White wood wainscoting brightens a bathroom.
Buy an older home, and you inherit architectural treasures and some really depressing design failures as well. But when the bathroom is paneled in wood and the look isn't working, a paintbrush is your friend. A few coats of eggshell or a weekend of faux painting will transform a dated look into one you can live with.
Paint a Problem
Dark paneling in a small bathroom will just spread gloom in a constricted space. Paint the paneling a smooth dove gray to pick up a color in the floor tile. Using chalk white with a hint of gray on the upper walls and ceiling will bring more light into the room as well as add height.
Pseudo-Paneling
Create the illusion of paneling by adding a chair rail, baseboard and vertical boards to a stucco wall. The wood gives the appearance of panels with raised frames. Paint the wall cream, bisque or a color that complements your fixtures or decor, and paint the wood trim a contrasting color. Cream walls and soft blue wood invite flowered wallpaper on the upper wall over the "chair rail." Try medium-gray paint on the wood, and use gray and white stripes above -- either painted or papered.
Curated Clutter
A large bathroom is a luxury, but don't let it feel cavernous. Extend wood wainscoting about three-quarters of the way up the wall, and paint it glossy white to match the fixtures. Attaching hooks for towels, mirrors, grooming items and bathrobes will break up the space. The walls above the wood paneling can match the floor color, or pick up a tone from tile trim. Stack some paintings, photographs or vintage signs on top of the wainscoting, like a picture shelf against the painted wall. The bathroom gets an infusion of personality and feels intimate, not institutional.
Fake Fabulous
Put some glamour into an old-fashioned bathroom by the tired wainscoting. Go with a white marble look with light gray veining, or develop a little drama with fake lapis or malachite panels topped by high-gloss enameled upper walls that echo the color of the fake stone. You can protect the faux paintwork with two coats of clear, non-yellowing lacquer that wipes down easily.
Tags: chair rail, faux painting, , upper walls, wood wainscoting