Wall Treatments

If you’ve been hanging around on my blog, you’ve seen these first two images before. I have been exploring DIY wall paneling treatments in my designs recently. I love this trend, because it’s super affordable, not totally permanent and makes a room look really elevated. While I know what I like when I see it, and I have a gift for figuring out how to recreate it, as a newbie in the “professional” world of interior design, I thought it time to learn the terminology and share my new found knowledge with y’all.

I also have a hard time imagining shiplap or bead board (and if you don’t know those terms, you will learn as you scroll) in a room that isn’t “farmhouse chic,” which is not my personal style. I have gathered images of these paneling treatments that are modern and fresh takes on treatments that are truly timeless.

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MOULDING LAYERED BEADBOARD

This is the budget kitchen makeover I did for my mom last fall for the One Room Challenge. Full disclosure, I wanted to remove the bead board, but it was all glued down, really really well. So to freshen up the look I added applied moulding on top using a brad nailer.

Beadboard is a very traditional wall treatment but one that will always be timeless. It consists of a strips of wood with small “beads” in between each board. Beadboard which comes in a variety of widths as well as styles is often popular in bedrooms, bathrooms and hallways as it serves as a very durable option for your walls and you can accent above it with a different paint color if you decide to do it as wainscoting like we did above.

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APPLIED MOULDING

This room is the most recent makeover I’ve tackled, the study. I have not shared the entire reveal yet, but it’s coming soon. I tore down the wallpaper and wanted to add some character to the walls. I thought box moulding was a little overboard for this room. I wanted to have interest, yet be subtle, but I wanted something a little more than board and batten, so I added a horizontal panel about 3/4 of the way up the wall. The spot was chosen purely on visual gut reaction.

BOARD AND BATTEN

Board and Batten is one of the oldest and most traditional types of wall paneling which you often see on the exterior of homes. The construction typically consists of a wide “board” and then a smaller more narrow “batten” that is installed over each of the seams creating a stronger structure. When used on interior walls like the example below you don’t need to have the larger “board” but instead can fake the look with small strips installed vertically.

Making Nice In The Midwest

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APPLIED MOULDING

This is one of the most simple and easiest of the options that we have in this category. It consists of adding strips of wood to your already existing walls (either with glue or nails) and then painting the entire wall to match. You can customize not only the size of the boxes, to be squares rectangles or a combo of each, but also the thickness of the boards that you add to the wall to achieve just about any look. I love how Gold Ala Mode brought the look of a French apartment into her New Jersey home.

Gold Ala Mode

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SHIPLAP

Or more broadly, horizontal paneling, is a series of panels stacked horizontally. Shiplap traditionally has a space in between the boards (and is designed to easily fit together) where as horizontal paneling can be installed butt to butt without a space. Vertical paneling can be any color or raw as shown here, mixed with beadboard in Michelle Adam’s home.

The Every Girl

KLH Custom Homes

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BOX MOULDING

Making Nice In The Midwest

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V-GROOVE PANELING

V-groove paneling is a type of paneling where the edges of the boards have been shaved so that when it butts up to another board it forms a “V” shape in the groove. This is a more traditional look, and offers defined lines because of the grooves of the boards.

The Every Girl

Domino

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WAINSCOT PANELING

The term wainscoting refers to any type of wall treatment that goes a portion of the length of the wall. So while some people think wainscoting only involves beadboard or v-groove, the “half way method” can be used for any wall treatment. We love it here in a modern hallway with a box moulding.

My Domain

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DIY Concrete Bells

I’ve been on the ceramic train for sometime now. Loving dishes and decor alike, I’ve blogged about it here before. That love has carried over to my lust for the charming ceramic bells I’ve been seeing around Instagram and on Pinterest. My favorites on Etsy are a little more than I want to spend at the moment, so I came up with a DIY to get the look for a fraction of the cost. This DIY is a fairly simple one, I completed it in about an hour. Are you into this decor trend?

SUPPLIES:

• faux fern plant

• rope

• wood rings

• drill + large drill bit (size depending on your rope)

• scissors

• cup hook (to hang)

STEP 1: remove the plant from the planter. Scrape out the styrofoam.

STEP 2. Drill a hole in the bottom of the planters. Hole will depend on the gauge of rope you are using.

STEP 3: Thread rope through one bell. Tie knot inside bell to hold in place. Tie wood ring to end of rope.

STEP 4. Decide how long you want the bells to hang and tie knot at the top of the fold.

STEP 5: Thread rope through the other bell, tie knot inside bell to keep in place and knot wood ring to at end of the rope. Last, unravel the ends of the rope.

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Study Plans

If you follow along on Instagram, you know this room is well on it’s way. I wanted to share some of my inspiration and design decisions as I style out the shelves, await my art to arrive and put the finishing touches on this space. I have to admit when we moved in I was pretty stumped with this space. It’s a lovely “bonus room.” But in my mind there is not a whole lot of function to it. It’s right off the living room in the front center of our house. There is a closet and large window, plus it connects to the bathroom, which also connects to the kitchen. So it’s a good pass through room. I did not want to use this room as my office, because my office is a disaster 99% of the time, and also because, despite the large window, the lighting stinks.

I future vision is to open this room to the kitchen and turn it into a dinning space, but when faced with what to do with it in the mean time, I was pretty much stumped. The navy patterned wallpaper was not my choice, but there is worse and the bookshelves were nice, just not my taste at all.

Flash forward to my discovery of Mandi Makes on Instagram. Her home and feed is a glorious journey of unbelievable and super-creative before and afters. The moment I saw her study I knew it was the direction I wanted to go for my own study. For someone who painted their entire house white (Polar Bear actually) within the first few weeks of living in it, I fell hard for this green-grey color. I loved how her shelves were filled with books like a traditional library, but yet it all looked so modern. See more of Mandi’s room on her blog.

The color Mandi used is called Oil Cloth by Benjamin Moore. I pulled about 35 green-grey swatches from every paint brand. They all looked so different in this room and so different in each light of day. The Oil Cloth color Mandi used looked really blue and really dark in my room. I ended up going with a color called Dusty Miller by Benjamin Moore and I could not be happier with how it turned out!

I know I’ve seen and pinned that monochromatic look before, so I hopped onto my Pinterest to find all the interesting colored libraries that skewed modern. Many were a little too traditional for my taste, like this room. I had crafted my idea, now on to the executing and the dreaded tearing down of the wallpaper.

photos: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4

I have lots more to share about this room and the reveal coming soon! See the items I’m shopping for styling over on my Pinterest Board.

Powder Bath Plans

Last week I gave you the overview on house projects for the year, and as I go along, I will break down my inspiration and plan for each room. If you have been following along on Instagram you know that I already dove into tackling my powder bath. I had the mirror and the light, so I figured I’d buy the paint and start with phase 1. You can see the before here and scroll to the bottom of the post to see where I am today. I still need to replace the toilet, vanity, flooring and tile the walls. But she has come a long way! Here is the inspiration and the detailed design plan. Looking forward to finishing it off in the next month or too.

floor tile / scalloped wall tile / toilet / rug / art / faux plant / plant sprayer / sconce / mirror / faucet / vanity (custom) / paint color - My Sweetheart

Pedestal Bowl Round-Up

The perfect styling piece I am currently coveting is the pedestal bowl. It is absolutely perfect on the center of the kitchen table, as a decorative object on a coffee table, on your open kitchen shelving or styled on a built it. It is the avocado of the styling world - a little decadent and perfect on whatever you put it on. Ever since I missed the boat on this beauty from Anthropologie a few months back, I have been on the hunt for the perfect bowl. Scroll down to see the alternatives I found.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9

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DIY Upholstered Bench

Today I’m excited to share the first of many DIY projects in our new home. The best news is that this project is really easy, I’m not exaggerating when I say that it took me about an hour to make this bench. Except for the batting I had all the supplies on hand. I even used the legs from a disassembled coffee table I made many moons ago for my New York City apartment. Chances are, if you’re not a borderline hoarder, like me, you may need to pick up a few items, but even for a novice, this project can be completed in an afternoon.

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SUPPLIES:

• two pieces of 3/4” plywood mine were 13” x 39” (think I had a scrap piece that size)

• hairpin legs

• batting

• mud cloth or other fabric

• staple gun

• scissors

• screws - 1 3/8”

• drill

Step 1: Cut your two pieces of wood to size and sand the edges.

Step 2: Layout the batting and cut to size of top of bench. You will only be using one piece of plywood for the next few steps.

Step 3: Staple down the batting.

Step 4: Cut the fabric to the size of bench, plus about a 3” border around the edges.

Step 5: Staple the fabric to the bottom of the plywood.

Step 6: Trim extra fabric at corners and tuck in to achieve the cleanest possible fold at the corners.

Step 7: Layer second piece of plywood on top of the upholstered piece, sandwiching the stapled fabric. Drill in about one screw in the center of each of the four sides.

Step 8. Add the legs.

And that’s it! You can even have them cut the plywood to size at your hardware store. This project is super easy, minimal mess and no staining, so no harsh odors. I just love the little touch this piece adds to our staircase wall!

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House Projects for 2019

If you guys have been following along on Instagram with the house updates, you know I am not wasting any time. I love getting these projects done, and if I have the vision and the energy and the cash (unfortunately that’s lacking at the moment), why not knock it out? My strategy is to tackle all the low budget projects right away so the home feels happy and our style while we save for the big budget projects, like a master bath overhaul, new flooring and a kitchen renovation. The five big projects I have on the docket for 2019 are all DIY, mostly painting and tiling with a couple exceptions. Without further ado, here is the list of projects I plan to tackle this year.

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1. THE POWDER BATH

If you follow my instagram stories, you know I already started this project. This past week I tore down the wallpaper and painted a pretty soft pink color and painted the trim white. I replaced the mirror and light and added a picture ledge. Phase two is on pause for a moment, but we are still planning to replace the vanity, update the flooring and tile the wall half way up. I’ll be sharing a post with my full reno plans and finishes soon.

2. THE STUDY

In the next month or so, we will be moving on to the study. We are planning to add trim to the walls, and paint everything, including the built ins and trim and light grey-green color. I have a cool vintage pendent to install and of course, style it out.

3. THE SCREENED IN PORCH

Thinking I want to tackle this room for the spring One Room Challenge in April. I want to paint the wood white, to bring it from rustic to modern. We will replace the track lighting with a pendent, figure out a space heating option and update the carpet to a patterned tile.

4. KITCHEN REFRESH

We don’t have the budget for a renovation, but I’ve painted enough kitchen cabinets to know that a small budget can go a long way. We plan to paint the lowers and uppers shown below. We will take out the uppers on the opposite side of the kitchen, and replace with open shelving. We will replace the hardware and either paint or retile the backsplash.

5. UPSTAIRS BATH

I’m hoping that after the powder room, I will be brave enough to want to DIY this bath. She needs a complete facelift. We will replace the vanity and toilet, update the floor, pull out the tub and surround and replace with a new tub and tile.

Check out my Dream Home 2.0 Pinterest board for all my inspiration and products on my short list to purchase. Don’t forget to follow along on Instagram.

Introducing Our New House!

We put the One Room Challenge project to bed just in time, because we bought a house! After six months of looking, we finally signed the papers and made it official on Tuesday, November 6th! We looked 21 houses, there were three we really considered. We put an offer in on one that didn’t get accepted, and finally, we have a new home! We worked all weekend painting and getting things ready. One third of our stuff arrived from storage and this week the rest will be delivered and we plan to move in next weekend. I am most definitely in the stay up until all hours of the night scrolling Pinterest and Instagram gathering inspiration phase! Check out my “Dream Home” series to get an idea of where my head is at.

A few quick stats about the home, she was built in 1984, 2900 square feet, 4 bedrooms and 3 1/2 baths.

This bright open living room is what sold us on the house. After spending most of our time in our old living room, which was open and inviting, we knew a big living room was pretty much at the top of our must-have list. I love the balcony and the stair case. I keep picturing Ollie waking up on Christmas morning and running down the stairs to see what Santa left him.

LIVING ROOM PROJECTS

• Immediate: paint, we actually already got to business on this one. This weekend we put a fresh coat of white paint on the walls and trim. Next we will update built in with floating shelves.

• In the next 6 months to a year: Change out the light fixtures, update flooring, paint the fireplace

The kitchen definitely isn’t the big open dream kitchen I was hoping for. But it’s bright and somewhat open to the living room. I love the built-in breakfast area and I think with some small changes it could be really good and eventually we can save up and make it great!

KITCHEN PROJECTS

• Immediate: update the breakfast nook, remove built-in desk and shelving

• Next 6 months: update backsplash, remove uppers and bulkhead above the sink, and add open shelving. Paint cabinets and update hardware.

• Long term: Open up wall between kitchen and library (where the fridge is in the photo below) and move the dining table to the library. Replace flooring, new cabinets (or reface).

Next room is the three seasons room, right off the kitchen. Currently it’s the plant room. I plan to put the dining table in here, but the problem is that the room is not heated, so unless we get a heating source, we won’t be dining in there anytime soon. I love the lighting and to me it feels like a great place to have a dining table.

THREE SEASONS ROOM PROJECTS

• Immediate: paint the paneling, change the lighting

• Next 6 months: replace flooring with tile

• Future: add a permanent heat source

This is the room I referred to as the library above. I haven’t quite cultivated a vision for this room. But I think we will start with removing the wallpaper.

Our master bedroom is just off the living room. It has tall ceilings, a sliding door to the deck and a big closet. There is a lot to love. But the bathroom. Oh lordy the bathroom. She needs a facelift!

MASTER SUITE PROJECTS

• Immediate: paint closet and bedroom

• Next 6 months: replace flooring

• Next year: Gut bath renovation. A year might be a pipe dream, but it’s bad, so hopefully we can pinch our pennies enough to make it happen.

There are two bedrooms upstairs. One will be Ollie’s room and the other will be a playroom until another little comes a long. I am so excited to design these rooms for my little man, who has been a trooper living with only a few toys and no space of his own, now he will have two rooms to enjoy!

UPSTAIRS BEDROOM PROJECTS

• Immediate: Paint

• Next year: replace floors, replace closet doors

All four bathrooms in this house need serious updating. I plan to tackle the powder room soon. Once I cut my teeth with the small bath, I will probably DIY the upstairs down the road. I definitely won’t miss that blue countertop!

Check out my Dream Home 2.0 Pinterest board for all my inspiration and products on my short list to purchase.