How to Use Frame Moulding

How to use frame moulding is something that my clients are always curious about. After all, it’s a beautiful detail that creates character and adds interest and something we have all seen used effectively in hotel lobbies and in grand homes. My clients ask does it make sense to use it here? or there? There’s a long and a short answer to that question so let me start with the short one. The answer to how to use frame moulding is anywhere that it can help define a space.

The example in the photo above is a 40’ hallway that looked like this before. It was in my daughter and son-in-law’s last home; a condo in Chicago. One day they called me frustrated as they struggled to hang their poster art. It was a space that they walked down constantly either heading to the kitchen and family room or back to their private spaces. It had so much potential but needed a professional eye to breath new life into it. One afternoon after a shopping trip for my other clients at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago I stopped by their condo while they were both at work. The first thing I did was pull out my tape measure…that’s when I discovered how long this space really was! It was actually like a bowling alley! That’s when the idea of defining specific areas for them to hang their art (by the way my husband & I actually did that for them as a part of their Christmas gift) and this is the plan I came up with. We took it a step further and ordered the frames from West Elm and selected the wedding photos that we thought would be nice to display. (they had been married for over a year by then and could not bring themselves to finalize the photos they wanted to display) That was a full-time job in itself!

Back to how to use frame moulding…..I selected a 1 1/2 inch molding from Home Depot which my painters picked up and did all the work to create what we had designed. Generally, a good painting crew will have someone on staff that is skilled with doing trim work like this. By the way, if you’re wondering what wall colors we used it was Farrow & Ball Skimming Stone 241 and London Clay 244.

Once this space was defined it took on a whole new life! Instead of being the dreaded dark hallway to walk down they were making excuses to pass through the space admiring their featured wedding photos framed in style.

Another idea on how to use frame moulding is in a room with a volume ceiling like this. It’s a great way to define the space for a large piece and make it feel complete without the urge to add more pieces to the wall. It sets the focal point and keeps your eyes from wanting more.

When it was time to move on to a larger home the frame moulding that was added to their condo became a feature that set their home apart from the other condos in the building which helped them to sell quickly.

Frame moulding can also be used to define an entire room. It can be tricky when working around windows, light switches, and air vents that can throw the pattern off when defining a space, but don’t let that discourage you. This photo shows one wall in a living room that we wanted to start with to create interest in a living room. This elevation shows how we defined the area over the sofa separating the lighting from the artwork. We started with this wall since it was the focal point from the foyer which helped us determine how to treat the other walls with frame molding. Here’s the view standing in the opening near the foyer showing more of the living room and how we carried the moulding around the walls defining the artwork and adding detail to the walls without art. One of the challenges we did have on the lower portion was an area that had an air vent. Since the air vent was just a few inches above the base molding we literally worked around it by stopping the moulding on the left and right of the air vent. Once the furniture was in place it wasn’t noticeable.

Who says frame moulding is only for walls?

Frame moulding can also be used to create interest on a ceiling. We sometimes see this in traditional architecture but it’s also a way to dress up and define a space no matter what the style is. Here’s an example of how we used moulding to define the space over the island in my client’s transitional kitchen. In this case, we repeated the diamond pattern that was used as the accent design around the back of the peninsula and in the open shelving over the refrigerator wall. The frame moulding did a nice job of adding interest to their kitchen and pulling the look together.

No matter what style your home is, learning how to use frame moulding is a simple and great way to add interest and add accent colors to a room. I hope this inspires you to use your imagination in your home!

If you need more direction on getting started consider my Local or Online Design Services! I’m here to guide you!