I think the question is "Do you like it?" If your trim is from 1980 it's not going to be some long lost treasure that is irreplaceable (as perhaps it might be in an old Victorian or Craftsman).

So whether you paint it or not really just comes down to whether you think you'd like it better that way or not.

Which probably doesn't help you one iota.

Hi Wi-sailorgirl.

I don't want to say that all 1980s trim is cheesy--I'm sure that people who had the funds to hire actual architects to design their houses had sources of nice straight-grained old-growth wood--but most of the stuff I saw back then was yellowy-orange, too shiny & too thin, with shaggy, erratic grain. Then again, maybe the people who went with that stuff had other things they wanted to spend their money on: vertical blinds & glass-block counters like on Miami Vice, not to mention pasta makers, bread makers, chrome microwaves the size of Buicks, with all the horsepower of a Yugo. To each his own. Mine is not to judge.

OK, yes it is. That's why I'm a decorator: to be able to identify & point out other people's decorating mistakes, hopefully, when people are still in the thinking-about stage, before they actually fork over their hard-earned cash for stuff that one of these days, they're gonna regret. Sometimes I get there in time and a crisis is averted. Sometimes I get there late & there's nothing to do but smile & put some lipstick on the pig. Other times, the damege was done thirty years ago, and all you can do is shake your head and ask "Why?"

Anyway, to answer your question, not dance around it, the answer is yeah, if it's 1980s wood, it's probably not very nice. Nice wood was expensive, even then. The simple solution to that, of course, is paint. But here's the thing. Besides being ugly, a lot of 198Os trim is also thin to the point of anorexia, and it doesn't deserve to be showcased with what seems to be everybody's fall-back anwswer these days, a coat of white paint. White paint isn't the one-size-fits-all solution a lot of people seem to think it is. In fact, if you've got Skinny Trim, all white paint will do is make the problem worse, because it highlights what should be minimized. The Clinique woman doesn't conceal bad acne scars with clown makeup.

Sometimes, if people have well-proprotioned rooms and are are up the the work (and, let's be honest, the cost) I suggest that they remove their Skinny-Minnie 1980s trim & put up something more substantial. Fortunately, these days, it's easy to find MDF trim that's properly scaled. As far as quality goes, sure, it's still only MDF, but at least it has enough visual heft to make a statement, and painting that stuff white is fine. Better than staining, anyway. But a lot of people with ugly orange trim can't afford to rip off all the old stuff & replace it right now, and I have to warn them them that just painting the old stuff white isn't the answer. Not a good one, anyway.

Here's why: the 'space-saving' lack of back hallways & secondary spaces in a lot of open-plan houses means that doors to things like closets & utility rooms are located right out in public view, in main rooms. There's no need to highlight that stuff. All that painting all those extra doors white does is make a room look hyperactive. Instead, I suggest people make that stuff recede into the background with paint matched to the walls. That, in turn, removes the emphasis from the often awkwardly-arranged rooms that people merely inherited, and puts it where it properly belongs, on the furniture & artwork that people chose.

Regards,
Magnaverde.

"Then again, maybe the people who went with that stuff had other things they wanted to spend their money on: vertical blinds & glass-block counters like on Miami Vice, not to mention pasta makers, bread makers, chrome microwaves the size of Buicks, with all the horsepower of a Yugo. To each his own. Mine is not to judge."

Damn you crack me up! Love your insightful answers, Magna.

Hmmm....helpful answer. You actually agree with my hubby who says that if we want the trim white, he'd tear down the old and put up new stuff.

So...how thick SHOULD trim be around windows and as crown molding? My trim is 2 1/4 inches and the crown is 5". I'll try to post a picture and the honest opinion of you all.

We are starting to realize that the wood trim dates our house and it is definitely the orangy kind. Pic coming soon!

What kind of wood is it?

My house is an 80's center hall colonial with walnut stained trimmed throughout. I have walnut stained hardwood as well and real paned glass windows with walnut stained wood grids in the glass, no removable grids here. I have no desire to have white trim in my house, it just plain would not fit in here.

In my 1908 house the door casings and window trim are 5" and the headers with crown are about 7" tall. Baseboards are 10". To me these proportions with the room and window sizes are perfect.
Diane

You can get trim and molding made out of any kind of wood you want. Price is the only obstacle. In most cases, the style of the trim should be congruent with the style of your house.

If your trim is orangy looking and 2 1/4 inch, and you can afford to change it, RIP IT OUT. If you are going to paint a pretty white, go to a lumber/mill-works store and buy the nicest you can afford. You can get three times the bang for your bucks by going this route instead of the big box stores.

I had a house full of the cheapest pine baseboards and window and door trim ever made! Ranch style at that - not one bit of design to them. They had never been stained - just poly that had turned orange over the years.
I replaced every piece with poplar trim about 4 years ago. Used 5" baseboard and 3 1/2" window and door trim with a fairly conservative profile. Wish I had used taller baseboards, even with my 8' ceilings.

Knowing that white would show a lot of dust and lint, I tried to go with something that did not have deep grooves and recesses, plus it makes for easier painting. If you are going to paint, you can get the paint grade trim which will save you money.

Another thing I did to enhance my woodwork was the use of nice fluted trim in openings that don't have doors. My main living areas (kitchen, dining and living) actually had the opening done in painted drywall. I added the fluted trim which added some architectural interest which is sadly missing in my home.

Tuesday

sandra_zone6, powermuffin and tuesday_2008: I'd love to see pics of your trim (if you have any handy).