Owning your own home

I'm thinking recessed for next place but only because I know we won't be able to afford shadow gaps.

I’ve been doing the skirting in one of our rooms this weekend. Had to go with MDF to match the rest of the house. Much easier to work with than pine or oak. If you’re painting them I’d say MDF and get them primed form the supplier.

Dipped / primed mdf will save you a shitload of effort. Also, considering how thick the plaster is, natural wood skirting may bow over time as moisture escapes.

Personally I prefer simple but tall skirting.

We live in a 70s maisonette. So our skirtings are low and plain and we replaced them with MDF (primed) and then painted.

The ones in my giant clock picture are 200mm. Assuming you have high ceilings then I'd say you need something fairly tall.