Cornice board decision - buttons, welting, plain?
I'm having three cornice boards recovered for two French doors and a window on the north wall in my open dining room/great room and would like help deciding on fabric, welting, buttons, tufting etc. I need them for sound absorption and they've already been picked up for reupholstering, so please don't tell me to do something else. The cornice boards they're replacing were really bold and colorful (I had a professional decorator suggest both the cornice boards and the fabric) but I'm ready for something a lot less bold. I'm thinking something that will blend in with the SW Accessible Beige on the walls with only texture, buttons, welt cord to stand out.
(I'll post the best 'before' picture I can find. I'm getting rid of the shades entirely but was thinking about sheers on either side of the window as that board extends past the window and the hardware is already in place for that.) I originally thought I wanted diamond tufting, but my fabricator is discouraging me from doing that as he says they'll be too puffy and the bottom will be somewhat scalloped from the extra 2" of foam he'll need to add. He mocked up a piece of foam for me and I understand what he's saying. So now I'm wondering do I just do buttons? Skip buttons and do a contrasting welt cord? We've recently refinished our hardwood floors, repainted and put new hearth tile and carpeting in and I haven't done anything yet to add color - pillows, etc. One step at a time. Any kind help with this cornice board dilemma would be greatly appreciated.
Some fabrics I'm considering...
Below are the OLD cornice boards...
I added a picture that includes the more than 12' ceilings... I know the big wall needs a large piece of art... that's for another post. It's very dreary today. Lights on or off it doesn't matter - my pictures aren't very bright. Sorry
Comments (17)
clt3
2 months agoCindy S
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoRelated Discussions
Do knobs shaped like this go with plain cup pulls? (pictures incl
Comments (12)Are these two that you have narrowed down from a much wider field or is this your starting point? The second group, besides reminding me of those molded candies with the soft fruit center, take me back to some era, but I don't know which one. (That's a neutral statement, not a judgment.) I agree that it really comes down to your preference. Do you like them, and is your kitchen in need of a "detail to look at"? The oval-shaped plain knobs are a little more interesting than the round ones as well if you don't want to go too far off the beaten path. I have a builder board from Berenson. They have a couple of knob choices that have a little visual interest but the edges are smooth, if you are looking for other choices....See MoreCan I get more help with decisions?
Comments (47)I do think the fluting is strange that it ends. But, it should be hidden by the mantel mostly. I'm not sure if I'm OK with that or not. That was one of the things I just sent to the cabinet maker, my concern about the dead stop in fluting. The panels would be a possible correction to that, but then as palimpsest says, they can't be even and don't directly tie into the book case so that might not be the best choice. I lik the idea of the scalloped edge along the book case bottom a lot and I really like the way that looks in the picture. I have emailed my cabinet maker to see if it is possible to do the footed bottom with scallops instead of the traditional toe kick. I do have remaining concerns about dog hair though. The blues- we have several wholly separate sets of blues within this house but not in areas that share a sight line. Do you think that is a problem. There was rationale behind the choices: In the kitchen, we have blue bahia granite for our center island, and there are cabinets that are blue, although the kitchen is predominantly white (the sink cabinet, stove hood and backs of the china cabinet are blue). We took a small piece of the granite to Sherwin Williams who color matched the blue bahia color exactly to create the paint. This paint color is the blue being used in the kitchen, as well as on these gathering room book cases (gathering room off of kitchen) as well as in the sun room adjacent to the gathering room to create the fireplace surround. Just to perhaps complicate matters before, there is a fire place in both the gathering room (this one being discussed above and in a adjacent sun room along the same wall- and the gathering room and sun room are separated by a glass wall. So, we essentially have two fireplaces in a row. Sort of. But you can only see both from certain vantage points (Did you follow that?) You can see it on the floor plan- that wall between those rooms is partially glass. (This is an old floor plan and doesn't show all the built-ins) Then, we have an entirely different blue on the cabinets in the conservatory, great room and dining room (the same in all 3 of those rooms though, of course) This blue is a stain, not a paint, and it was chosen to match a blue and yellow tile mural that is being inset into the hardwood floor in the front hall. These cabinets will actually be stained blue with yellow piping (picking up both colors of the tile mural) Our master bath also has blue tile. Different blue tile. And there's an upstairs bathroom with blue decos and tile. I haven't considered how any of these blues ties in with the outside blues or really thought they had to go with each other if they weren't in the same line of sight. Do you think that is a problem?...See MoreHow high to place cornice boards?
Comments (8)Then I would suggest you decide on the height of the board you want, placing it low enough on the window so it will cover the shade underneath. I have made very inexpensive "cornice boards" out of styrofoam. You can get the styrofoam sheet from home depot and cut it to the size you want across the window and the height you want. Then attach side pieces using white glue and tooth picks. (Some foams will now stand up to hot glue or the low temp hot glue...in the old days, it would melt the foam.) Then you can wrap it in quilt batting for a puffier look and then wrap with the fabric you want, pinning it to the back of the foam. Very lightweight and easy to mount. I made them for my office, but as I pinned, I also pleated the fabric to make a nicely pleated valance box. Came out good. In fact, I used to make seasonal ones, without the batting, wrapped in xmas paper with big bows on them. I'd insert curtain rod hooks in the back and hang them off the curtain rods that were there. Here is a link that might be useful: DIY cornice...See MoreCambria Decision
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2 months agoYou will probably get some people on here to tell you that you should not do the cornice boxes. Not me. We have them over some windows in our kitchen and breakfast room because it seemed that there was just too much blank space above the windows. When we remodeled our kitchen over 13 years ago, our window treatment professional suggested a very bold pattern for the cornices, and we went with it as the fabric's colors and patterns tied the room together. I was always a little uncomfortable with it (our home is traditional, but it just seemed a bit too much). In 2020 we repainted, upgraded FR furniture, and re-did the cornices in a textured, light blue/green that blend into the wall color for a more modern look. We have no trim, just same fabric welting, and we do not have anything above the French doors, just the windows. It is a much fresher look. I would not do buttons, tufting, or contrasting welt. The textured fabric should be enough interest. Also, we kept our woven shades from the original remodel.
Cindy S
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agopalimpsest
2 months ago
PROBeverlyFLADeziner
2 months agoCindy S
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoCindy S
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoI've been playing around a little... I couldn't find a textured fabric, but here are plain fabric cornice boards with welting... too plain? Just enough?
palimpsest
2 months agoCindy S
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoAnd another picture...
With welting...
With no welting...
Cindy S
2 months agoratherbesewing
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoI prefer welting too using the same fabric.
It’s probably too late, but a slight curve to the cornice softens the look.arcy_gw
2 months ago
Excuse the Christmas...but if you go with plain wood it will take you longer into the future w/o looking dated.
Cindy S
2 months agolast modified: 2 months ago
la_la Girl