UPDATE: Click HERE to see the finished room reveal with before and afters, including my solution for giving my traditional furniture a farmhouse vibe!
Remember last week when I told you all about my dining room makeover plans? Well, I’m excited to share the first project to be completed! If you missed the dining room plans post, you can see it HERE.
Say hellooo gorgeous to my new planked wall! I’m excited because I love the planked wall, but I’m even more excited because it was so fast and so easy to do that I couldn’t wait to share all about it.
Maybe you dread all of the work that would be involved in cutting sheets of plywood into strips or hanging tongue-in-groove planks one by one. There’s no long drawn out project here – this method is easy!
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Pookie and I completed this wall in roughly two – three hours (not counting shopping or painting). What’s the secret? Paneling. Yep, plain old ordinary, everyday paneling.
To be more specific, this is the product that we used from Lowes.
They do have flat paneling too (that looks more like wide boards with groves in between), but I thought that this single bead paneling looked more like individual boards. Plus I really like the texture and dimension of it.
Now, I admit that I was a little scared at the thought of putting any kind of paneling on any wall in my house. I kept having flashbacks to the 70’s, when I had an entire den full of that cheap, awful brown stuff. But, after thinking about it, I decided to take the plunge and see how it would look. I’m so glad that I did!
Things that we had to consider:
- Hang the paneling horizontally or vertically? In the end, I decided that I liked the vertical look for the dining room. In my mind, it seemed that horizontal planking would be a little more rustic looking and I wanted something a little dressier for the dining room.
- How far up the wall to take the paneling – all the way to the top or only about 5′ or 6′? I knew that I wanted to be able hang anything that I wanted to on the wall without some kind of trim getting in the way, so I decided to just mount it at the top of the baseboard and take it all the way up to the bottom of the existing crown moulding.
- How to handle the fact that our wall space was 98″ tall, but the paneling was only 96″ tall. We decided to cut the sheets into two 48″ tall pieces and hang them so that there was a 2″ space about halfway up the wall that we could cover with a piece of trim that resembles a chair rail.
With all of our decisions made and measurements in hand, we made our way to our local Lowes, where we were able to get the paneling cut into the exact sizes that we needed. Our wall measured 177″ wide x 98″ tall (from the top of the baseboard to the bottom of the crown mould), so we had to buy four sheets of paneling that were then cut into a total of eight pieces.
To attach it to the wall, we ran a bead of construction adhesive around all four sides of each piece of paneling, plus a few dabs in the middle. Then used a few brad nails (with a nail gun) to hold it in place until the adhesive dried. If you don’t have a nail gun, they have small nails (that are made especially for paneling) that you can use with a hammer.
When the paneling was in place, every seam and joint was caulked and then the entire wall was painted the same color as the rest of the trim – Sherwin Williams Pure White in semi gloss. I was a little worried about being able to see seams, but they aren’t visible at all.
After the paint was dry, I didn’t waste any time getting my vintage mantel hung and decorated! Maybe you remember it from the basement of our former home.
Want to see the before and after?
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Dawn says
Wow what a transformation, the after is stunning 🙂
Suzy says
Thank you, Dawn!
Cindy says
Great job! Looks terrific!
Suzy says
Thank you so much, Cindy!
Nancy Carroll says
It looks great GF!! I love how the mantel looks with the chandelier and the new curtains!
Suzy says
I’m so glad you like it! You weren’t supposed to notice the curtains yet! 😀
jae says
Looks really nice! Especially hung vertically, it gives a touch of farmhouse elegance. I would love to hang some in my house. One question please, did you have to remove and reinstall the baseboard and crown trim, is the product thin enough to butt against the trim, or did you have to add extra trim to hide the butt joints? Thanks!
Suzy says
No, we didn’t have to remove the baseboard or crown moulding. The paneling is thin enough to butt against it. We did caulk all along the baseboard and crown moulding though. And no, we didn’t need to add any extra trim to hide any joints. Glad you like the wall!
Maxine White says
Wow!! Does that ever look amazing Suzy!!
I will definitely keep this mind…. I like the idea of 5-6′ for my mudroom…. fantastic!!
Have a great day!
Maxine
Gail says
I am so glad I found this post because I want to put planks on bottom half of my entry wall! This will be so much easier! I also want to put some over a bench in my kitchen! Thank you Suzy for this post and your room is beautiful!
Suzy says
Thank you, Gail. This was super easy and has me wanting to do it everywhere! 😀
Donna says
Love the look! Great job. Does it just sit on top of the baseboard?
Suzy says
Hi Donna. Yes, it just sits on top of the baseboard. However, we made sure it was level and then we caulked the seam between the top of the baseboard and the bottom of the paneling when we were finished. Glad you like it!
Anita from Cedar Hill Farmhouse says
It looks so fantastic Suzy. I may use this at the mountain house. It would be perfect and much cheaper than tiling the kitchen wall.
April R - Uncookie Cutter says
How funny, I just posted a couple of weeks ago about how I PUT UP PANELING as well! I never thought I’d see the day. But it was so easy! Thanks for sharing your take on it, I love it!
Kristin @ Postbox Designs says
Very beautiful…I love your chandelier as well! I’m thinking about planking a wall, so this was a great tutorial to read about first!
savannah patrone says
That looks great! Totally easy to do! I’m in the middle of redoing my shed and turning it into mine and my daughter playroom/office. We might do somthing like this for the walls since it’s so easy. Thanks so much for sharing!
Wendi @ H2OBungalow says
I love it! The planked wall makes the room so much warmer and inviting now. Wow! Love it!
Bonnie @ Our Secondhand House says
It’s absolutely beautiful! We used the same paneling in a powder room makeover a couple of years ago and makes such a statement. I would love for you to share this at the Friday Favorites link party going on now.
~Bonnie
http://www.oursecondhandhouse.com/2016/03/friday-favorites-week-317.html
Jennifer | The Deliberate Mom says
Oh wow! I absolutely love this transformation. I’ve always loved the look of planked walls.
Thanks for sharing and for linking up to the #SHINEbloghop.
Wishing you a lovely weekend.
xoxo
Frugal Hausfrau says
I’ve put a lot of beadboard in my lake house and love it!! Thanks for bringing this by to Throwback Thursday!!
Mollie
Crystal says
Your before picture was gorgeous as is and the after is stunning! What an amazing job! Thanks for sharing! #HomeMattersParty
Deb says
This is so beautiful! I love the new wall just brightens everything up and gives the room so much character. That shelf is also really amazing!
Alison [Life of Scoop] says
How beautiful! Thanks for sharing this with us at 100 Happy Days. I love paneled walls. Yours is simply stunning. 🙂
Becky Mullowney says
Amazing idea! Now I’m looking around my house to see where I can copy you! Thanks for sharing!
Rita Capps says
Suzy,
I love your “after” picture. As usual, you guys did a superior job!!!
Thanks for sharing and inspiring.
Rita
Angela Patterson says
Wow..what an amazing transformation..the din8ng room is so bright and inviting and looks like it would be a beautiful spot for entertaining family. The colors are so calming and I love everything about how this room.
Wendy Shipman says
The bead board paneling looks great. I also love your unconventional use of the antique mantel. My walls have been almost bare for 16 years. I think it’s time to do something about that.