Celebrate your home’s beauty with character-boosting updates that signal personal style. Even the smallest of renovations, such as a new door or gorgeous architectural details, can bring the past to present. Refresh the look and feel of your home with one of these inspiring remodeling ideas.
Eye Catching Entryway - Add interest and texture to your doorways with trimwork. Define arched doorways with detailed trim to create graceful entrances throughout your home. 
Wow-Worthy Walls - Dress up wide-open wall space with decorative molding. Suggest panels by applying thin strips of molding to walls. This technique, known as picture framing, is an easy way to emphasize artwork. For a bold look, paint the inside of the frame a different color.
Fancy Flights - Make an entrance worthy of any starlet with a well-designed staircase. To give your stairs a simple facelift, consider replacing the newel (the vertical support at the center of a circular staircase or the post that supports a handrail at the bottom of a straight staircase) to anchor the landing. 
Wake Up Your Walls - Create visual interest with wainscoting, which comes in many different patterns to suit any style. Beaded board adds a cottage persona, while paneled wainscoting is well-suited for a traditionally decorated space. Design Tip: When installing wall panels in a damp area such as a bathroom, consider using urethane beaded board, a low-maintenance material that won’t rot or warp when exposed to moisture. 
Overhead Treatment – Don’t forget to look up when designing your space. In this kitchen, the box beams on the ceiling are a sunny shade of yellow to match the cabinets. Exposed ceiling beams make a space with a high ceiling feel more welcoming.
Spotlight the Ceiling - Spice up a plain ceiling with beaded board panels. The simple touch gives the ceiling a distinctive prominence in this dining room. 
Decorate with Trim - Decorative trim adds an instant stamp of personality to any space. Consider adding decorative details such as this cornice and arch treatment to soften the abrupt transition between a curved entryway and the adjoining wall. 
Scene-Setting Ceiling - Architectural elements can quickly convey a specific style. The sturdy reclaimed wooden beams lining the ceiling of this kitchen prevent the space from looking washed out and create a rustic, lived-in feel despite the large, open space. 
Furniture-Style Features - Make your kitchen feel more like living space by adding furniture-style details. Decorative legs on an island or details at the base of cabinets give the kitchen a cozy character. 
Creative Cutouts - Looking upward from the foyer, this circular cutout resembles a skylight. Adding an architectural detail like this one was the perfect way to make a small, short space look larger by allowing the eye to see space above the entryway ceiling.
What a cool idea!
Beautiful Curves – Spruce up an ordinary hallway with a graceful barrel-vault ceiling. The gentle curve of the ceiling prevents this all-white space from looking cold and harsh.
Stylish Shutters - Interior shutters on the lower half of the window offer the perfect combination of privacy and sunlight for a bathroom. 
Better Homes and Garden-Home Improvement
