Chair Rails from Functional to Fabulous

Most of the chair rail mouldings installed in houses today are purely decorative, but the earliest use of chair rails was strictly utilitarian.  Generations ago, most homeowners used their kitchens for a great deal of other activities besides cooking and eating, so when meals were finished, the chairs would be pushed back against the walls to keep them out of the way.  Constantly shoving the chairs against the plaster would often lead to dents, holes or scratches, so homeowners came up with chair rails, which were meant to minimize damage.  The height of a chair rail in a house would largely rely on how where the backs of the chairs would hit the wall.  The chair rails would stop the chairs before they could gouge the plaster.

These early chair rails were usually installed in kitchens and dining rooms and were strictly functional.  Some homeowners added beadboard wainscoting below their chair rails to further protect their walls.  This was especially efficient in homes with lots of small children or pets.  Over time, these same homeowners began to construct more elaborate chair rail mouldings so that they could improve the appearance of these utilitarian wall rails.  Soon they began using chair rails in rooms where they didn’t push chairs up against the walls because they realized the many decorating options available with chair rail mouldings.

Modern Chair Rails

Today’s homeowners can install chair rail moulding in any room in the house and combine the practicality of protecting their walls with fabulous style.  Some of the original intent of chair rails remains; for instance, most chair rails are still installed at between 35” and 48” as though they are still expected to keep chairs from dinging the walls.  Aside from the height, however, there are dozens of options for installing chair rails.

There are chair rail mouldings available from the simple, clean lines of Shaker style to elaborately carved versions featuring roses, sea shells or Greek keys.  You can match your chair rails to the décor in your room, whether it’s French Provincial, Colonial American, Art Deco or Mission style.  You can also find coordinating window casings and beadboard to pull the look together.

You aren’t limited to any room with chair rails, either.  Since they are now decorative elements rather than strictly functional, you can install them wherever you’d like some added detail on your walls.  Kitchens, dining rooms and bathrooms remain the most popular choices for installing chair rail mouldings, but some people install them in every room in their homes for great architectural effect.

Chair rails offer great versatility if you want to add some color to a room without overwhelming it.  If you’d love a rich, deep red in your dining room but are afraid the color will be too much, consider installing chair rails and painting the red only on the bottom half of the walls.  Above your chair rail mouldings use a softer, muted shade such as biscuit or taupe. 

Chair rails allow you to add some whimsy to a child’s room as well.  Using two different bold, primary colors can really brighten up a child’s room, or you could use a cheerful wallpaper above some chair rail mouldings and install beadboard below so that young children won’t be tempted to draw on or otherwise damage the wallpaper.

Few types of wood trim are as versatile as chair rails.  The next time you want to redecorate a room, think about how much you could do with chair rail mouldings.

Crown Molding Copyright Profile Supply 2009