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Tips on Installing Faux Beams

Faking it!

This is a post on faking it! If you boil it down, there is a pretty big part of decorating that is about ‘faking it’, right?! Trying to create a look and feel with the decorations. Where does the ‘creating’ end and the ‘faking’ start? Maybe that’s too abstract of thinking… Maybe that’s just me, just how my decorator mind works… Maybe, (and this is a very solid option) I’ve been in my house during the quarantine too long… LOL

In my attempt to transform our 1970’s house into a colonial revival cottage style, I decided it needed beams. To install real beams would have been super expensive and a super duper invasive addition to the already huge renovation project, not to mention crazy heavy and cumbersome. (We did use real beams on the front porch addition, those beams were so heavy!) I did want to carry that same beam look into the inside of the house, but not invite the issues of installing real ones.

What did I do?

I faked it! Until I started to learn in earnest about faux beams, I really had no idea just how good they looked… and how easy they are to install. Disclaimer here: I did the design, the sourcing, ordering and the picture taking of the faux beam install… but I didn’t do the installation. I left that up to my carpenter. I do think that these faux beams are actually quite adaptable for a DIY project though, so keep reading and see what you think.

In our whole house renovation, though we removed as many walls as we could on the main level, it was still important to me to have defined spaces. Another very high priority for this whole house renovation was to add character and ooze colonial cottage charm in every room, without being obnoxious about it. LOL

Sounds simple, right?! This is what our house was when we first purchased it:

The wall to the left of the picture, behind the sofa was removed. Tricky part was that wall was a supporting wall. Just removing it wasn’t really ‘just removing’ it. It entailed the carpenter to carefully hold up the house with temporary supports and then add the huge laminated beam to replace the supporting stud wall.

That laminated beam is super strong… but it isn’t pretty. It could be covered simply with sheetrock, then it would basically blend in and not really be noticed and that would be done.

Done, but really boring.

Instead, I chose to emphasize that huge beam going across the length of the great room. That’s where faux beam number 1 comes into play! This, (and all the others) faux beam is made from some sort of hard foam material and is shaped like a ‘U’ so that it could slip around the laminated beam, completely encasing it.

Our carpenter, Dan, in the red shirt, is checking the fit of the faux beam, while our friend, Wayne, is lending a hand, and easily holding the lightweight faux beam in place with the handmade tool Dan made.

But just that one beam, though nice, wasn’t enough. I wanted more!

(can’t you just hear the ‘blueberry girl’ in Willy Wonka… “I waaant moooooore!”) Oompa Loompa. That didn’t go too well for her…

I think my design plan holds a little more weight… er… reasoning?

Here is my mentality for the design. It’s all about defining the space with features not with walls. The living room ceiling, to the left of where Wayne is standing is a vaulted ceiling… the ceiling in the kitchen dining area is a flat ceiling. In my head, it seemed like this area is more of an old colonial tavern style space and for sure that would include beams on the ceiling.

All that being said… there is a balance of repeating a theme and over doing it. I purposely didn’t do the mantle with a wooden beam because I felt that would have been overkill.

The large laminated beam cover was simply nailed into the laminated beam. To attach the rest of the beams to the ceiling, it was so simple!

Per the instructions from the faux beam manufacturer Dan marked chalklines on the ceiling then mounted spots of 2×4’s to the ceiling along those lines. Those 2×4 sections got screwed into the ceiling joists above.

The faux beams are relatively lightweight, so it wasn’t like he had to worry about it holding up a lot of weight.

To cut the faux beams, he used a simple oscillating tool like THIS ONE.

It cut the foam cleanly. I did order the beams a little longer, so that they could be perfectly fit on-site.

When it was time to put the faux beams up, the ‘U’ shape fits up over the 2 x 4 sections.

Using the handmade holder tool saves one’s arm from getting tired or if you don’t have a friend around to lend a hand.

Dan went across and brad nailed the faux beam to the 2×4 sections.

As the beams went up, the room was gaining character!

Placement was a thoughtful part of the design.

I didn’t want too many beams that they were in that ‘obnoxious’ category… I also needed to work around elements on the ceiling and walls. The kitchen dining room area has several chandeliers &/or ceiling lights. There are also cabinet doors that need to open, so I had to be sure a beam wasn’t intruding on that function.

Another thought in this design process was to not make it looked planned. I felt the design needed the beams to be spaced evenly apart, but not ‘centered’ on anything, like for instance on the sink or table etc. It seemed that as soon as I did that, it would look contrived. The goal in this design is for it to look like the base of this space is actually a Colonial cottage from a couple hundred years ago. I’ve been in a few of those, they are NOT perfect!

This is one of the things I love about working with Dan. He is extremely patient and offers to help me figure it out. He measured and put tape up to help me visualize the spacing as I verbalized the design. With a few adjustments we could make the final design placement plan.

We did make a mistake that wasn’t realized until the beams were up though. You can almost see it in the picture above… as soon as the beam was installed above the oven and cooktop area, it shadowed the recessed lights just enough that the cooking area was darkened. Fortunately, we were able to add additional recessed lighting in the ceiling on the stove side of the beam and the cooking area was perfectly lit again.

The beams are available in several prefinished colors, as well as unfinished. I will say though, the prefinished is done really, really well. These faux beams have such a believable texture and finish that no one can tell they are fake! In fact, my husband loves to ‘break the news’ to first time visitors…

So my takeaway tips are:

  • Faux beams are lightweight and easier to work with than real beams.
  • Be thoughtful in beam placement, working the plan on-site if possible, (and don’t forget about how they will shadow lighting)
  • Find the right balance of repeating a theme without overkill.
  • Use a holding tool, like the handmade one Dan made, to offer another hand.
  • An oscillating tool cuts the beams nice and clean.
  • The factory prefinished style is a really believable finish!

Want to know where you can get faux beams? HERE is a great place to get faux beams! They are relatively reasonably priced for a really big kick of character!

Did you know I now offer decorating and DIY coaching? I can help you with your decorating needs via email, without having to step foot in your home. If you’re interested in more information, visit me at Frame and Frills. I’d love to help you with your project!

Here are some more of my carpentry tips and ideas:

Blue-and-White-Backsplash-Tile
Cabinet-Door-Gallery
how to install a floating shelf
install door knocker in a hollow steel door
Wallpaper Mural
Repurposing-Vintage-Screen-Door
transform-hall-closet-into-library
Creating a Built-In Faux Fireplace
wall mounted potrack
antique inspiried kitchen island
shutters do's and don'ts
DIY Faux Exposed Brick Chimney
DIY Frosted Glass  Privacy Window
DIY Cedar Closet Lining
How to Change a Door Lock
tips to refresh basement steps
Old Time Carpenter Taught me this Trick
Wallies
How to Make a Chandelier Longer
DIY Wide Plank Laminate Flooring
How to add a fireplace to any room
Composite Decking
Tips on Creating a Kitchen Island Feature
Changing Popcorn Ceiling to Knockdown
Closet-Transformation
how to mount a shelf when there's no stud
Easiest DIY Beadboard ever
Nautical Cottage Bathroom
DIY wall mounted potrack
How to install a farmhouse sink

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Welcome to Simple Decorating Tips! I’m Liz, the author, and I’m so glad you’re here!

My goal is to encourage you with DIY tips, techniques and tutorials so you feel empowered to join in the fun! Along with this DIY blog, I have a DIY shop, Redo Your Furniture!
The shop is stocked with amazing DIY products! Fusion Mineral Paints, ReDesign Transfers, Decoupage, Waxes, loads of DIY Goodies and more! Even if you're not close to where the shop is in Wisconsin, good news... I ship nationwide, (USA) daily! Check out the link here and let's get your DIY on!
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Welcome to Simple Decorating Tips! I'm Liz, the author, and I'm so glad you're here! My goal is to encourage you with DIY tips, techniques and tutorials so you feel empowered to join in the fun! Along with this DIY blog, I have a DIY shop, Redo Your Furniture!
The shop is stocked with amazing DIY products! Fusion Mineral Paints, ReDesign Transfers, Decoupage, Waxes, loads of DIY Goodies and more! Even if you're not close to where the shop is in Wisconsin, good news... I ship nationwide, (USA) daily! Check out the link here and let's get your DIY on!


Disclosure Policy: According to FTC guidelines, I want you to be aware that some of the content of this blog may be a source of income and therefore may be used to promote products, services, or other businesses. I will only choose to promote products/services/businesses that I feel will be beneficial to my readers. While I hope to generate a small profit for my time and effort to create this blog, I hold myself to the highest standard of integrity. I appreciate my readers, and make it my goal to deliver quality, honest material on this blog through each post. Thanks for reading along, Liz

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Sharing is great! Please feel free to share this blog with your friends, as well as on Facebook and Pinterest and Flipboard and Houzz and YouTube the more the merrier! I appreciate you stopping by. But please remember that all photos, images, text and content are owned by SimpleDecoratingTips.com. So anything you share, please be sure it always links back to my original post it came from. Please do not remove watermarks, crop or edit anything without written permission from me first.

Disclosure Policy: According to the FTC guidelines, I want you to be aware that this blog is a source of income and may occasionally incorporate endorsements or testimonials and shopping links. It is important to me to disclose this to you. The content of this blog is a source of income and therefore may be used to promote products, services, or other businesses. I will only choose to promote products/services/businesses that I feel will be beneficial to my readers. Products provided to me by my advertising partners for my review are given to me free of charge with no cost to myself. This does not ensure a positive review of the product in any way. While I hope to generate a small profit for my time and effort to create this blog, I hold myself to the highest standard of integrity. I appreciate my readers, and always make it my goal to deliver quality, honest material on this blog through each post. Thanks for reading along, Liz

Disclosure Policy According to Federal Trade Commission guidelines, I want you to be aware that this blog is a source of income and may occasionally incorporate endorsements or testimonials. It is important to me to disclose this to you. The content of this blog is a source of income and therefore may be used to promote products, services, or other businesses. I will only choose to promote products/services/businesses that I feel will be beneficial to my readers. Products provided to me by my advertising partners for my review are given to me free of charge with no cost to myself. This does not ensure a positive review of the product in any way. My truthful opinion will be what I state, no matter if I'm getting paid or not. Accuracy and truth are the priority for me on this blog's information, no matter if it's about a product or anything else. Not every product or service or store etc. may be mentioned in each and every post as an affiliate. While I hope to generate a small profit for my time and effort to create this blog, I hold myself to the highest standard of integrity. I appreciate my readers, and always make it my goal to deliver quality, honest material on this blog through each post.

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