Painting the woodwork - is it a crime?
We’re moving to a house in an historic district with pristine woodwork. Never been painted. Our aesthetic preference is to paint it all. Or most of it. And yet, we’re wondering if this is a crime against craftsmanship? So we’re willing to listen to what you all have to say. Sorry to be vague on…
We’re moving to a house in an historic district with pristine woodwork. Never been painted. Our aesthetic preference is to paint it all. Or most of it. And yet, we’re wondering if this is a crime against craftsmanship? So we’re willing to listen to what you all have to say. Sorry to be vague on the details!
Do Not Paint Vintage Wood Paneling!
Southslope is right that painted woodwork WAS done in period homes, especially after 1900. Dark woodwork was highly unfashionable in Edwardian homes. I have a book by the first widely famous modern interior designer, who emerged in the Edwardian era, Elsie de Wolfe and she is absolutely SCATHING about dark woodwork and the Victorian look in general. After the Victorian era was finished people back then were thinking, okay moving on, let’s lighten up a little.
However, despite my love of painted woodwork I would not paint stained woodwork that’s detailed and special and in perfect condition.
You could do mixed painted and stained woodwork. We have that in our home, and I’ve seen it in professionally designed brownstone interiors too. It does not have to be all one or the other. There is no rule about that. You can absolutely mix them. Leave the carved wood stained, such as on the stair banisters or the fireplace, and things like moldings and baseboards you can paint.
When I first became aware of the amazing woodwork that can be in brownstones, I was definitely in the school of thought that said strip every stick of wood, and don’t paint anything. I’ve since modified my position slightly.
One of the houses on our Crown Heights house tour last year had some of the most amazing fretwook and woodwork I’ve ever seen. The homeowner stripped and restored the very elaborate entryway, hall, front and middle parlours. The wood is a warm, golden oak. But in the back parlour, which is her dining room, she painted the woodwork white, and the walls were a very pretty blue. The white woodwork was a really nice contrast, and the blue paint made it pop. Her antique wood dining room set brought wood tones into the room, and it worked really nicely. I don’t think it would have been as nice with another woodworked room.
Long story long, I think the most ornate woodwork, and best woods – mahagonny, cherry, golden oak, etc should not be painted, especially if already natural. But I have no problem with some well thought out variety. If you do paint pristine wood, (it still hurts!) please put a coat of water based varnish between the wood and the paint, to prevent your paint from soaking into the wood grain, thereby making a future stripping job even more difficult.
Yeah, I think alot has to do with the type of wood, which you have not mentioned. Softwoods, like pine and poplar, were made to be painted. Hardwoods, like oak and mahogany, would be a crime to paint. (altho I’m agnostic on maple, it’s a hardwood but a boring hardwood). By all means, strip the old varnish off hardwood and lighten it up, but painting it will be a crime, and will likely cost you money at resale.
Ultimately its your house and you have o be happy in it, but I so hate to see beautiful carving and millwork covered in paint.half the beauty is the flow and change of the grain and if its simply that you want lighter color, consider removing the varnish and maybe bleaching. Steve could probably best answer if that’s a good option or not, and what kind of wood it works best on. and varnish can darken drastically over time, so sometimes the dark color you see may be a result of that.
My friend’s house is a mix of woods with the divider and columns, and pier mirror frame a mahogany, but fireplaces are a medium oak and my living room fireplace is a light colored nearly grainless wood which I think might be maple??? Dark wood can limit your design choices sometimes, but it is so rich looking.
Good luck, whatever you decide but don’t forget to post pictures!
i definitely agree with CMU. all that dark wood makes it look as if you live in some dickensian coffin. nicely painted woodwork is beautiful: it lightens up a brownstone, making it look fresh and airy instead of overpowering and dark. you can do beautiful things with paint; who wants to live in a morgue? ‘fundamentalist brownstoners’–those who don’t believe anything ‘original’ can be changed–make no more sense than any kind of fundamentalist.
As one who’s painted most of the trim (admittedly replacement stuff) and now enjoy the added lightness of the room, I say dark wood is a crime, light wood may be ok but is better only if it’s something exotic (and is prefect.)
While we’re on the topic, can anyone recommend someone who could refinish or replace the painted or otherwise damaged woodwork in my brownstone? Most of it was never painted, but some of the windows/sills were and I would like to restore them. I am not a talented DIY person so I will not take the risk of messing it up myself; I would much rather hire someone competent and experienced.
Please, in the name of all of us who have sweated and slaved to get decades of bad paint jobs off beautiful hardwood, DON’T paint the woodwork! Poplar and fir, OK, but not oak, maple or mahogany.
Corolla: I like the putty sticks that look like crayons. You should be able to buy a selection for $15 and find a good match. One tip is to use a slightly darker tone than the surrounding wood. Just rub the sticks over the holes until they’re filled, and wipe off any excess with a paper towel moistened with mineral spirits.