1920's-ish indoor trim colours?

[JacquieJet]

Hello all,

I have (yet another) question. I hope you all aren't getting sick of my posts yet... this place has been a wealth of knowledge and it's so great!
So, as I've been doing some paint stripping, I've noticed that under the top couple of white layers is a soft pastel-y robin egg blue colour, and below that is a deep yellow/deep cream colour. (Couldn't get a good pic of the blue, but I'm attaching a photo of the yellow).
Anyway, I'm wondering if this could be the original trim colour? Or do you think it was white that has just deeply yellowed over time? I know that my trim was originally painted, as every piece that I strip has just raw wood under all the layers of paint.

All Google has shown me is white trim (or stained wood trim). So, was trim of this era always white? Or was it "anything goes"? Thanks!

Edit- sorry for the sideways photo... can't figure out how to change that. :/

[Casey]

The yellow could be original to the trim, but that is not old house trim, it's currently-available profiles, at least this bit is... sorry.
Casey

[JacquieJet]

Casey, are you sure? Because it is at the very least from before 1955, as the photos I have from a past owner from that time show the same trim (and they have never replaced it). The photo I have from them is from shortly after that family moved in, and the trim is already painted white (so I'm guessing had been there a while at that point, as it doesn't appear to have different colours in between the layers of white, only before it).
I've tried to attach it here, but the file is too large...

[Sashguy]

I'm pretty sure that the beige in your photo is oil based lead primer. Careful.... Test it.

[JacquieJet]

Ok, so I figured out a way to post that pic I mentioned... here it is:
This was in a section of the kitchen prior to the late '50's renovation. Not the same room, obviously, but the trim is identical.

[JacquieJet]

I'm pretty sure that the beige in your photo is oil based lead primer. Careful.... Test it.

Really? Eeeeep. Test with nail polish remover and see if it transfers? Or another method?

[CS in Low Hud]

Hi Jacquie,

For what it's worth, my 1925-26 house has original trim that, in some cases, matches currently available modern stock options. There's a slight thickness variation, but it is close enough to be acceptable. The biggest issue for matching was the wood species - my trim is all Doug Fir, and the available off-the-shelf stock options are in pine. For this reason, when we put an addition on our place, I had additional trim milled in the correct wood (and thickness). But if I was painting, I could'a fudged it a bit with stock. So I would not assume that the trim is NOT original in your case.

My trim, BTW, was painted in the bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen... but stained and clear coated in the "public" rooms. The original trim color in one of the bedrooms, was a beige-yellow, for what it's worth.

Chris

[JacquieJet]

Chris- Very interesting! So far, it's just paint, paint, and more paint around here, but it would be kind of neat to find some stained wood around here! The only stained wood I've found thus far is the handrail and pillars on the stairs... even the spindles in between were originally painted. It looks like the old trim is all white pine, but it could be fir, I guess. I'm not very good at telling the difference! Definitely not oak or mahagony though! All the places where a past owner has renovated and replaced the trim is definitely done in pine though, as the knots have bled through the paint already! So, that fits with what you've said!
Learning more all the time!

[CS in Low Hud]

Hey Jacquie,

Somebody painted all our stained woodwork, but you could tell where that had happened because of poor paint adhesion issues. Look for spots where it has flaked all the way to the wood surface. Then... buy yourself a heat gun!

Chris

[1918ColonialRevival]

Hard to say if it's that old without doing some stripping. This color was around in the 1920s, but I've also seen it in 1950s era applications and even later. Take a heat gun to a small section and scrape to see what's underneath. Just be careful not to scorch the wood.

There was no universal trim color in the 1920s or even earlier. Just like today, people were free to paint whatever color they wanted, no matter how good or lousy it looked.