Bedroom Progress – The Trim Isn’t Finished, But It’s Getting There!

I ended up having to cut all the pieces in two so I could handle them myself. I learned that as long as the piece measures around 110″ or less, I can handle and install it pretty easily on my own. Anything longer becomes very challenging when working alone. So every wall has at least one joint, but since those joints were almost all two pieces cut from one longer piece, the joints fit together perfectly. Once they are filled and sanded, I don’t think they will be noticeable at all.

And then I installed all the display molding (except the problem wall) and checked all the boxes for the picture frame molding. Those marks are very clear, so I highlighted them in some of these photos, like the one above.

My biggest fear before starting the crown molding was that the crown would highlight how uneven and crooked the walls are. I was afraid it would be noticeable especially above doors and windows. And while it’s certainly not perfect, especially in that problematic corner to the left of the left window, I think it looks pretty good.

The biggest problem with the crown molding was at the end, where the bedroom crown meets the foyer crown. I had to use a separate piece right at the end that is about 7 inches long, and I had to split the difference with that piece, going down the left corner a little to meet the corner of the foyer wreath. It’s not perfect, but again, I think it will be fine once it’s all said and done.

And once that piece was in place, there was a pretty significant gap between the two wreath pieces, so I used my air dry clay once again to fill that gap. That will give me more control over the combination of those two pieces in that corner, since I can do some creative sanding to get them to come together and blend together.

I also redid this problematic corner. This is the curve that goes up quite a bit.

So I ended up removing those two baseboards and then placed the baseboard back on the wall so that it met the floor on the right side and was level all the way around.

And then I used a piece of wood that was the same height as the space on the left and placed my pen on top of it to draw a line at the bottom of that baseboard.

And then I used my table saw to cut along that line. I repeated that process on the baseboard on the other wall so the two pieces would fit perfectly in the corner.

It’s still not great, and it’s especially noticeable when you look at that wall straight on.

But I’m counting on the fact that that corner will be covered by curtains and that direct view will be blocked by the bed. And at least with the top of the baseboard level, that means the picture frame molding can be square, which is the most important thing. It would be very obvious if the picture frame molding was crooked.

And then there is the problem wall. The wavy wall. The most crooked wall in the entire room. I decided to fix this wall with drywall mud and I have lost count of how many coats of drywall mud it took to flatten these areas. I think it might be on layer number four.

If you remember, this is what that gap looked like before. It was too big to fill with putty. Trust me, it’s much bigger in person than it looks in the photo.

So after layers of drywall mud, I built that gap in the wall so it would be more level with the chair rail. There is still a small gap in some areas, but they can be caulked.

And I had to do the same with the bottom of the wall. Again, this gap was much larger than it appears in the photo. In the photo, it actually looks like a gap that can be caulked, but it wasn’t.

Then I did the same on the bottom of the wall. You can see that I still have to sand the last layer of drywall mud and although there is still a gap at the bottom, it is now within caulking range.

So that’s progress. If I wasn’t working with such crooked walls, I might be done by now, but I’m working with what I have. Old houses can be a real headache.

I was a little worried about this wall because of the outlets. I wasn’t sure if I could use the same space for the picture frame molding that I used on all the other walls. But it looks like it will work perfectly! That was a relief. The last thing I needed was another problematic wall in this room. 😀

Tomorrow I’ll start on the picture frame molding. I’m pretty sure I can do it in a day. And then I can finally fill all the holes with wood, sand, caulk and paint the trim. I’m going to do my best to stay focused (something I’ve had trouble with lately) and work diligently so I can finish these walls by the end of the weekend.

I will be very happy to finish these walls. I’m ready to move on to the next project, which I think will be the upholstered headboard. I’m looking forward to a nice and fun project.