In the era of newfangled building materials and bold design decisions, it is difficult to surprise anyone with standard rectangular doors. Therefore, very often, choosing a design for their apartment, many owners decide to design the interior openings in the form of arches. If you show a little imagination, such designs can not only combine the space of several rooms, but also become the most attractive element of decor in the whole room. Decorating arches can be performed in a variety of options, for every taste and budget. With what materials you can decorate a doorway of an unusual shape and how to do this work with your own hands, we will consider in this article.
The choice of finishing materials
Since arches have gained popularity for a long time, manufacturers of modern finishing materials managed to establish production of products focused specifically on this element of the interior. Today in specialized markets you can find ready-made wood products and MDF, which can only be inserted into the doorway.
If you do not want to limit yourself to standard solutions or the passage already has a rounded shape and you just need to decorate it, you can use the following materials:
- wallpaper (any variety);
- decorative plaster;
- cork;
- molding;
- polyurethane;
- mosaic;
- decorative and natural stone.
Decorating arches can be carried out by any of the listed options, the main thing is that it blends well with the design of both rooms. In order to assess the complexity of the work, we dwell on each material separately.
Paper and cork wallpapers
Arch finish Wallpaper is considered the easiest to implement and budget option. There is no need to worry about the combination of materials, since most often the walls and the aperture are glued with the same paintings.
It would seem that such a finish would be mediocre and unattractive, but if you are smart, you can give the arch a very impressive appearance.
The use of wallpaper "under the brick" will allow you to perform an inexpensive imitation of brickwork.
Bright wallpaper with large patterns will help to add contrasting notes to the interior. They make out only the arch arch, and at the joints of different paintings have special plastic corners that protect the corners from erasure.
Recently, the decoration of arches is often carried out with cork wallpaper. Their use helps to decorate and highlight the area of the interior passage against the general background. The material can be used even in places of high humidity, but only in this case it is necessary to choose options having a wax coating.
Wallpapering technology for arch
Before you begin to glue the wallpaper, the surface of the arch and adjacent walls should be well leveled with putty.
Further engaged in the preparation of glue. Experienced experts advise kneading a thick adhesive solution. This allows you to achieve excellent adhesion in places of sharp bending and makes it possible to move the canvas for better joining.
The first strip is glued to the wall located near the arch. The next one is located so that the arched opening is half closed. The protruding part of the glued web is cut off, leaving an allowance of 25 mm. Small cuts (at a distance of 20 mm from each other) are made along the entire length of the resulting stock, which are bent to the inside with a roller and glued. Thus, the entire opening is glued on both sides.
Then they move to the arch arch. A stripe is cut out of the wallpaper, the width of which is equal to the depth of the opening itself. Given the location of the elements of the picture, it is glued to the inner surface of the arch and side walls. To prevent the formation of air bubbles, the wallpaper is smoothed with a clean roller.
Installation of cork wallpaper is no different from working with paper canvases, so we will not dwell on it separately.
Decorative plaster
Do-it-yourself arch finishing can be done using an even simpler method - applying decorative plaster.
Before using it, it is necessary to eliminate all flaws on the surface of the wall. Using putty and a putty knife, smooth out all irregularities, mask the seams and hide the caps of fasteners. To ensure reliable adhesion of the material to the base, the arch is treated with a primer and left to dry for a day.
Next, a layer of decorative plaster is applied, which, with the help of a special spatula, gives the necessary reliefs.
When it is completely dry, it can be painted with special paints or simply treated with finishing solutions.
Molding
Often, the decoration of arches in an apartment is carried out by combining various materials, and moldings act as a highlight of such an interior.
By this concept it is customary to mean the most diverse decorative elements in the form of curly, narrow and long stripes. They can be made of plastic, polystyrene, wood, MDF, metal and other materials.
Moldings are perfectly combined with all types of wallpaper and decorative plaster. Such strips are installed from both ends of the arch and are fastened with liquid nails. For the best combination with the interior, it is recommended to use such elements not only for finishing the opening, but also for decorating the surfaces surrounding it.
Polyurethane Products
Recently, very often the decoration of arches is carried out using polyurethane. This is a dense and fairly flexible material from which decorative elements of white color are made in the form of stucco moldings.
Such a finish is attractive in that its cost is much lower than, for example, decoration with stone or tile. Installation of polyurethane is very simple - using specially designed glue. Facing the opening can be performed in two versions. In the first, the arch is decorated at the same time both from the inside and from the outside. In this case, the uprights can be designed as round or square columns, expanding upward.
If massive structures do not fit into the surrounding interior, you can only make corners from more elegant elements.
Natural and artificial stone
Decorating the arch with decorative stone is the most time-consuming process, but the result is always impressive. Such a facing looks most impressive when not only the passage is finished, but also part of the walls adjacent to it. Here, both symmetry and asymmetry are relevant. If the openings are close to each other, you can decorate the interior with a smoothly transitioning lining from one arch to another. No matter which option is chosen, natural materials always look rich and impressive.
The stone also speaks in favor of the fact that it does not require a perfectly smooth surface, which eliminates the need for thorough preparation.
However, there are difficulties associated with the use of this material.
First of all, it is its weight. Natural stones are not recommended for cladding structures made of drywall, as this can lead to deformation and even destruction of the opening. It is better to use plaster or acrylic imitation, which looks no less elegant.
Also, the decoration of the arch with stone is greatly complicated in rounded places. Inexperienced craftsmen have to tinker with it in order to do the job beautifully and efficiently.
Mounting decorative stone
Facing is carried out in several stages:
1. The surface is putty in order to remove large irregularities.
2. An adhesive is being prepared. The most commonly used mixture is lime, cement, sand and glue. If light varieties or gypsum imitation were chosen for decoration, it can be fixed with ordinary liquid nails.
3. The first stone is laid at the very bottom, at the junction of the wall and the arched opening. It is set in level and pressed tightly against the wall. So that at the end of the work you do not have to close up the corners, the material is lapped. To do this, the tiles of the first row from the floor are fastened right up to the opening, and the tiles of the second row are moved inward by a distance equal to its own thickness. So, by alternating rows, the entire lining is performed.
4. During the finishing of the arched part of the opening, the material is applied to the arch, the cut line is marked and all unnecessary is removed. Here you can use special nippers or an angle grinder.
5. All angular and sharp edges are gently polished with a file.
6. The resulting seams are filled with special grout.
Mosaic
Decorative decoration of the arch in places of high humidity (such as a bath, bathtub, kitchen) is most often done using mosaics.
In this embodiment, it is possible to use products from glass, ceramics, metal, concrete or tile. The material is laid out on a prepared and smooth surface, where it is attached to a specialized composition. The glue is applied with a notched trowel simultaneously to the wall and tile, after which the product is pressed firmly to the surface. Seams are gently rubbed with special colored compounds.
The use of patterned tiles complicates the masonry a little, since the material must be arranged in accordance with the figure, but the final result is worth the effort.
Conclusion
The modern construction market is so diverse that to list all the options for facing doorways is simply impossible. To create interiors, designers are increasingly using bamboo, textile, mirror, wrought iron and other elements. We tried to consider the most popular materials with which the arch can be finished. The photos presented in this article will help you to get an idea about this or that way of decorating, and maybe they will prompt you to create your own project. We hope that the recommendations outlined will provide substantial assistance to all novice masters.