Erin Napier's Natural-Looking Choice For Trim You Don't See Too Often

Erin Napier has expressed her preference for natural wood on her hit show "Home Town" with her husband Ben on more than one occasion. Still, she's not one to turn down a project that involves staining wood, especially since she follows a foolproof philosophy for staining wood floors. For Napier, it's all about the lighting in a space. If it doesn't have ample lighting, light wood stains can make it feel more open and bright. However, should she have it her way, the HGTV star very much prefers using raw, unstained wood, especially on trims, which is something you don't see too often with other designers. Case in point, in Season 7, Episode 17 of her hit show, she doubles down on choosing natural Cypress wood for the post and beam of a cased opening between the living area and kitchen.

"I want their whole house to be a little nook," Napier says while explaining their style choices for the English apothecary-style home she and Ben were building for a newlywed couple. "We're adding some natural wood and warmth and texture to these rooms," she adds, prompting Ben to quip that they were only clear-coating the wood panels instead of staining, so they can preserve their natural wood tones. A few moments later, Erin is seen telling the carpenters, "I wanted it to feel like we're bringing the outside in," as they were discussing the green and natural wood combination for the clients' kitchen.

While there are different trim types that will improve the appearance of any room, wood trims are mostly decorative elements that cover gaps, establish transitions, and protect corners from damage. Beyond these, they bring cohesion to different home styles, including Colonial, Craftsman, and Victorian, which use wooden materials for baseboards, crown moldings, door and window casings, as well as wainscoting and wall trims. Erin Napier, who is known for embracing styles that bring together modern and traditional aesthetics — Grandmillennial, Southern Traditional, and Modern Heritage — has a full understanding of what wood elements can do to a space. She has cautioned against painting wood and advised ditching painted furniture for natural and stained wood. Of course, we have since learned that she prefers to leave wood trims unstained to show off their natural pattern.

Should you heed Napier's advice and invest in unstained wood for your home's trims, you need to be aware of what this really entails. Compared to stained wood, unstained trims are bound to visibly undergo natural transitions with day-to-day wear. Their colors will eventually fade because leaving them as natural and untreated as possible will make them vulnerable to everyday elements, including heat and moisture. Raw or unfinished wood is also very likely to warp over time for the same reasons. To prevent any of these from happening, you can follow what the Napiers do when they use natural wood — they always cover it in a clear coat, thereby shielding the trims from stains, scratches, and moisture.