One of the things that I’ve been trying to do in our home is to add vintage touches that make our home feel less like a new build and more like a 150 year old beauty. We lived in a home built in 1890 for several years that I absolutely loved – so I’m using her as a bit of inspiration. There was a small space off the side of the house that was used as a three season porch that had floor to ceiling bead board walls. So, we decided to take the old school vibe of that space and reinvent it for our home by adding bead board accent walls one space at a time.
Jess with power tools and putty – it’s quite a sight, no? Something to know before I share how this project turned out – I have little patience for projects. I always have a handful of projects going at once because of this (I know, it makes little sense). Once I start something, I want to see what I envisioned come to life (immediately) and that’s simply not realistic. So, to keep from rushing through, I’ll start another project. And, you know, it becomes one big, DIY-saster mess. Patience is hard for me. However, bead board requires patience — so this was definitely a test for me.
Adding Bead Board Accent Walls – Picking the Space
I have a weird design rule. When I add an accent wall to a space, I make sure that I do the same in at least two other spaces around the house. It keeps the look from room to room consistent. The accent walls that we have in our home include shiplap, wallpaper, and bead board. We decided to start with our downstairs half bath and the dining room. We will also be adding bead board to the hallway that connects the two spaces. Eventually, we will probably add it to the upstairs hall and bath as well. I chose these spaces because they tend to look tight — the bead board naturally draws my eye up and makes the space feel more roomy than it is in reality.
Measure, Measure, Cut, Cut…
A lot of the initial work was pretty boring – measuring, double checking the measurements, and then cutting the board to size. We purchased bead board panels from Lowes and decided on a simple trim to finish off the top. We used liquid nails to secure the panels before nailing in the boards.
Those Seams Though…
Honestly, the most annoying thing about this project was all the seams. It’s just time consuming to fill, sand, and caulk all the seams to a point that they actually look…you know…decent. This is where the patience that I don’t have comes to play. We used mud to fill in any large gaps and then sealed the seams with caulking. I sanded everything down and then filled any other uneven areas before painting.
Adding Bead Board Accent Walls -Would I Do It Again?
I mean…yeah. I’m going to do it again. It’s time consuming and messy – like any project, I suppose. But I love how it turned out and have zero regrets about choosing bead board for this space. I’ll share more of the dining room in a later post – but the bathroom is cute as a button! I do have to caulk around the sink one more time…so, Derek, if you’re reading this — get on that 😉
Until next time, friends!
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