Cedar Accents: Thinking Inside the Box

Cedar Accents to Bring the Warmth of Wood Inside

Western Red Cedar is renowned for transforming outdoor living spaces, and rightfully so. Its beautiful tonal range and top-performing characteristics make it ideal for decking, pergolas and siding. But why wait until summer to enjoy all the warmth and beauty that comes from surrounding yourself with natural building materials? You can bring it inside, and we’re not talking a total rebuild here. Instead, consider incorporating cedar accents into your interior design. That’s what more and more home improvement professionals and DIYers are doing. Here are some of our favorite ways to add a hit of naturally beautiful cedar accents to the interior of your home.

Make a Splash

Bathrooms are a great place for Western Red Cedar. A feature wall by the tub, for example, can add depth and character to an otherwise cold and sterile room. A cedar wall can also define the bathing area, creating a sense of more space. And really, if you have show-stopping clawfoot tub, it deserves to have complementary wall to showcase it. And because Western Red Cedar has so many top-performing characteristics including ingrown preservatives that make it naturally resistant to rot and decay, it’s a smart choice for rooms where there’s a higher than usual moisture content.

Build a Wonder Wall

Add some visual interest to your main living area with a cedar feature wall. It’s amazing what a difference one wall can make to a room, regardless of the size. Create a textured pattern such as a chevron wall to showcase a modern fireplace or perhaps a framed collage of random cedar ends or a classic horizontal T&G wall. Take your pic. Western Red Cedar comes in a variety of patterns, sizes and grades, so you can really personalize your feature wall to suit any style of décor.

Go Straight to the Top

Homes with high ceilings can appear sparse and uninviting. But if you panel the ceiling with cedar, you create a warmth that really ties the room together and this can be any room including a bedroom. By working in some wood material, any room can suddenly become a warm, inviting space. Specify a clear grade of cedar if you want crisp clean lines and specify a knotty grade of cedar if you want to create warmth and texture.

Jeff Jordan Architecture photo by Steve Gross and Sue Daley

Create a Feast for the Eyes

Few wood species can boast the timeless and versatile appeal of Western Red Cedar. Which is why it can be used to upgrade any style of kitchen – be it contemporary, traditional and rustic styles. These Real Cedar walls, for example, work beautifully with this mid-century modern renovation project by Jeff Jordan Architects. And when you prepare a meal for friends and family friends in a cedar-accented kitchen, you can take comfort in knowing you did the right thing for the environment. That’s because woods such as cedar leave a smaller footprint than any other building material, making cedar a green choice you can feel good about.

Keep It Trim

Western Red Cedar trim is often used around windows, doors and skylights. Framing windows in beautiful wood adds a visual weight and emphasizes all that glorious natural light pouring through. And if you have a cedar deck or just a naturally beautiful green space in your backyard, you can add cedar trim on doorways to create a harmony between your interior and exterior spaces. Another benefit to cedar is it’s easy to work with. Ask any carpenter and they’ll tell you cedar lays flat, doesn’t check and the tools love it. So great for DIYers as well as building professionals.