Adding Definition to Exterior or Interior of your Home with Quality Pilasters

Most commonly pilasters appear on the fireplace mantels, used as a door and window surrounds, or trim for built-in cabinets and library systems. In other exterior applications, pilasters form the vertical support in archways or tie into a ceiling cornice.

Pilasters have numerous design benefits. Sharp vertical lines of the pilasters adding a stately look to the interior as well making the room appear higher. Projecting face and structural appearance of the pilasters add an extra layer of architectural details to the room.

All and all pilasters are a highly visible embellishment with significant visual impact yet takes up very little space. These qualities make pilasters ideal for adding a definition to a space, highlighting doors and windows openings. Pilasters can also divide space along a continuous wall pane.

Comparing to columns, pilasters offer relative subtlety in overall look, pilasters are less obtrusive and never look excessive. Pilasters have an inherited “built-in” qualities. That is why pilasters are an appropriate architectural decoration in many cases, adding a sense of craftsmanship to an interior or exterior of the home. A most common location for pilasters is alongside the doorways, visually supporting a header above.

Often pilasters used with ornate decorative capital without a header. +Pilasters can be applied similarly as a “supports” for shelves, ledges, ceiling cornices and virtually any horizontal plane or architectural element. The simple construction of pilasters makes installation of the quick and easy for construction professionals as well as for do-it-yourselfers. Before choosing pilasters that is right for you should do a little planning. The widest parts of the pilasters will be the capital and the base. So you should plan the first to determine the overall width of the pilaster.

By definition, pilasters are a flat, square-edged pier that is attached to a wall. Pilasters are among several most enduring details of ancient architecture. Pilasters have fundamental construction forms, yet they represent a perfect combination of strength and beauty. Maybe that is why beautiful pilasters are symbolizing architecture itself. Throughout centuries pilasters remain very popular interior architectural elements.

In appearance, pilasters have been adapted to feet most of the interior decorating styles. Georgia, Federal, and Greek Revival styles generously us the refined classical models of the pilasters. Victorian and Craftsman styles created stylistic pilasters variations. Pilasters may be less known by name than the columns. Therefore, pilasters have an equally important place in the interior of the home as well as its exterior. In fact, for the average home, pilasters have many more uses than columns.

Because pilasters usually project from the wall a distance equal about a third of its width (or less), a pilaster has an appearance of a full, square column, that was embedded into the wall. In fact, earlier pilasters actually were embedded columns that help support an arch. But this structural aspects of the pilasters is merely a useful illusion. Structural components of the pilasters are pilaster base, pilaster shaft, and pilaster capital. On our website, we are showing different combinations of the pilaster components.

Pilasters were favorite elements of the ancient Romans and Italian Renaissance builders. Historically pilasters follow the classical order in design. Essentially a pilaster is a composition of trim elements attached to the wall or other flat surfaces. Pilaster bases typically include a flat block called plinth. Pilaster’s plinth should be deeper and wider than the pilaster’s shaft. All pilaster plinths in our collection are pre-coordinated in size and design to feet entirely under particular pilaster shafts. Some of the pilaster plinths have beaded trim on the top and designed to feet under our fluted pilasters. We are also offering a beautiful traditional paneled plinth with cap trim on the top. This type of pilasters plinth is very popular and can be adjusted in height (if needed) on the bottom portion. Paneled plinths work well with paneled pilaster shafts as well as with fluted ones.

The most popular types of pilaster shaft are fluted and paneled. Flutes in a classical order are closely spaced, and all have the same length. An alternative pilasters style, called some times a Victorian fluting, wider flutes. Some pilasters are tapered from the bottom to top, which lending an appearance of strength. Capitals for pilasters have an angled profile similar to a ceiling cornice or crown molding. Some of our pilaster capitals are classically styled and have ornamental Ionic and Corinthian details.