I would wait until the cabinets and flooring are installed to make your decision.

i would go white for a fresh new look for your home-youve had the woodsy country look for a while, heres a chance to freshen up!

Should the beams be painted a ceiling white to match the ceiling? I was thinking if I painted the beams a ceiling white, the beams would melt into the ceiling and the ceiling would look higher. What about the support beam and support pole in the middle of the room? Or should I paint all the woodwork the same light cream?

Hi....Yes, paint the entire ceiling and beams in a white that works with the rest of your home.

yes, matilta's right, use same white throughout...

Leave the beams! See comment above! LOL :)

Independent Brand Labs would your opinion still be the same if the home was built in 1998 and the wood used was pine.

HI -- yes you could do that (paint beams)-- as long as you do something with the ceiling between the beams . Maybe a white washed T&G wood or a linen or grass cloth wall paper or even just a paint color .

bdgracy; A fair question. And one I cannot answer with the single photo of the interior. I guess it would have to do with the quality of materials used, overall style of the home. Although Stickley and the others we by no means the first to use exposed beams as a design element, I think it's fair to say that through expert carpentry they elevated them to an art form. Beams were a Craftsman hallmark but their popularity far outlasts the movement becoming ubiquitous in new home construction.

Hopefully my first comments didn't offend—I am just very direct about topics I'm passionate about. If you mentioned the house was built in 1998 I may have answered differently—I guess I missed that and since the photo showed up on a board highlighting Craftsman ceiling beams, I jumped to the conclusion.

HOWEVER; my comments stand without regret. The point is simply this; any builder worth his salt (DIY-ers notwithstanding) would select the finest wood available (and within client budget) if he planned to stain it.

Conversely, if he planned to paint it, he would select the most economical species, or maybe not even wood at all but MDF or some other composite. If the builder is one with integrity, he/she would pass on the savings to the customer.

As far as the age of the home — remember; every beautiful antique, historic building and classic auto was once new. They become valuable because someone carefully cared for it over decades or centuries.

My personal philosophy (it's just mine) is to follow the tenet of the physician's oath; "FIRST; DO NO HARM" in other words don't slice a patient open because he has a headache in hopes you find the cause.

BY WAY OF ILLUSTRATION: My grandparents had an Eastlake Victorian home and for most of my life i always wondered what style it was... it had Victorian proportions but otherwise generic. A couple years before my grandfather died (at 93) told me about when they bought the house around 1930. And how he used his steam Jenny to blast "all the damn wallpaper off" and that he spent the first few years removing wood work that was just something else to dust and varnish"

Bless his soul, he was a mechanic, not a style aficionado by any means.

The moral of the story; perhaps 50 years from now when 1998 homes are the new chic taht every young couple wants to buy and lovingly restore, they'll get yours and after moving in one will say to the other; "Honey; you gotta see this... SOME MORON PAINTED OVER ALL THIS PICKLED PINE!"

Jeff

I would stain them color of floors. Paint a soft gray. Remove border in kitchen. Paint all rooms the same color. Since they flow into each other. The blue is too dark.

Ceiling should be white.

Jeff, I like the way you think! Someday all of the grey walls and creamy white kitchens will just look sad. Although some of the builder's grade cabinets that I see on here could definitely improve with a coat of paint. But architectural wood is there for a reason.

If you don't like the pickled beams, go ahead and paint them. They look heavy for the height of your ceilings and I think painting them white will give a lighter feel. I know some people are opposed to painting wood, but it is your house and if you want to paint them, go ahead. You are the one that is living there.

I like the character/contrast/interest of the beams - you can always paint them later. Agree the blue is too dark and the rooms should all be the same color. The border should be removed. Alternatively, what lefty47 says - paint them white and insert grass cloth (nice texture) for the same contrasting effect.

I'll be brief; "Put down the brush and back away slowly... lol-anyway, HANDYMAN is correct in that it's your mortgage, so do what looks good TO YOU. Really. You can't please everybody and personal taste is just that.

I just finished painting the beams in a craftsman style house. They already had several coats of paint on them and we are selling so no time to remove paint. The beams were painted a dark burgundy color before and the walls were white. I put cocoa on the walls, painted the beams Porter paint Ash White and put the cocoa on the ceiling between the beams. The white beams really brightened the room while the dark ceiling and walls added drama and made the ceiling look higher. My point is that even if you do paint the beams white that doesn't mean that the ceiling has to be white too.
This is before all the painting was done but you can get a bit of an idea about how it looks now.

I have another question regarding all the woodwork in this room. If I leave all the woodwork alone, how do I touch up the places in the floor molding that look worn and the stain is almost worn off completely? I do not have any of the pickled stain. This was done 25 years ago. Also, one of the suggestions was that I restain. I have read that pine is the worst material to stain. Is that true? I would leave the wood alone but do not want this part of the room to look tired. Any other suggestions? I do plan to repaint the walls, probably a taupe, and we are taking down the bulkhead in the kitchen, taking the cabinets to the ceiling. Also, the ceiling beam that leads into the kitchen will also be removed, because it attaches to the bulkhead. I am not sure how this will look either, that is why I was considering painting all the rest of the pickled beams white or cream so they will not look so noticable.

Couple thoughts; in no particular order...

1. PINE is a difficult wood to stain in the sense it doesn't absorb stain evenly and can look blotchy. A bigger concern if the stain is dark. In any case ypou need to buy WOOD CONDITIONER which comes in both water base or oil and you should use water base stain over it or oil respectively.I'm presuming the wood has already been conditioned when it was originally stained, so the issue may be moot if you can just get by with refreshing the existing finish and buffing it out.

2. "TOUCH UP" might present some challenges, and depends on how much damage there is (scuffs v. scratches or chips down to bare wood). If it's the former, a new overcoat of clear with a tint of the white pickle stain should do the trick but being careful not to let it become too opaque since it's going to be affected by the white underneath.

If it's full blown scratches, nicks & dents, and bad enough, you may be better off replacing some pieces. Otherwise, patch it with a wood filler that accepts stain well (Minwax makes a good one), then use artists brushes to retouch the patched areas and when it's lightening to near the same shade, feather the stain a bit into the old. THEN apply a new clear coat with a white stain tint-just a touch.

Here's a helpful link:
http://www.diynetwork.com/home-improvement/whitewashing-and-pickling-techniques/index.html

* NOTE: you need to determine what type of stain and clear coat was used originally so you can follow up with something compatible.

FYI: TRULY "PICKLED" Finish is just that... The wood is PICKLED with acetic acid & iron (Vinegar & steel wool). The result is more like gray to black, so the term PICKLING STAIN is a misnomer and better term is "whitewashed", however, widely accepted.

For more on this check out http://www.leevalley.com/en/newsletters/Woodworking/7/4/article2.htm


Don't be too freaked out by the pickling stain.. it's basically still jsut stain and many of the applications are the same.

If the touch up is excessive and you don't want to replace the piece, just strip it, sand it prep with wood conditioner and re-stain.
As for the beam (and without seeing the scenario) consider keeping the beam, terminating it where it meets the cabinet and add a cross beam. (Presuming your situation uses half beams at the walls, this can be very effective. By removing the beam, you're opening a pandora's box to "fix" all the places the beam met other members and the ceiling.

PICKLED/WHITEWASHED wood tends to be quite elegant and contemporary-especially in a dining/kitchen area.

I hope this helps... shooting off the hip here cause i gotta run....

Jeff

Jeff, I have posted another picture of my kitchen. If you look through the kitchen into the dining room, there is dark stain on the trim in the dining room. This dark stain will be close to my new wood floor stain. My new cabinets will be a dark stain also on beautiful hickory. We will be extending our island just a bit. I wanted to remove the bulkheads and take the cabinets to the ceiling. If I keep the beam attaching to the bulkhead leading into the kitchen and put a cross bar to attach to this bulkhead, I feel I am again separating the kitchen from the eating area. So this is why I thought painting the whitewashed wood work would be the best option, and hopefully, one whould not notice the missing beam. I am not too sure about the dark stain on my wood floors and my dark hickory cabinets looking good/right with the whitewashed woodwork in this room. What are your thoughts on this? I appreciate your time.

I think it would be best to paint all ceilings and beams white, it will give the room light especially if the floors will be darker and the walls have quite a strong blue as well. White for sure! lovely space though

If painting the beams is off the table, I would consider staining them darker ~ AFTER the wood floors are stained OR reconsider your floor stain and choose something lighter and closer to the finish on the beams.

Take a look at some of these pictures. https://www.houzz.com/magazine/exposed-beams-not-just-for-barns-anymore-stsetivw-vs~2439

And these:
http://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen/exposed-wood-beams-

Note how the wood beams (when not painted) and floors are almost always finished same or very similar. Which one you choose is a personal choice ... just be consistent and the end result will be beautiful. You mentioned dark stained kitchen cabinets are planned? If you go with the dark stain on floors & beams, I would also consider painting the upper or lower cabinets or the island. (See attached pic) And yes, nix the wallpaper and paint all the rooms the same color. Good luck. You have a beautiful space to work with - have fun with it!

The beams we see in the pic above are not beams at all... they are the floor to the upper floor. However, they look cute exposed. I think the beams are a structural, and visual aid. Everything does not need white paint on it.

Oops, just to clarify ... Photo with red lower kitchen cabinet was intended to illustrate how a pop of color can be used in an all wood environment (dark stained beams, floor, and cabinets). Here are 2 more examples.

It would help immensely to know what architectural style the house fits best into. Any exterior shots or views of other rooms? This particular space seems to be contemporary/transitional. Certainly whitewashed/pickled wood work & furniture were popular in the 50's-60's. Sort of a holdover of the Hollywood & French Regence (Regency) style movements made famous by Hollywood stars.

Beams on the ceiling are common in many styles of architecture throughout history, and nowadays seem to be popular again even in plain vanilla McMansions. Apparently to make them less generic.

Thanks for the other pics... I wrote my last note before I refreshed my screen. PERSONALLY (but it's not my house), I prefer contrast of the wood with the walls and furnishings. So I think I'd tend to want all the woodwork the same tone. However, kitchen areas are traditionally treated differently, to appear brighter and clean, which may be what the previous owner was going for.

If you decide to stain the whitewashed woodwork, I'd try a sample in an inconspicuous area. Getting all the white pigment out of the wood may require serious sanding (and likely removal of all the woodwork to do so). Otherwise, any pigment remaining in the grain or pores of the wood will be visible through the dark stain.

I live in an historic home with all the original mahogany, oak floors etc. The exception is the kitchen which was redone by a previous owner in 1989. I am redoing this kitchen now. The cherry cabinets they installed have not held up well over the years and--gasp--yes I will be painting them. I feel since they are not original to the house, this is an appropriate decision.

bdgracy, while researching ideas for my own design dilemma, I came across this home that might give you more ideas for another option - painted trim mixed with untouched woodwork. Might be a compromise that will give you the look your after? Here's the link:

Need advice, again. Appreciate everyone that is willing to give it. We have decided not to paint the woodwork in our room. I have attached the image again. The question I have is this. If I remove the beam that attaches to the bulkhead in the kitchen, remove the bulkhead, of course, take the kitchen cabinets to the ceiling, put pendent lights over the island, would I be making a mistake. Would it look strange to take out only one beam. I am hoping that once I take out the bulkhead and the beam that attaches to it then the kitchen and kitchen table would look as if it is a 'separate' area than the rest of the room.