A 1923 Belmont Craftsman bungalow with original quartersawn oak trim throughout — moldings, baseboards, window casings, even the original built-ins. Owners wanted walls and ceilings refreshed without touching the oak.
The challenge
Painting around heavy oak Craftsman trim is brush-precision work — cut-lines along intricate molding profiles need a steady hand because tape doesn't fit into the channels properly.
What we did
- Hand-mask every linear foot of oak trim with low-tack paper (no liquid masking)
- Skim-coat 18 plaster cracks across 8 rooms
- Walls in BM Regal Select OC-23 Classic Gray (warm enough to flatter oak)
- Ceilings in BM Waterborne Ceiling Paint flat white (hides imperfection)
- All cut-lines hand-brushed at the oak meeting wall — no tape
- Original oak trim untouched, hand-cleaned after work
The result
Craftsman character preserved, light reflects properly off the new flat ceilings, oak trim suddenly prominent against the soft gray walls.