An Easy DIY Trick To Add Detail to Any Room

The following photos are of my living room.  Don't ask why the wall color looks so very different in each photo.  I don't know.  Hence my recent post "I Wish I Could Take Photos Like These."

I'm hoping you can see past the poor photo quality to see my little design tip that I picked up from a magazine about 15 years ago.

Do you see the cording just above the chair rail?

Here, you can see it above the chair rail and under the crown molding:

The walls are grayish blue, and the detail trim is the same gray with a little gold. Here is a closeup:

A

And another:

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Here is a photo with a flash:

I love the way adding this trim makes the moldings pop.  And it's super easy and quite affordable. Here's what you do:

1. Buy some trim
2. Attach it to the walls

Haha...here are some slightly more useful tips:

The trim here is 1/4".  I have used 1/2" before and like that, too.  I think 1/8" would be too small, and anything over 1/2" too large.

I have used solid colors, and actually prefer them - one or two shades darker than the paint is perfect.

Here is what you want -- twisted cord with NO LIP:

Here is what you do NOT want -- cord WITH lip:

If you buy it with a lip, as I have done before, you have to rip the lip off.  Time consuming, messy, and leaves a TON of clear thread pieces that you have to pull out.  Seriously, get it without the lip.

To hang it, I always run a very thin bead of glue around the wall where I want it.  I like the symmetry of it "framing" the paint.  So for example, I like it at the ceiling molding and baseboards, or ceiling molding and chair rail.

After running the glue, start in one corner and nail the end of the trim into the wall in the corner.  Try to have ONE LONG continuous cut of cording so there are no seams.  If you do have to have a seam, put clear tape around the end of the cord and cut through the tape so it doesn't fray.  After nailing in the corner, run it along the glue line, taping it up where necessary until the glue dries.  Easy-peasy.

I usually only use a few nails -- in the corners primarily, and let the glue do the rest of the work. 

Here is another room I've done. I'm trusting you not to judge my bathroom based on the mess on the counter!  I wanted to get this post up and clearly didn't have time to clean. This trim is 1/2" wide:

If you can't find the trim you want in your local fabric store (JoAnn is good if you have one), there are also on-line sources.  I like JKM Ribbon.

Linking to THESE FABULOUS PARTIES.

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