When we first looked at this house almost 4 years ago, we were told it was an “Arts and Crafts” style home. The house was still under construction, so we didn’t really know exactly what that meant.

Here’s the translation: “The builder’s kit said “Craftsman” on it, which is reflected in the shape and style of the exterior. On the inside though, it will be completely devoid of any character that represents this period in history.” Is carpentry a dying art?

Crown molding? Nope.

Cabinet trim? Forget about it.

Staircase with solid wood treads? Of course not. This one still makes me cry.

I guess this is why there is a whole network on TV devoted to the art of DIY-ing.

Hoping to add some architectural detail to the inside of our house, we already tackled some wainscoting beadboard-style in the upstairs bath. Next I had my eye on the wall in the dining room that separates it from the living room. I thought it would be a perfect spot for some b&b (that’s what all the cool kids call it), especially after my dining table acquisition.

This project turned out to be MUCH easier than the beadboard, so don’t be scared! If you love the look, you can totally do this yourself with these easy to find materials:

  • Hand miter box and saw (already owned)
  • 1×2 furring strips or faux lattice (my Home Depot sells foam composite stuff called lattice in the decorative molding area) ($4/ea)
  • 1×4 fairly straight pine/primed mdf (1x4x10 was about $6)
  • Paintable Caulk (I like the kind in the squeezable tube for better control- $6)
  • Nail Punch Set (already owned)
  • Liquid Nails and Caulk Gun (already owned)
  • Brads/small nails to hold the 1x4s in place while the glue dries (already owned)
  • Wood Filler (already owned)
  • Painters Tape (already owned)
  • Paint/small roller/brush (already owned)
  • Level (already owned)

The first step is to measure your wall(s) and decide on how many vertical strips (the batten) you want. Our wall is 106.5″, and it took longer than I thought it would to settle on spacing. There are two wall outlets and no matter what I did, I kept running into them. Eventually I decided on 8 strips spaced about 13″ apart. If you’re doing a whole room, I’ve heard that you can fudge a bit around outlets and in the grand scheme of things it won’t be noticeable. Since I only had one wall to do, I figured I could try to get it as close to perfect as possible.

Once I knew I’d be using 8 strips, I decided on 46″ for the height so that I could get away with cutting the 8′ lattice into two usable pieces. Don’t forget to get extra lattice to sit on top of your 1×4 as a ledge.

Prime and paint your 1×4 and lattice ledge. These are the pieces that touch the non-white part of the wall- and you don’t want to have to retouch your original paint (especially if you don’t have any extra, which I didn’t). After your pieces are dry, mark the height of your 1×4 on several places along the wall. Apply liquid nails to the back of your 1×4 and put it in place. You will probably need an extra set of hands here to help you level it while you secure it with some brads or nails. Remember to use your nail punch as described here to get a smooth finish. I used liquid nails to adhere the ledge to the 1×4, like so:

Begin cutting your lattice, one piece at a time. It’s important to measure and cut each one individually because it is unlikely that your 1×4 is perfect. Apply liquid nails to the back of each strip (careful not too apply too much or it will squeeze out), and use a level to make sure they are straight on the wall. I used painters tape to hold them in place.

I found that it didn’t take long at all for the glue to take hold because these pieces are so light. If you’re using real wood, you may need to wait an hour or so before removing the tape to paint.

It took 2 coats to cover evenly (Glidden off the shelf white trim paint) and I caulked the joints that the paint didn’t fill in for a seamless look.

{love}

I seriously love this wall so much now. I find myself staring at it, in awe of the total transformation. Let me see if I can dig up a really old picture for reference.

This is the only old picture with the right angle I could find, but see the red wall in the background? Yup, that’s the original “before.”

And the after, one more time.

*****Linked Up*****

53 Responses

  1. MEGAN

    Wow, it looks awesome!! I’m dying to try this somewhere in my house, thank you soooo much for the tutorial!!!!

    Reply
    • Lovely Crafty Home

      Thank you Megan!! I am really pleased with it! Can’t wait to see what you try 🙂

      Reply
  2. MEGAN

    Wow, it looks awesome!! I’m dying to try this somewhere in my house, thank you soooo much for the tutorial!!!!

    Reply
  3. Sarah

    looks awesome! I just finished my own B&B project too. I really like the height you did yours! Turned out great!

    Reply
  7. Jo-Anna

    Looks great! I want to put wainscoting in our master bedroom and I never even thought of using paint between the boards! I was going to use all wood, but now I don’t know! Yours looks amazing!

    Reply
  8. Jo-Anna

    Looks great! I want to put wainscoting in our master bedroom and I never even thought of using paint between the boards! I was going to use all wood, but now I don’t know! Yours looks amazing!

    Reply
    • Lovely Crafty Home

      I pretty much sanded everything and painted it a semi-gloss white. But I didn’t add any additional trim work.

      Reply
    • Lovely Crafty Home

      They are all mixed unfortunately expect for the outer border which is “coffee bean” from Folk Art. I also used: sky blue, bayberry, parchment, raw umber (artist’s loft), unbleached titanium (basics)…hope it helps!

      Reply
    • Lovely Crafty Home

      They are all mixed unfortunately expect for the outer border which is “coffee bean” from Folk Art. I also used: sky blue, bayberry, parchment, raw umber (artist’s loft), unbleached titanium (basics)…hope it helps!

      Reply
  24. Cathy

    Love, love, love this. I am definitely going to do this in my hallway. Thanks for the inspiration.

    Reply
  27. Donna

    I love this look! I have a long wall that runs from the kitchen/dining area to the living room. I would like to do this in the Kitchen area only. Do you think it would look ok if I don’t continue it the entire length of the wall? Also, any ideas on finishing it at the end if I do it that way between the rooms? The walls are different colors as well as the floors different in the 2 rooms if that helps. THank you !

    Reply
  31. Sherrie Smith

    Liquid nails requires taping into place or nails. Use POWER GRAB. Apply to the board stick to the wall and walk away. No fuss no tape no muss. you have about a 10 minute adjust time and done. You can have that whole wall done in 1/3 of the time.

    Reply
  32. Sherrie smith

    Forget liquid nails. Use Power Grab. No taping, no fuss, no muss. 10 minutes adjust time but you stick the board to the wall and walk away. BOOM! done.

    Reply
  33. Sue

    Love the look, but I’m confused… Did you leave the existing baseboard up and adhere the lattice planks to the wall? It seems the they would stick out farther than the baseboard?

    Reply
    • Rachael Evans

      Hi Sue – Yes! One of the benefits of using the foam lattice is that it’s super thin – thinner than a 1×2. It’s actually pretty flush with the baseboard. I have also done this technique with 1x3s though, and although they do stick out a bit, with caulk and paint it’s barely noticeable.

      Reply
      • Courtney

        Yay!!! I was looking for this answer. You have made my day!!!

  34. Amber

    I love this idea but I’m worried about my textured walls. Does your wall have any texture or is it smooth?

    Reply
    • Michele

      I recently did this in a small bathroom. The walls have/had an “orange peel” finish/texture. I decided how high I wanted the board and batten to be and ‘skim coated’ the area I wanted to be in the lower board and batten area. Skim coat is a term used by people doing drywall finishing. I am just a woman w/the guts to try things, like skim coating the walls. First, I bought a tub of a pre-mixed material (cannot remember what) which was for wallboard and sandable. I spread a thin coat, using the ‘spreader’ which came w/tub, you want to fill in the spaces, in the textured wall. It takes practice, but the good thing is it can be sanded off, so not too thick coat. Let dry and sand. I used a palm sander (don’t remember grit size) and finished by hand sanding for a smoother finish. My husband, and I, LOVE the look! We’ll just walk in, look around and be amazed. My husband had doubts this would work, because I used wood bought 2nd hand and cheap lath. Amazing what paint can correct. I did this just in time to put house on market. We’ll be doing this in our new house, too.

      Reply
  36. Angela Briles

    This wall you’ve created is so beaitiful, we are trying to recreate it in our house. My question is, is your wall textured or smooth? It looks un textured which is where I’m leaning….but thought I’d ask!

    Can’t wait for my finished product!!

    Reply
  43. Laura Severn

    This looks great! I would like to try it. Do you notice the wall texture between the boards? Or did you use anything to smooth the surface?

    Reply

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