Before You Begin: Choose the Right Molding Home centers offer a variety of premilled molding materials. For the traditionalist, or if you plan to stain the trim, solid-wood trim available in many species is the best choice, albeit a more expensive one. If paint will cover your molding, consider finger-jointed wood, wood composite, or urethane trims to lower costs. Urethane molding trim offers additional flexibility: it is lighter weight, can be installed with just construction adhesive, and generally allows you to use heftier profiles. Custom milling can be done by local woodworking shops, but going this route will add quite a bit to your costs, especially if the shop has to custom-design a cutting blade for the profile you want. Think ornate and layered for more formal or traditional looks; contemporary styles are best achieved with fewer, simpler profiles. Editor’s tip: Never assume that two surfaces meet at a true 90-degree angle; adjust cut angles to eliminate gaps. Then use a coping saw to cut along the contoured edge of the mitered molding, removing the exposed end-grain stock. File and sand the cut until the contour fits snugly against the adjacent molding. Use extra blocks of molding to practice first, and make repeated test fits and trim cuts until you get it right. Touch up with caulk and paint or stain after you finish. Editor’s tip: Use corner pieces, plinth blocks, and other transition pieces where possible. They make for simpler installation than miter cuts, and joints tend to stay closed despite seasonal changes in humidity. Editor’s tip: Invest in the proper tools to get good results. Molding requires precise cuts regardless of the style or type. Painted moldings generally make it easier to camouflage imperfect fits. Make practice cuts on some short sacrificial stock before you cut the longer pieces. Editor’s tip: Keep a consistent scale from floor to ceiling. Although it’s tempting to install an impressive wide crown molding and skimp on the base or casings, molding sizes should be balanced throughout the room.
