apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

"Would it be strange to paint a mantle and base molding something as dark as natural wicker?"

Seems OK to me but you've got some really nice details, why not go ahead and highlight them. Your artwork will still pop.

I wouldn't! Your walls look so crisp yet rich with detail. The fireplace wall will make a really nice backdrop for your artwork. Perhaps if you're itching for color, you could paint the foyer a different "shade" of white. Something toward the natural wicker color, but still techinically white.

Good luck!

A contrasting color for the details will make them stand out. What about an off-white for the walls, leaving the trim white?

But I like white trim...you could also paint the trim an off-white without popping it too much.

I agree with Melissa. I've always found camel/tan moldings to look very colonial, but white ones to be very crisp.

Just do a gloss version of the wall color, especially if you don't want the moldings to compete with art.

I second Patrick's suggestion....

I would not paint the moulding. Keep it the crisp white it is.

I just redid my foyer: New old-style moulding and closet doors. They are painted the same shade of white as the walls (except they are semi-gloss, as opposed to the flat of the walls). It is the best showcase for art.

Combining p(too)'s and melissa's ideas, I'd paint the entire room a warmer white, using the gloss version on the trim. Right now, your sofa looks unsettlingly ivory compared to the bright white walls. You could probably even go as dark as the rug -- art doesn't necessarily need white-white to pop.

I don't like trim painted anything other than semi-gloss or glossy white. I'm always disappointed to see off-white or darker in a home and I have to envision myself repainting all that trim white. Your trim looks nice from the tiny photos. I would think you'd want to showcase them. Usually trim is painted the same color as the walls to camouflage ugly or boring trim. I've seen studios painted colors and the art is still beautiful. Seems sad to hide that beautiful trim, art in its own right.

darker trim is always nice .... the only problem i can see, is the crisp white walls ... darker trim seems like it would need a white that was off of a crisp white ...

Looks great as is. We took out all of the old molding & trim and
that was the answer to what to do with that period look.

I third Patrick and Justin's idea of the gloss white on the trim/molding. A very sophisticated look, in my opinion.

Glossy white on the mouldings and trim; ceiling a matte version of the same bright white; walls a warmer white or pale ivory. Check the whites in the Donald Kaufman color collection for inspiration.

Marrying period with modern is common here in europe, and that is the approach they would take. The period detail creates a spohisticated tension when combined with more modern furniture and artwork; a room devoid of such detail would be very flat in comparison.

I agree with Wende in Phoenix that the walls are too much of a crisp white with the ivory sofa. I prefer all the "whites" in a room to be the same; either all whites or all ivories. Any color will pop against a light background, whether white or ivory.

Def keep it all white

All white for sure! Monika1, while that is true, just for that reason, it is common, at least in Scandinavia, to have those period details not be differentiated, but to be one with the other elements, such a floor and walls, having artwork and furnishings do the talking. It's another approach, as of course, there are many, no one right or wrong.

I do agree thast it is bland with the ivory sofa & rug, but I'd keep the walls and moulding white, and change the color of the sofa & rug. Get the sofa reappolstered in a solid color, and get a rug in a few shades lighter of that color.

I would try P2's suggestion of a gloss version of the color you are going to paint your walls, since he's always right. But if you hate it on one section, you can always change to white or off-white.

In fact, I just read somewhere that Martha Stewart did the all-one-tone color scheme in her new house so her furniture would stand out more. (I can't remember which magazine this was.)

I'm with keeping the trim white, gloss sounds good too. I like to think of it as akin to a frame on the picture out the window or through the door.....

In my dining room/living room I have a similar desire to paint my molding a darker shade. They are small rooms with lots of detail and even fake beams on the ceiling. Does anybody think it is ever a good idea to have the contrasting colours? (my walls are a cream colour now)

Thanks everyone for your responses. Very helpful. I think I may have confused everyone a bit - i didn't want to leave the walls white with natural wicker trim - I wanted to paint the walls AND trim natural wicker. But regardless, I am really leaning towards a very subtle off-white (just a warmer white than the primer) with a gloss version of the same color on the trim.

The rug and sofa were freebies and probably will be replaced, and the walls right now are currently only primed. That's why they are such a stark white. I didn't want to paint until I had gotten some good advice.

Thanks again!

I would suggest to paint the molding 2 tones darker than the wall, it will pop and allow for the artwork to have the higher ground...

the perfect white............"picket fence white" by ralph lauren.
i agree with glossy trim and flat walls.

another subtle neutral for the walls is "beachwalk".....again by ralph lauren......with white trim.

i actually prefer benjamin moore paint products, but happiest with ralph colors. i have framed artwork on EVERY wall.......

late on the comments but NO DO NOT PAINT YOUR MOLDING DARK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i have dark brown molding and i will admit, it sold me on the apartment - but the apartment had nothing in it. unless you have all light colored furniture, it is very easy for it to become a dark cave, and very cluttered. i hate my dark trim. hate it.

I would strip the moulding and expose the wood. If you live in an older building, the exposed wood would bring some old world charm into your modern space.

I would suggest you paint the mouldings, baseboards and mantle some sort of gloss or semi-gloss version of white while painting the walls the color you proposed. I would not go dark on the walls, instead use a color (not darker than your rug) which will make your existing and future furniture and artwork stand out. This will give you a medium colored rug offset by a dark floor, complemented by a lighter painted wall.

Since your foyer appears to be a space which does not receive natural light, choose a very light paint color to help bounce the available light around the space. Again paint the woodwork the same gloss or semi-gloss white derivative used in the living room.

The other route to go, foyer-wise, is waaaayyyy dark. Art still pops on a dark brown or gunmetal grey wall.

And the same flat/gloss idea would still apply.

I'd do ceiling, too. And the added bonus being that your adjoining room sort of explodes in size form the visually compressed foyer.

I second Elizabeth in Al point about not going too dark. I have dark dark brown trim in my house (it came that way) and I HATE it. It goes ok with my floors (I guess) but it would look so much better in a lighter color, I find dark trim distracting.

heh i think we came to this conclusion before, lorijo! i'm for real, it seems enchanting at first, but living with it blows big time.

Just a comment on Natural Wicker by Benjamin Moore: I just finished painting several rooms in my home in this color. It's definitely not dark! If you want a light, warm, creamy off-white, I think you'll like Natural Wicker.

I wouldn't paint the mouldings a dark color and I wouldn't make them wood colored either. The nice wood features of the Eames lounger and any other woody furniture you have is a nice detail already. The gloss suggestion in a near white color is best for a nice finished look for the mouldings.

I would maybe paint the two walls surrounding the fireplace mantle a warmer white color. It would be still keep the overall bright white effect but possibly help to blend in the ivory tones of the sofa and rug while making the mantle pop a bit.