Coving is a decorative join between the wall and the ceiling of a room, and is a great way of creating an attractive finishing touch to any room. Coving comes in a large variety of styles to suit both traditional or more contemporary décor. Sections of coving are joined at the corners with mitre cuts. This applies to both internal and external corners. However, some coving comes with pre-cut internal and external joints. This means you’ll only have to make simpler cuts to join pieces together on a length. Align the coving with the lines on the wall and ceiling, then work your way along, carefully pressing it into position. Polystyrene coving – this is the cheapest option for coving, and again is more lightweight than plaster coving. It’s also the least durable, and usually needs several coats of paint.

It’s best to fit your coving prior to painting or putting up wallpaper. If your room has architrave and skirting then choose a design which complements these features for the best look.You should always fix coving straight and level as you can fill any gaps in afterwards. When drawing your fitting line, make sure that it is perfectly horizontal, rather than rising and falling with any unevenness in the ceiling If you are cutting your own mitre joints, it’s a good idea to practice cutting both an internal and an external join on an offcut of coving, to avoid mistakes later. Bear in mind that for an internal corner, the wall edge of the coving is longer than the ceiling edge. For an external corner, the ceiling edge is longer than the wall edge Plaster coving – the most traditional material and also the most durable, so it needs less maintenance and less painting. Plaster coving is heavier than other coving.