Colonial Chair Rail — Solid Wood, Ogee-Profile Primed Wall Trim

A chair rail earns its keep twice — it takes the scuff where chair backs meet the wall, and it draws a horizontal line that makes a tall wall sit in proportion. This one is milled from solid paulownia, one of the lightest real woods there is: a long stick handles and cuts like almost nothing in your hands, stays dead-straight over a 12-foot run, and takes a brad without the crumbling that gives composite trim away at a mitred corner. The Colonial contour throws a soft shadow line that works with or without wainscot beneath it, and the factory-primed face needs only a top-coat. The 1-5/8 inch profile is the standard chair-rail face; the 10-foot and 12-foot lengths keep joints off long walls. Set it about a third of the way up the wall — roughly 32 to 36 inches — where the proportion reads right. Cut and cope or mitre the corners, nail, fill, caulk, and paint it like any premium wood trim.