Yup. Every rental we've ever lived in. (In fact, I'm looking at that right now.)

I suppose if the rest of the room was appointed with modern details, it would look modern. Ours just look like the proverbial plain-white-box, slap-dash, rental-plain lack of trim.

I like modern when it is done well. But it is not necessarily just "plain" but maybe also with details (that are more streamlined)?

No pictures (no camera), but log onto any apartment rental website and I bet you could find them pretty quick.

What window treatments would you be using? (I've seen a lot of people use no treatments at all, but that is usually because they want to highlight the significant casements.)

All that said, we are going for trim-less closet doors and I will say that it was quite a bit of work making sure the cornerbead was straight, plumb, and level so the doors would work properly (and look good) when they are finally installed. Are your windows already in? Is there any chance that they would ever need to be replaced in the future? I don't know how easy - or difficult - it would be if there is no trim (trim allows everyone involved to "cheat" a bit), but maybe someone else here can tell you about function.

Modern is harder to execute because the traditional trim covers all the sins from inaccurate construction. If this is a remodel (not a new build), it might be far easier to go with plain trim instead of none at all. Even a mere shadow line concept (just using 1/4"-1/2" flat stock) would still look very sleek, but still play nice with your current situation. And add a sleek-and-subtle detail.

And is there any possibility of movement that would crack all your mud work? I don't know what threatens mud's integrity (versus trim), but again, maybe somebody here could speak to that.

Tract homes on the economy level always used a drywall return with no casing trim.

It's preference. If you like it, do it.

Michael

I've owned high-end homes that had no trim.....all in Calif.........and I think it wasn't used simply because it's a cost saver. I find drywall sills a pain to keep clean and difficult to wipe off. If rain or dampness got in an open window the drywall & paint would always swell.

If you're wanting a contemporary look, I'd at least use a plain trim as stw suggested.

well for some info. I am in the middle of a huge remodel. 1958 rambler. Windows are all brand new replacement windows. The sheetrock is cut pretty close to the windows and the jambs are flush with the sheet rock as well. I like your idea about the 1/2" flat stock though, I may go with that. I always thought of trim (with the thick to thin taper) to be a traditional look. The 1/2" or 3/4" flat stock might actually look pretty sleek and contemporary.

I opened up my kitchen to my living room to create a open space and I went with flat slab doors, and comtemporary handles so this kind of trim may fit the room well. thanks for the idea.

I've lived in middle-class neighborhoods in Arizona, California and Colorado. I've never lived in a home that had trim around the windows.

Ya know, reading the other replies, I am starting to really think that modern is in the details. Otherwise you are going to inadvertently look sort of down-market.

And maybe going for modern trim is a more obvious "cue" to modern than no trim.

Yes. My last house had drywall returns on the sides & top of the windows and a wooden sill.

My 1966-built house had NO trim around the windows and doors. It definitely was NOT modern!

There is wood trim everywhere now....

I've seen plaster returns with marble sills. A nice way to introduce a precious material and keep a clean look.
There's no wood to screw curtain rods or brackets for blinds into.
Casey

None of the mid-century built homes that we looked at when buying had trim around the windows here in California (these were just average, middle class homes). Newer homes did, though (anything built in the last 10 to 20 years). Our house was built in 1958, and it doesn't have trim around the windows -- it does make things look a little boring and unfinished, IMHO.

Not modern - just less expensive.

My 50's ranch had no window trim with steel windows. Now it has lots of trim and the steel windows have been melted down into something hopefully more useful.

A little trick I used was to keep the return to the window drywall and put wood trim cased around the opening including wood stool and apron. By painting the trim and the return with the same paint, it looks like the window return is wood as well.

Trimless jambs require an inset frame. The joint between the frame and the drywall must be handled carefully since these materials move differently. If the window frames are already flush with the drywall it's too late for a trimless jamb.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, I covert sheet rock opening with new stools, apron, casings and stop. I think is some applications they are classier.

The Porch Guy

Here is a link that might be useful: My album

Our window and door openings have a 2x4 inset on the 2x6 walls where the drywall will bullnose around the 2x6 and into the 2x4 frame. The clear pine window frame is flush to the drywall on the 2x4 frame. Same as the interior and exterior door openings, i built the drywall out and ran metal stop up against the window jamb that has been rounded over and the metal stop has a slight reveal. The texture is skip troweled. The goal was to have a caseless openings popular on some 1940's homes that we saw in pasadena,ca where we got some old red cedar doors and incorporated into our build. I dig on casings,baseboard, wood work in the right home, but in our 40's cottage plan, keeping it caseless w/ simple shoe mould for a base for the hardwood floors keeps it clean and simple, which is what we are after. Something a little out of the box and a lot more effort for sure.

I know I'm kind of an oddball, but I am about the only person in a development full of no-trim windows who seems to like them. Several of my larger windows are drywall boxed in between the studs. Just spent a fortune replacing a couple of other windows and had to decide whether or not to trim existing windows to match their new neighbors. Contractor thought I was crazy for even considering leaving the old ones as is. We compromised. I still have the untrimmed boxes, but now they are faced in wood instead of drywall. It's a different look, but it's simple and clean. Goes well with my more streamlined tastes. Whatever you decide, here's a tip for painted windowsills. Since mine were boxed in drywall, they were painted. To keep the bottom sill looking fresh, I started always painting just the top side of the bottom sill in bright white washable paint, like the kind one might use for a kitchen or bathroom. No matter how much dust would accumulate in the house, it was always just a quick wipe to make it look like it was freshly painted.

The wood trim is just an expensive band aid. Yet another thing to cover up gap, or careless work.

If you remove the trim you will also need to remove the wood extension jambs and replace them with drywall and reinforce the corner with a corner bead. Replacing the stool trim with drywall creates a maintenance problem because painted drywall is not as serviceable as painted wood. This is a detail that is best designed in advance.

I think geoffrey_b hit it on the head, based on my contractor's comments. We just finished a major remodel and opted not to trim the interior of the windows because we prefer a very simple modern look. It was more expensive because the drywall guys had to spend alot of time making the windows look perfect . . .

@fwcor: You are correct. I remodeled the lower level of our walk-out. It took quite a while to finish the drywall returns - used corner bead all around. For the sill I used Hardibacker cement board. I tiled the sills and used a Schluter profile. Very clean and modern.

I’m in the process of building a high end Mediterranean home, no trim in windows, no crown, just baseboard trim. When doing windows this way you are limited to window dressings, usually curtains or shades look best. Personally I love the look of no trim

I’m building a high end home with no trim. It looks fabulous, no trim around doors or windows, solid wood interior doors. Mediterranean

This post is from 2008