Modern Casing and Headers

Last week, we got all the doors stained and top coated for the Momplex unit we are currently working on.

And then we hung all the interior doors.

Doesn't look like we got a lot done this week, but we did!  Did you notice the new trim?

On this side of the Momplex, we are going for a modern rustic look.  Wood doors with wood trim on a wood floor would have been way too much wood, wouldn't it have?  

So we opted for just wood doors, and white trim around the doors. I love how it turned out!!!

Here's how we trimmed the windows in doors this time around:

We opted for simple 1x4s for the window and door casings.  We pre-painted the boards on sawhorses with a paint sprayer.  It's much easier to do this on the ground, than in place.

Then we nailed the 1x4 boards up on either side of the windows (and doors) leaving a 3/16" reveal around the window boxes.

We used our favorite Ryobi AirStrike nailer to attach the trim.

For the bottom trim, we also used 1x4s.

And just nailed those up.

Notice the header trim?  Here's how we made those up:

 Go big or go home, right?  

Well, we did go big AND go home, and installed it.

We purchased from the home improvement store extra wide header moulding.  This stuff is 5-1/2" tall. It was a few dollars more per stick than the stuff we used on the first Momplex unit, ending up in less than $100 more for the entire unit in cost increase.

We cut the headers to the desired length, beveling the ends at 45 degrees,

Cutting both sides, so the unfinished side is short point to short point with both ends cut at 45 degree bevels.

Then we cut some tiny little pieces, one end beveled at 45 degrees, 

Those pieces are called mitered returns and will finish the ends out of the headers.

There's not enough there to nail the mitered returns on, so we applied hot glue to them,

And glued the mitered returns to the headers.

There's one end done.

Like the window side and bottom trim, we painted the finished headers on sawhorses first, and let them dry.

And then brought the headers upstairs and placed them where they belong.

Each header is carefully labeled so there's not mix-ups or guess work to where each one goes.

Then we just nailed the headers to the tops of the windows, using 2" nails to nail into the window framing and bucks.

We also nailed downward from the header into the 1x4 side trim.

We'll have a tiny bit of touch up to fill nail holes, but otherwise ....

I love how the window trim is turning out!!!

We trimmed the door headers out in the same manner,

I love how the simple but more substantial white trim makes the wood doors pop.

If we'd done wood trim around the doors, this entire hallway would have been dark wood.  But the white helps brighten the hall up let's us show off the wood doors and floor.

Next up, we'll be adding baseboard!  Can't believe how close we are getting to finishing the Momplex completely!

So what do you think?  Do you like the wood doors floating in the white frames?  The extra wide headers?  Have you done trim work in your home?  Do you paint your trim first?  We'd love to hear your side too!

XO Ana + Fam