How To Efficiently Plan a Skirting Install

Why you should plan ahead when buying skirting

We get a lot of queries from people who want to buy skirting and architrave from us and who are shocked and surprised to find out that we aren’t Amazon and their order won’t be with them the next day!

Whilst we would love to be successful enough to have our own fantastic delivery network, we’re still working on getting that first billion!

As with a lot of things, there is often a trade-off between convenience and quality, which is why we always recommend that you take your time to make your decision and plan ahead to ensure you get your order before you need it.

Here are some of the reasons we think this is the best approach to take.

It's a Big Investment

Although skirting board or architrave may be an afterthought for many people, we really do think it adds a finishing touch to a room.

Whether you’re replacing it due to accidental damage, as part of a home renovation or it’s just looking worse for wear, some people do underestimate what a big investment it is.

As well as the products themselves, there are also costs from getting a professional to fit them and buying paint.

Even if you go down the route of doing it yourself, unless you’ve already got the necessary tools, you have to factor in the cost of buying them.

Taking time to consider your approach and spread your costs out means you aren’t hit so hard. For example, you could buy the skirting boards one month and then pay your contractor two or three months afterward, depending on what delivery date you choose.

Pick your delivery date

Following on from that, buying from a skirting specialist, such as ourselves, usually means there is a lead time on when your product can be delivered, just like buying a sofa or wardrobe from a major retailer.

This is because items are made to order, specific to the options you choose, as it would be very costly to stock every possible combination.

If you’re happy to choose from limited options because you need it now, for some reason, then B&Q skirting boards might be your best option.

However, most renovations take time, so as long as you factor in your skirting choice early enough, you can work it into your budget plan to ensure its paid for when you can accommodate it best and it arrives in time for when you need it.

Most orders we process are via a courier network, but for larger orders (£350+ ex vat) we do deliver by private van which is more reliable, especially given the national driver problems at the moment.

Once considered, planning your delivery date ahead of time gives you some flexibility in case things don’t go as planned and you can push the date back or if things move quickly then there may be some wiggle room to bring the date forward, subject to demand.

Room by Room or Whole House

Acknowledging that not all budgets are equal, either financially or in available time, this can also influence your approach.

If you are renovating the whole of your house then you can take advantage of the more reliable delivery by private van as mentioned above, but also, we offer bulk buy discounts, applied at the checkout, to save you more money and create more room in your budget for nicer things!

Whilst this might be a great approach, where possible, you might also be doing a gradual, room by room renovation either because of financial constraints or you’re actually living in the house and would prefer not to live in a building site!

Either way, thinking through the pros and cons of how you want to organise the work means you can then plan when you want to get your skirting done.

As mentioned previously, being able to pick your delivery date gives you the flexibility to time when it arrives, meaning you don’t have multiple 4.2m MDF boards (or whatever your chosen length is) hanging around your home for ages.

You may be planning on it being fitted once the floors are done and the walls are plastered, or before your new radiator is fitted and even just leaving till last so they don’t get bashed by ladders or tools straightaway.

Whatever your plans, factor in a delivery date that is at least a couple of days before you plan on using them, and make sure someone can definitely be there to collect them and that you have somewhere safe to store them.

If you’re using a contractor, we don’t recommend booking them until you know your order has arrived safely. Unfortunately, we can tell you of many stories where orders leave here in good condition but then fall into a black hole or worse once in the couriers hands. We can usually rectify these things if they happen, but it does add more time until you can receive them again.

One style or many

So, now that we have many of the practical considerations out of the way, the next stage of planning moves onto your design choices.

You may think that there is only one way to do skirting boards but just one look through our Interior Design Guides & Help section and you’ll see plenty of examples where people have used skirting creatively.

Many have used the same style throughout their home to give it a consistent look and feel, whereas others have changed it up as they choose different looks for different rooms.

Some have not even bothered using our skirting and architrave for their intended purpose! There are examples of skirting board becoming wall panelling, architrave being used to make a bold dado rail and others have used them as pelmets to hide their curtain rails. If you have the room, you could also use double-boarding for a unique look that is just your own!

Also, make use of our free samples to help you narrow down choices or visualise them in situ. If you’re thinking of going with tall skirting boards, just get a square profile and the profile that you favour, and put them together to get an idea of how it would look.

As you can see, doing some research before jumping straight in means our products could provide a creative solution you hadn't anticipated and made choosing new skirting more fun than you thought!

Matching architrave

Even with all those possibilities, convention usually states that you should match your architrave to your skirting, which is both true and false!

It’s true, in the sense that generally the thickness of the skirting and architrave usually have to match in order to create a continuous flow around the room, without anything looking out of place.

Mostly, it’s false though because you get to decide what looks right to you and if you want the architrave to stand out further from the wall than your skirting, you can!

If you want to have a plain skirting and detailed architrave, you can!

As ever, rules are rules until there are new rules that replace them.

Plinth Blocks and rosettes

One last thing to consider whilst mapping out your design is whether plinth blocks and rosettes are right for your home.

If you aren’t aware of what they are, these are additions to your architrave that can make it look much more impressive.

Generally, they are used in period properties where you’re trying to recreate the detailing that was common in 19th and early 20th century interior design.

If that’s the look you’re aiming for then, before you make your purchase, take a look and decide whether this embellishment fits in.

You’re Ready to Go!

I’m sure we haven’t thought of everything, but these are some common starting points to think over in order to get the most out of what you’re planning to do.

Our Instagram page is full of inspiration to help you figure out what can be done.