Key Questions to Ask When Ordering skirting boards suppliers

13 May.,2024

 

How to Choose the Right Skirting Boards and architraves

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Choosing the right skirting board and architraves can be difficult especially if you have many options to choose from. We have put together some points to consider when making your decision so you can be confident you are creating a beautiful interior!

INTERIOR STYLE

When selecting your skirting board and architraves first you have to determine what is the interior style of the house, or what style you are looking to create. This will determine the profiles of the board you choose.

Hamptons ~ Bigger is Better

Traditional Hamptons use high, thick skirting boards with big rounded profile features. This not only creates a stand out look, but helps the skirting hold its own again elaborate wall wainscoting.

A more coastal or modern take on Hamptons skirting is to still have a tall skirting with a more simple design.

French ~ More is More

The French Provincial style is admired for its symmetrical design, classic proportions and decorative elements. Skirting boards are a key feature in French style homes and are ornate and decoratively detailed.

Victorian/Georgian ~ More of EVERYTHING

Victorian/Georgian interiors mantra is ‘more of everything.’. Highly detailed dado rail, wall panelling & highly decorated skirting board profiles which are balanced & elegant will help you achieve this beautiful look.

Modern/Contemporary/Art Deco ~ Keep it Simple

Interior mouldings in modern homes most popularly choose a minimal Shadowline skirting, or a smaller profile with sharp, hard lines. We have seen an emergence of the use of high but thin skirting boards with simple designs with large flat space. Don’t be scared to experiment with size, so long as you keep it simple, you can’t get it wrong.

Farmhouse/Country ~ Close to nature/vintage

farmhouse/Country style houses are generally cosy and relaxed. This look can be achieved using large skirtings to give a touch of warmth and cosiness to the space.

SKIRTING BOARDS BASED ON CEILING HEIGHT

There are some basic rules when choosing your boards, although they are not hard and fast, they give you a good guide on what works best. Choosing a skirting board based on your ceiling height is a good place to start.

Ceiling Height    Complimentary Skirtings Sizes

To 2.4m                   90-135mm

To 2.7 m                  115-185mm

To 3.0m                   135-230mm

To 3.6m                   185mm+

Think about what are you looking to achieve. Do you want drama, a cosy space or to open your room out. How prominent do you want your skirting and will you have them as a stand out piece of architectural art, or do you want them to just enhance the look of your room?

SKIRTINGS BASED ON THE SIZE OF THE ROOM

The first proportion you should look at it’s the height of your ceiling, and then decide what you are wanting to achieve with space.

It is a myth that you should only use large skirting in large rooms with high ceilings, and smaller skirting in small rooms. It is true that large skirting will fill a room and make it feel smaller, but if you are wanting to create a cosy space, then this is something you can experiment with. Using smaller mouldings on a high ceiling will create the illusion of height, and make the room feel taller.

 

PRACTICALITY – Use of the space

Is your home high traffic? Do you have kids and animals running and playing inside? If so, you may wish to consider a high skirting board to provide a better level of protection to your walls, especially if you’re using wallpaper or a bold colour where chips and marks will be more visible.

We consider a larger skirting to be 185mm and larger. 185mm suits most houses and spaces. A more busy profile will suit a room with more space available and if you’re using that size in a smaller space you don’t want to close in too much, we would recommend a profile design that itself has more breathing space, and may have some elaborate detailing on the top portion, and have 50% or more flat space on the profile.

COLOUR CONSIDERATIONS FOR SKIRTING BOARDS AND ARCHITRAVES

Another decision you will need to take into account is whether or not you will be painting your skirting boards and architraves white, neutral, staining natural timber or choosing a bold colour.

Most people choose to paint them in whites and neutrals, which will create a more spacious feel, but if you want something on trend and a little different, you can try some bold colours. This can close the space but adding colour in different areas of the room can help with creating that illusion of different space. For instance, you could paint your skirting boards and the bottom half of your wall up to and including a chair rail, mounted below the halfway point on the wall to create the illusion of a higher ceiling. You may also want to try painting all of your skirting boards, architraves and walls in one colour to help the eye pass over the whole room and not be distracted by changes in colour. This can be excellent if you have something else you would like to draw the eye to and feature in the room, like artwork or mounted sculptures.

HOW TO CHOOSE ARCHITRAVES FOR YOUR SKIRTINGS AND DO THEY HAVE TO MATCH?

If you have already selected your skirting and are looking for the architrave to go with it, we usually suggest using the same profile design in a smaller size to provide a consistent style treatment, scale, and balance. However, in some cases, if the skirting has a large area of detailing it may not be available in the smaller size for your desired architrave size. In such cases, we suggest you go for a similar profile with complimenting design elements, which would be a different profile code.

So, if you ask if the skirtings and architraves have to match then yes they should match but matching is more relevant to proportional sizes and not design. And if using the exact same profile is not possible you can choose a different profile with similar details.

Deciding the size of the architrave

There is a two-pronged approach for choosing your architrave size, and these are by the height of your doors and the height of your skirting boards.

When looking at door heights we recommend:

Door Heights      Architrave Widths

2.04m                       66-90mm

2.34m                       90-115mm

2.70m                       115mm+

Skirting and Architrave Recommended Combinations

When considering what works well with your skirting board size, we recommend:

Skirtings Architrave 90-135mm 66-90mm 115-185mm 90-115mm 185-230mm 90-115mm 230mm+ 115mm+

The most common size combinations sold are:

135mm skirting with 90mm architrave

185mm skirting with 90mm architrave

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Recommended skirtings and architraves profile combinations

If you choose to go with a different profile for architrave, there are a few things to remember:

  • You will need to make sure that the skirting board and architrave you choose are both the same thickness.
  • Make sure you still stick with complimentary height combinations as above, both for the mouldings and your room size.
  • If the two profiles you have chosen are very different in look and design, you may need to use a skirting block so the area where the two meet is not messy or too busy.
  • Try to stick with profiles with similar features ie both with bold curves, or both with steps and sharp lines. Don’t try and mix profiles that are worlds apart in look.

Here are some of our recommended profile combinations if you’re looking to experiment.

USING SKIRTING BLOCKS

A skirting block is an excellent choice if you are using different profiles, thickness or heights for your skirting and architraves, as it seamlessly allows the two profiles to not look out of place or odd, allowing them to not be placed right next to each other.

Skirting Block Size Guide

Skirting Height Architrave Width Skirting Block Size (hxw) 90mm 66mm 100x70mm 115mm 66mm 125x70mm 115mm 90mm 125x95mm 135mm 66mm 150x70mm 135mm 90mm 150x95mm 135mm 115mm 150x120mm 185mm 90mm 200x95mm 185mm 115mm 200x120mm 185mm 135mm 200x140mm 230mm 90mm 250x95mm 230mm 115mm 250x120mm 230mm 135mm 250x140mm

You can find more information on matching skirting boards & architraves here.

Skirting board buyer's guide - Door Superstore Help & Advice

Skirting boards can really bring a room together to give a seamless floor-to-wall appearance. Here’s what you need to know about skirting boards and what you can do to ensure that your skirting board is suited to your needs and theme.

Table of contents:

Why are skirting boards used?

Skirting boards are typically used to finish a room and protect the delicate floor and wall edges. They can also be used to hide the joining ends of each wall and floor.

What are the benefits of skirting boards?

There are many benefits when it comes to skirting boards. A skirting board can be:

  • Long-lasting
  • Moist resistant
  • Protects walls
  • Aesthetically pleasing

What material skirting board should I buy?

Material ProsCons MDF•Budget friendly
•Common modern home choice
•Can be painted
•Not as rare
•Cannot be machine made by machine or changed like natural wood
•Higher risk of damage
•Higher risk of warping
•Higher risk of chipping
•Higher risk of cracking
•Higher risk of regular replacement
•Only suited to contemporary skirting when being painted
Cannot replicate the appearance of natural wood Softwood•Natural wood appearance
•Can be made by machine or changed
•Can be sanded
•Can be oiled
•Can be varnished
•Can be painted•Higher cost
•Leaving wood unfinished can look raw
•Higher risk of damage if unfinished
•Higher risk of moisture ingress if unfinished
Hardwood•Natural wood appearance
•Can be made by machine or changed
•Can be sanded
•Can be oiled
•Can be varnished
•Can be painted•Higher cost
•Leaving wood unfinished can look raw
•Higher risk of damage if unfinished
•Higher risk of moisture ingress if unfinished

What are the skirting board profiles?

Skirting board profiles vary from the highly detailed to the standard flat style. They purely relate to the style, so make to choose what style suits the room. Some are more traditional and complementary to Victorian-era houses, whereas new builds or modern homes may be suited to another style.

Here are the four most popular styles:

Bullnose: This classic design is one of the most popular because of its simplicity and versatility. The curve offers a quality appearance that isn’t too distracting, can fit in most rooms and offers elegance to a space where needed.

Bullnose skirting board is also easy to paint and clean. So, no need to worry about reaching into tiny crevices or corners to remove large built-up dust.

Chamfered: The chamfered design is similar in simplicity to the bullnose skirting but with a more defined and straight-edged appearance. It’s a common solution by many in construction due to the easy installation and non-distracting features. It also adds a little bit of detail for those looking for a little more striking design.

Ogee: Construction workers are partial to this design when it comes to new builds. Their detail strays off the simplistic designs of the bullnose and chamfered skirting with a softer, but more intricate, design.

Torus: The torus skirting board is a traditional design, offering a round detail on the profile. This design is inspired by classical architecture that had specific column orders with a semi-circular base on the plinth.

It is an unfortunate reality that this design is falling through the cracks when a decision for skirting is being made. If the property is a Victorian home, this can be an iconic little bit of historic restoration.

You can also purchase this skirting in a large or small size, though typically the smaller design is suited for the following:

  • Small apartments
  • Flats
  • Compact houses

It can also be used in areas that limit the height of the skirting. This could be anything from plugs to broadband lines and more invasive systems.

How to choose skirting board thickness

There are of course many different board thicknesses, but you might not want a smaller room to have a thicker board as this could risk reduced space. You’ll find between 14mm and 20mm thicknesses, but 18mm is the most common. However, it’s important to note that the profile plays a part in the thickness of the skirting board choice. An example of this is chamfered skirting board. This will be thicker than other types and as such you will have to accommodate the chamfered finish.

Leaving a gap under my skirting board

Skirting board is required to have a gap beneath it unless it is on carpeted flooring as skirting can be fitted to the floor on carpets. This allows for movement in the flooring.

How do I work out how much skirting board I will need?

To find the total amount of skirting board needed, you can measure the length of each wall and then add the amounts together to get a total length.

However, if you want to make sure you have minimal wastage, you will need to pre-plan where you are going to cut the skirting board. This will also help determine the amount of short and long skirting board lengths needed when placing them onto the walls of the room.

Do not randomly assign any offcuts if you plan to use them as this can make for a wonky appearance and might affect the rest of the installation if you put them in before the full lengths. Additionally, the offcuts could get damaged when being cut, so risking a placement without proper planning could mean extra costs if a piece is damaged.

As a general recommendation, you can typically base the final amount you buy on the length of the skirting boards if you do want minimal wastage. For example, if your total length of skirting board is possible to achieve with only four x 3600mm lengths of skirting once cut then opt for this. Just make sure not to bank everything on offcuts.

How do I fix skirting boards?

You can find out how to fit skirting boards here. How you fit skirting boards in place will depend on the type of wall. Though typically nails or glue, sometimes screws, can be used to fit the skirting into place.

How much do skirting boards cost?

Skirting boards don’t have to burn a hole in your pocket! For a quick re-touch, homeowners could paint skirting board or opt for floor trims that match newly fitted laminate etc.

So what skirting boards can you buy at Door Superstore? Head on over to skirting boards to check out the range we have available to find your ideal profile.

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