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Serious question, how do you deal with a wall that's not straight when you're putting up trim? | Design And Renovation - The Design Community Hub

green.jenny•6mo ago

Serious question, how do you deal with a wall that's not straight when you're putting up trim?

I was doing a simple baseboard job in a 1920s house last month and the wall had a serious bow in the middle, maybe an inch out over 8 feet. My usual trick of scribing the back of the trim wasn't working because the gap was too big. I ended up cutting the baseboard into three pieces instead of one long piece. I made the cuts right at the high point of the bow and at the start of the curve. Then I installed each piece separately, pushing it tight to the wall at the cut ends and letting the middle of each piece follow the wall's curve. I filled the tiny cut lines with wood filler and you can't even see them now. It saved me from having to re-drywall or build out the whole wall. Has anyone else had to cut and piece trim to make it work on a really wavy wall?

3 comments

3 Comments

rowan_thomas6mo ago

Honestly, the real trick is getting the paint or stain to match after you fill those seams. I've had filler that looked perfect until it dried and then it soaked up the finish totally different than the wood. Now I always mix a little of the actual paint into my filler before I apply it, or use a stainable filler and test it on a scrap piece first. That final color match is what makes the repair disappear.

amy_lopez806mo ago

Tbh @rowan_thomas is totally right about the color match being everything. I learned that the hard way on some oak trim. Used a standard wood filler, stained it, and it looked like a beige band-aid stuck on there. Completely different finish. Now I keep scraps of everything. I'll mix the stain right into the filler paste before it dries, or even layer a tiny bit of the clear coat over the dried filler first to seal it. That final step is what makes it actually vanish instead of just being a filled hole.

grant5696mo ago

Ever notice how this happens with so many stuff, not just wood? You get a perfect paint match for a wall chip, but the texture is wrong and it still catches the light. Or you fix a tear in a black shirt, but the thread is just a little too shiny. It's like the first step is getting the color right, but the real magic is in matching how it feels and how it drinks up the light. That final layer you're talking about is the difference between a fix and a ghost.