Q. We have 9’ ceilings and small baseboards installed by the builder. Is there a way that we can make the baseboards look larger without replacing them?
— Lisa Campbell
A. One possibility to trick the eye and visually increase the height of your baseboard mouldings is to “re-create” them with a faux-finish. decide the height you want the finished baseboard to be, mark it and then install a thin, simple moulding at this height line, all around the room, above the existing baseboards. This is very inexpensive, and if you buy “paint grade” mouldings, it will cost even less. There will be a space between the new moulding and the baseboard, which is fine, since your last, simple step is to paint the new moulding, old baseboards and space in between all with the same semi-gloss paint. Trim should usually be semi-gloss and the new baseboards will look much more authentic. A good trim colour is Benjamin Moore’s Cloud White (OC-130), but you will have to choose a white that coordinates with the rest of the trim in the room for maximum effect.