For over a 100 years wainscoting has been a common way to coat one's walls. Wainscoting is essentially a type of paneling that is put on the bottom of your wall in a living or dining room. This paneling can come in all kinds of materials, such as wood, ceramic tile, fabric, or sometimes a newer material that is a combination of more traditional material such as wood or plastic. It covers the drywall of any room. If you look it up in the dictionary then you will see that to wainscot something can is to apply any sort of paneling between the baseboard and the chair rail. You can buy tongue in groove boards which are a common way to wainscot a room. In previous times the wood used was of wood wagon sliding. Since there was an abundance of this material it made it a very popular choice.
You can make your wainscoting at any height. Very low wainscoting is just an extended baseboard. Sometimes it can go about 8 inches higher than the normal baseboard. This is often simply one board that goes higher and is decorative. If the room needs a different touch than they can add a separate piece above the baseboard. In homes built before 1840 this is a common design
Most people like to do a more traditional wainscoting that is higher than the baseboard alone. This will usually go between 48 inches up to 54 inches. The wainscoting is decorative and protects the walls. This was very popular in the mid-1800's. The tongue and groove boards are the traditional style and they were nailed in place. This was originally a clever way to hide the joints in the walls, now it is used more for its looks and sturdiness.
In dining rooms in the early 1900's people began making their wainscot walls go really high. Sometimes they could get up to 60-72 inches. You could buy different panels that were 18-24 inches and had molding on them too. Usually people would use cloth during this time period for their wainscot, this cloth was usually grasscloth, a sturdy linen, or burlap. They enjoyed using very rich and decorative colors in their homes.
Wainscot is still a popular style and it is something classic that will probably continue to be popular in the future. Since it is not too expensive and you can do a whole room in wood for only 0 it will probably remain in fashion for a while to come. It is a great look that is very elegant and regal. Since it gives an element of the 1900's in the home it can give a great antique feel to any home. Try it in your home today!
