Architrave
/ ˈɑːkɪtreɪv /
Also known as: door architrave, door casing, door surround, door moulding
Definition
Architrave is a decorative timber moulding fixed around the face of a door or window frame to cover and finish the junction between the frame and the plasterwork or plasterboard of the surrounding wall. It is purely decorative - the structural member is the door lining or frame behind it. Three pieces form a door opening (two vertical legs and one horizontal head) joined at 45-degree mitres at the top corners. Available in many profiles: torus (convex half-round), ogee (S-curve), chamfered, and plain square-edged. Fixed to the door lining face with oval nails or a nail gun, set back 8-10mm from the inner edge (the margin or reveal).
In practice
The quality of an architrave installation is largely determined by the accuracy of the mitre joints at the top corners. A poorly cut or poorly fitted mitre joint, where the two pieces meet at the top corner, is immediately visible and very difficult to hide satisfactorily with filler. An accurate mitre requires a sharp saw and a mitre box or mitre saw set precisely to 45 degrees. The joint should be glued as well as nailed for a tight fit. Any gaps in the mitre should be addressed before painting rather than filled - fillers in mitre joints tend to shrink and crack as the timber moves with changes in humidity.
A consistent margin (the setback from the inner face of the lining) is important for a professional-looking result - use a small gauge block or pencil mark to maintain the same reveal all the way round each opening. When replacing architrave in an older house, matching the existing profile across all openings maintains a consistent interior character; using a different profile on a replacement door will look inconsistent. In period properties, original Victorian or Edwardian torus or ogee architraves are worth preserving and repainting rather than replacing with modern equivalents.
See also