For more than 30 years, Catchlight Painting has been synonymous with historic home restoration working in a countless number of Victorian homes throughout the Greater Boston area. We are fortunate to be headquartered in a part of the country known for these beautiful historic homes, most with unique architectural features. While historic restoration can be time-consuming, meticulous work, we love the challenge! Each project is an opportunity to gain a holistic understanding of a property, whether it’s in Newton, Brookline, Weston, or any other historic city or town.
One feature of Victorian homes that has a striking visual impact is the elaborate crown molding found in interior and exterior spaces. What we understand at Catchlight is that restoration of this type of woodwork requires the utmost respect, experience, and care.
Victorian Crown Molding; a Brief Introduction
Decorative molding was first used as a functional solution in ancient Rome and Greece. At the time, it was difficult to design and build rooms with perfectly level lines of intersection, and crown molding covered the uneven junction between walls and ceilings.
Over time, designers understood that molding could be much more than a solution to a problem; it became an opportunity to create a sense of elegance and grandeur. Now, Victorian crown molding is particularly well-known and sought after as it’s considered by many to be the pinnacle of artistic-inspired ornamentation in architectural modeling in the United States.
Working With History
When Catchlight is tasked with carpentry services to restore Victorian crown molding, we first must understand the home’s unique history. Whether the home is Victorian or Colonial, it is never an “assembly line” effort for us; it’s meticulous work requiring patience and expertise. And it’s work we love at Catchlight! Restoring these historic homes is bringing to life a piece of history; it’s work we take very seriously.
19th and early 20th-century Victorian homes were built to present scale, grandeur, elegance, and prosperity; the refined ornamentation of crown molding is just one example of this. Without a deep historical understanding of the materials, craftsmanship, and techniques used in Victorian design, restoration efforts can inadvertently erase history, not preserve it.
At Catchlight, our woodworkers are highly skilled but also experts in the intricacies of Victorian design, passionate about honoring and restoring historic building features. It’s why we hire the best in the field!
Please visit the links to learn more about our handyman services, restoration work, and passion for historic New England paint colors.
Contact us today with any questions you may have.
