Brick Slips and Skirting Boards: Which Goes First and How to Finish the Bottom Edge

Skirting boards are easy to overlook when planning a brick slip wall. They sit low in the room, they are usually familiar timber joinery, and the eye tends to go first to the brickwork itself. Yet the junction between the two can make a finished wall look either considered or slightly improvised.

The question is usually simple: should the skirting go on before or after the brick slips? There is no single answer for every room. The best sequence depends on whether the skirting is staying, being replaced or being removed altogether, as well as the finished floor level, the thickness of the wall build-up and the way the brickwork meets door architraves and other joinery.

This guide focuses on that lower edge. It is not another general installation article. The aim is to help you decide how brick tiles, brick effect tiles, brick cladding or brick veneer should meet the skirting before the first course is fixed.

There is no universal rule: decide what the finished junction should look like

It is more useful to start with the desired finished appearance than with a rigid rule about which trade goes first.

In most domestic projects, the bottom of a brick slip wall will fall into one of three arrangements:

• Existing skirting stays in place and the brick slips stop neatly above it.
• Skirting is removed and replaced, with the new or refitted skirting forming the lower trim after the brickwork has been planned.
• No skirting is used, so the brick slips finish close to the completed floor.

Each can look right. What tends to cause problems is changing the plan halfway through the installation, after the brick courses have already dictated the available space.

Option 1: keep the existing skirting and stop the brick slips above it

If the skirting is in good condition and suits the room, leaving it in place can be the least disruptive option. The brick slips are then treated as a wall finish above a fixed piece of joinery.

The important point is not to assume that the top of the skirting is perfectly level. In older UK homes, floors can fall slightly, timber can have been fitted to follow that floor, and earlier decorating work can disguise small irregularities. If the first brick course simply follows the skirting line, any slope may become much more obvious once repeated across several horizontal brick courses.

Establish a true level datum for the brickwork and compare it with the skirting before fixing. Small differences can often be absorbed in the lower cuts or in the planned finishing joint without allowing the whole wall to drift out of level.

Our separate brick slip setting-out guide explains the wider principle: the room should be planned around the visible finish rather than allowing one imperfect edge to control every course above it.

Protect the skirting before adhesive and mortar appear

Existing painted timber is much easier to protect before work begins than to clean after adhesive or pointing mortar has dried on it. Use suitable masking and floor protection, taking care with freshly painted or delicate surfaces.

The top edge of the skirting also needs to remain visually clean. Do not treat it as a shelf for excess adhesive. Keep the adhesive bed behind the brick slips and remove squeeze-out while it is still manageable.

When pointing later, the mortar joints should read as part of the brickwork rather than as a thick band smeared across the timber. The exact treatment at the junction should suit the materials and installation system being used; do not automatically fill a timber-to-masonry-style junction rigidly if movement or a perimeter detail needs to be accommodated.

Option 2: remove the skirting, install the brick finish, then refit or replace the joinery

Removing the skirting can give more freedom, particularly during a full renovation. It lets you work with the true wall face and decide exactly where the final lower trim should sit.

However, one practical detail matters: brick slips and adhesive add thickness to the wall. If the skirting is later fitted in front of that new surface, it will sit further into the room than it did against bare plaster. That can affect how it meets door architraves, plinth blocks, fitted cupboards and adjoining walls.

For this reason, do not remove old skirting, clad the wall and then assume the original timber will simply drop back into exactly the same relationship with the rest of the joinery. Measure the finished build-up and decide whether the old skirting still works, whether new skirting is preferable, or whether a different termination detail would look cleaner.

If timber is being fixed after the brick slips are installed, its mechanical fixing must be appropriate for the wall construction behind the decorative finish. Do not rely on a brick slip itself as though it were the structural fixing substrate. Where necessary, plan the joinery and fixing method before the wall is clad.

Do brick slips need to run all the way behind the skirting?

Not necessarily. If the skirting will permanently cover the lower part of the wall, taking full brick slips all the way down behind it may use extra material without adding anything to the visible finish. It can also make the skirting harder to seat neatly against a textured surface.

A more considered approach is to decide where the visible brickwork needs to end and how the skirting will overlap or meet that edge. The concealed area can then be dealt with as part of the chosen wall and joinery system rather than automatically covering every hidden millimetre with brick.

There are projects where a continuous cladded wall behind removable joinery makes sense, but it should be an intentional choice rather than a default rule.

Option 3: no skirting and brick slips down towards the finished floor

Running brick slips close to the floor can create a more architectural, warehouse-style or deliberately rustic finish. It removes the visual interruption of timber and lets the brick texture continue almost from floor to ceiling.

This arrangement demands more accurate planning because there is no skirting board to hide small discrepancies at the base. The finished floor level must be known, and the bottom course needs to be assessed across the full width of the wall.

If the flooring system requires a perimeter expansion or movement gap, do not bridge that required gap with brick adhesive or pointing mortar simply to make the junction look solid. Follow the flooring manufacturer's requirements and coordinate the decorative edge around them. The same principle applies to any movement joint specified in the wall or floor construction.

Finished floor level should be known before the first brick course

A common sequencing problem occurs when the brick slips are installed while the subfloor is visible but the final floor covering has not yet been fitted. Laminate, engineered timber, tile, stone, carpet systems and other finishes can all change the final height at the base of the wall.

If the bottom course is planned from the temporary floor level, the finished room may later have an awkward narrow gap, a partly buried brick course or skirting that covers more of the brick than expected.

Record the intended finished floor height before setting out the wall. If the floor covering has not yet been installed, use its specified build-up as part of the plan rather than guessing.

What if the floor or skirting is not level?

Do not allow an uneven floor to pull the whole brick wall out of level. Brickwork is highly repetitive, so a small slope becomes increasingly noticeable as the eye follows the horizontal mortar lines.

Set the main brick courses from a reliable level datum. Then deal with the discrepancy at the base, where carefully measured cuts are usually less visually dominant.

If cutting is required, measure the gap at each relevant point rather than assuming one dimension will work across the room. A floor can rise or fall over a long wall, particularly in older properties. Our guide on how to cut brick slips covers the general cutting process; at skirting level, the additional priority is keeping the visible courses level while allowing the lower edge to respond to the room.

Plan skirting and door architraves together

The bottom of a feature wall rarely exists in isolation. Skirting usually runs into a door architrave, around an alcove or towards fitted furniture. Adding brick cladding changes the face of the wall, so the meeting point between these elements can move.

Before fixing the brick slips, look at every place where the skirting will start, stop or turn. If the brick finish ends beside a doorway, consider how the extra wall thickness relates to the architrave. If the skirting is being replaced, decide whether it returns neatly into the doorway, terminates against the brickwork or needs a small joinery detail to make the change in depth look intentional.

This is particularly important on short walls, where one awkward transition can be more noticeable than it would be across a large feature wall.

Do not create a tiny bottom row just to preserve a full brick above it

It is tempting to begin with a full brick slip at an obvious height and leave whatever space remains at the bottom for later. That can create a very narrow strip immediately above the skirting.

A thin horizontal sliver is harder to cut consistently and can make the bottom of the wall look pinched. Before installation, calculate the module of the brick slip and joint, then look at the likely size of both the top and bottom cuts. Shifting the overall starting position slightly can often produce a much better balance.

The goal is not mathematical symmetry at all costs. It is to avoid an obviously accidental fragment where the brickwork meets one of the strongest horizontal lines in the room.

Textured brick slips make the joinery junction more visible

With a smooth tiled wall, timber skirting can sit against a relatively flat plane. Rustic brick slips have more surface character, so the relationship between a straight painted skirting board and the textured brick face is naturally more pronounced.

That contrast can look excellent. A crisp white, dark or natural timber skirting line against red brick slips gives the wall a deliberate boundary. It also means that uneven cuts or heavy mortar at the junction are easier to notice.

For example, our current Rustic Red Brick Slips have a red and pink-toned face with darker variation and a textured finish. On a wall like this, it is usually better to let the brick retain its natural character while keeping the joinery line controlled, rather than trying to force every irregularity into an unnaturally straight-looking brick face.

Should you paint the skirting before or after fitting brick slips?

There is no one sequence for every decorating programme, but think about access and protection. Painting skirting before brick installation can give a clean finish in areas that may later be harder to reach, but the painted timber then needs protection from adhesive, dust and mortar.

Painting afterwards avoids exposing the final coat to installation mess, but requires careful masking around a textured brick edge. If new timber is being fitted after the wall is complete, it may be practical to prepare it off the wall and leave the final finishing work until it is fixed.

The right sequence is the one that reduces rework without compromising the brick or timber finish.

Pointing the lowest course: keep the joint deliberate

Once the slips are fixed, the lowest visible mortar joints deserve the same care as the rest of the wall. Clean excess adhesive from the joint space before it hardens and point only where the system calls for mortar.

Where brick meets timber, flooring, a movement joint or another dissimilar material, do not assume that a standard rigid pointing detail is always appropriate. Follow the requirements of the relevant wall, flooring and installation products. In some assemblies a separate finishing detail or compatible flexible junction may be specified.

What should be avoided is using mortar merely to hide a badly planned gap. The geometry should be resolved first; the finishing material should complete the detail rather than disguise it.

A simple decision guide before you start

• Keeping existing skirting? Check it for level, protect it, and plan the brick courses independently so the wall does not follow a sloping timber line.
• Replacing the skirting? Account for the added thickness of brick slips and adhesive before deciding how the new timber meets architraves and adjoining finishes.
• Removing skirting entirely? Confirm the final floor height and any required perimeter or movement gap before setting the lowest course.
• Floor not level? Keep the main brick courses level and absorb sensible variation in carefully measured lower cuts.
• Unsure where the first course should land? Dry-plan several courses and the joint widths before adhesive is mixed.

Frequently asked questions

Can I install brick slips above existing skirting boards?

Yes. Existing skirting can remain in place if it is suitable and the finished detail works for the room. Check whether the top of the skirting is level and set the brick courses from a reliable datum rather than blindly following the timber.

Do I have to remove skirting before fitting brick slips?

No. Removal is one option, not a requirement. It can be useful during a full renovation or where new skirting is planned, but a clean installation can also be achieved above existing skirting.

Should new skirting sit on top of brick slips?

It can, but the extra thickness of the brick finish changes how the skirting sits relative to door architraves and other joinery. Plan the fixing method and the change in depth before cladding the wall.

What should I do if the floor is uneven?

Keep the principal brick courses level and measure the base cuts individually where necessary. Do not let the floor slope dictate the alignment of the entire wall.

Can I fill the gap between brick slips and skirting with mortar?

Do not assume every junction should be rigidly filled. The correct treatment depends on the materials, any movement requirements and the installation system. Plan a neat gap or finishing detail and follow the relevant product guidance.

Decide the bottom edge before the first course

The cleanest brick slip walls usually look simple because the awkward decisions were made before installation began. Skirting height, finished floor level, lower cuts, door trim and the wall build-up all affect the same small strip at the bottom of the room.

Choose the relationship you want between the skirting and the brickwork, then set the wall out around that decision. Whether you are using red brick slips, rustic brick slips, brick tiles or another style of brick veneer, a controlled lower edge helps the whole wall look intentional.

If you are still choosing the finish, browse the full brick slips, brick tiles and brick cladding collection before finalising the skirting detail. Knowing the actual scale, texture and thickness of the product makes it much easier to plan a junction that works with the room rather than fighting it at the end.