the left will angle to the left. Outside corner cuts — they have a long top and a short bottom edge. The cuts on the right will angle left, and the cuts on the left will angle right. Scarf cuts — These cuts are used to join two crown moulding pieces on the wall.

The angle of the cut will be in the direction of both sides. Step 4 Nail or glue the moulding to the wall. How to Make Existing Baseboards Taller.