11 Ways to Incorporate Crown Molding Designs in Your Home
When you need to add a finishing touch to a space or a design element, decorative crown molding can offer an attractive and elegant accessory. It can add a hint of timelessness and a classic old-world flair to a period-style home or even a modern one, too. Plus, adding crown molding and trim is a relatively easy DIY home project. Using a power nailer and a power miter saw, crown molding designs are a breeze to install and attach to walls, cabinets, coffered ceilings and more. From sleek and decorative wood trim to wide and ornate crown molding, here are 11 ways to use crown molding designs throughout your home.
Shop All Decorative Crown Molding1. Softening the Wall and Ceiling
One of the most popular ways to incorporate crown molding in your home is by mounting it in the corner where the walls and ceiling meet. Mounting it at a 45-degree angle between the wall and the ceiling can bring many opportunities and advantages to a room’s design. It can trick the eye and lend height to a room, while also disguising any unsightly drywall mishaps where the corners come together. With certain style moldings reminiscent of period-style homes, you can even hang an entire collection of artwork and photos using picture frame molding hooks. This works nicely for older homes with plaster walls. Plus, picture frame crown moldings offer complete versatility should you ever wish to rearrange your display.
2. Add Flair to Cabinets and Soffits
The soffit space above cabinets – and even boxy-looking, stock cabinets themselves – can be an eyesore to some homeowners. For starters, the cabinet soffits, especially those of deep cabinets, can appear dark. Cabinet soffits can also collect unwanted dust and debris. While some homeowners believe they can only do so much to make this space aesthetically pleasing, such as covering it with drywall or adding decorative objects like faux flowers or pots, there are better ways! Crown molding, for example, comes in super handy when it comes to cabinet soffits. Not only does incorporating crown molding add interest to the cabinets of a kitchen or any other place upper cabinetry might be, but it adds visual height and conceals the empty space between the top of the cabinets and the ceiling.
One option is to simply run crown molding along the cabinet’s top edge. Essentially, this means that the top of the molding juts outward midair, while the bottom is attached to the upper cabinet. Another option is to create a floor-to-ceiling, built-in look. For this style, you can also install crown molding to cover and eliminate the empty soffit space entirely, making the cabinets appear as if they go straight to the ceiling. However you choose to incorporate crown molding designs and upgrade your cabinets, it’s sure to add the perfect amount of flair to the space.
3. Accentuate an Interior Doorway or Archway
Decorative wood trims and molding designs are also another way to accent certain architectural features and design elements of the home. For instance, you can add a decorative wood trim and molding around the interior doorway, open passageway or archway. This incorporation works especially well when there’s a remaining gap between the frame and the wall when a door is installed. Even open passageways and archways that do not have installed doors can take advantage of decorative molding and trim, offering a visual border that divides two rooms and spaces. For instance, this could work in an open floor plan where a dining room and living room are connected, but may require some distinction.
Shop All Decorative Wood TrimWhen using a trim around a doorway, accentuate it and add height with a decorative crown molding. Adding a heavier crown molding brings the eye upward and offers height to the room as well. Installing decorative trim around a passageway or door and then topping it off with a more substantial crown molding can elevate the space and make a more grand entrance. Even if there’s existing trim, you can simply add a different width above it.
Incorporating crown molding designs and trim around a doorway or passageway is a relatively easy DIY project that most craftsmen can accomplish in a weekend. However, when you top it off with crown molding, just be sure to finish off the edges and cut returns at a 90-degree angle. Doing so will make a more refined look and hide the open ends of the molding.
4. Finish the Tops of Partial Walls
Partial walls, such as a pony wall or knee wall, act as a room divider while leaving a space feeling more free and open. Some partial walls can even extend further upwards, only to stop just short of the ceiling, leaving a built-in design. One example of this are home library shelving units and closet spaces that are added into a room with taller ceilings. While both styles of partial walls can act as a visual separation between two spaces, many times, they could also use a finishing touch – that is to say, by adding crown molding designs and trim details.
Crown molding is perfect for adding the finishing touches to your partial walls, whether they’re knee-height pony walls or extended partial walls. For smaller pony walls and knee-high walls that have a ledge for placing decorative objects, attach the crown molding and trim along the sides of the ledge. For taller partial walls that act more like a built-in cabinet space, attach crown molding to the edge of the protrusions, acting as a parapet, with the crown floating midair similar to the installation method for cabinet soffits.
Besides simply adding a finishing touch, incorporating crown molding and trim details to partial walls offers many advantages. For instance, it can create a more cohesive and elegant look throughout the space, tying together other design elements. When it comes to taller partial walls under high ceilings, crown molding designs and trim can also help to conceal accent lighting such as rope lights and even soft ambient lighting.
5. Dress Up Headers on Entry Doors
Another way to add crown molding designs in your home is by dressing up headers on entryway doors. And this can be done on both sides – interior and exterior! With crown molding and trim constructed of many durable types of materials, such as natural and stainable woods to weather-resistant and insect-proof urethane, you can add a door header situated just about anywhere!
Whether it’s made of solid wood, wood composite or urethane, crown molding designs can add a lovely finishing touch and dress up the header of an entryway door on either side. From peaked cap urns to elliptical sunbursts, Van Dyke’s offers a variety of molding and trim header styles to accentuate and dress up your home’s front door. Plus, they can all be painted or stained to match your door trim, coordinating the entryway’s overall design and color palette.
Similar to the installation process of cabinet soffit crown molding, these headers attach to the top edge with the top of the crown jutting out freely and unattached. In the same way, it will require short return pieces to be installed on the ends to finish off the molding. However, it’s also important to keep in mind that the top can accumulate dust, dirt and even other elements like snow and will need to be maintained. Luckily, maintaining these areas is pretty easy, and can be tidied up using a vacuum with a hose attachment.
6. Framing a Window
Framing a window with trim and crown molding can make it appear larger. This works incredibly well in more compact rooms that only have a few windows, especially since this little trick of the eye doubles to not only make the windows look grander, but also to make the space seem brighter. When you paint the trim and crown molding details in a bright white hue, it makes a space feel less cramped and opens up the space to make it airier and inviting.
Crown molding and trim details also help frame a window’s curtains and window treatments. By adding crown molding, you can essentially create a visual anchor that grounds the window while window treatments hang inside the frame. If you have long curtains, complement your new window trim with updated antique drapery hardware.
Of course, you can also frame a window with crown molding on the interior or exterior of your home. Use smaller versions of headers and details that match the entryway door to create a cohesive look.
Shop All Window and Shutter Hardware7. Bordering a Coffered Ceiling
Crown molding designs and trim can also be incorporated in coffered ceilings or ceilings with post and beam designs. Adding a more decorative trim and a touch of crown molding to these types of ceilings can add more dimension and a grander ambiance throughout. And when added to the lower edge of a coffered ceiling, it can create a cleaner look and accentuate the height of the space.
To add, one smart way to introduce a more elaborate coffered ceiling is to use the same crown molding in the surrounding rooms. By using the same or similar crown molding, it ties together and creates a more cohesive interior design and architectural elements.
8. Create a Charming Display Shelf or Mantel
Crown molding can be used for much more than adding a flourish to architectural elements and accenting rooms. It can also be used to create smaller DIY projects, such as a display shelf or mantel. Whatever style of molding you choose, whether it’s a sleek and minimal or an ornate timeless bead and dart style, you can invest in new floating shelves to hold cherished mementos and family photos.
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To start, simply choose how long you would like your shelf to be. It can be short and sweet to display a singular decorative object or extra long to hold a series or collection of photos that lean against the wall. You can even use crown molding to create a jewelry holder, adding extra accessories like knobs and hooks to hang necklaces and secure rings and more.
9. Elevate a Plain Storage Shelf
Similar to the way you can add accents of crown molding to cabinets and built-ins, you can also add these decorative touches to storage shelves and bookcases. One clever little trick is to use crown molding designs and decorative trim to your average store-bought bookshelf or modular cubby system, transforming it into a more complete and high-end-looking furniture piece. Add a crown molding to the top, the same as you would upper kitchen cabinets, and swap out hardware for a true designer-inspired library or bookcase for a home office or living room.
10. Frame a Mirror
Another easy way to use crown molding and trim details is to frame a mirror. This trick is perfect for those over-sized bathroom vanity mirrors that are already attached to the wall and just need an extra finishing touch to make the bathroom appear more luxurious. Choose a molding that complements any existing molding your bathroom may have, but, more importantly, select a lightweight and water-resistant urethane molding material and paint that can withstand any excess moisture from steamy showers and the like.
11. Create Corner Blocks
Last but not least, keep in mind that with just about any crown molding, you can create corner blocks for a timeless and traditional-inspired design. Even if you choose a simple, modern-style molding, corner blocks can add a classic and luxe look to a room. Van Dyke’s takes pride in offering many carved period-style moldings that can offer the final ornate touches to your 19th century Victorian or Edwardian style home.
How will you incorporate crown molding into your home? Whatever creative way you decide to pursue, browse our extensive crown molding collection and add the finishing touches today.
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