Board and batten is a great way to add character to your home, and it also has the added benefit of easy fingerprint clean-up if you have kids. I love it to this day, and I think it just makes everything look crisp and custom.
I gave you a
preview to the late night insanity in starting our board and batten project just two days before Christmas. Well, we have one project that is
done. The hallway as you enter our house from the garage was every mother’s nightmare. It was painted in
flat paint. Flat paint. Who paints
walls in flat paint?!? Perhaps someone with no children…
So, since this hallway is a magnet for fingerprints and scuff marks, I figured it would be a good place to start our board and batten journey. Mind you, we decided to take the red-eye on this trip and started working on it at about 11:30 PM on December 23rd. Yes, insanity rules.
Here is the photo montage – sorry for the before pictures – I was in a hurry to capture a few since I don’t typically take pictures of hallways just for kicks.
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| Kind of a before picture – I was actually taking a picture of my new rug. Isn’t it pretty? |
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| A picture from the opposite direction – at the beginning of the insanity. |
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| The hubby measuring out the distance between the boards with a trusty paint stick! |
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| Boards are up! |
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| AFTER – A crisp and clean space. |
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| AFTER – View from the garage door |
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| Another view – added another piece at the top to give it a more finished look |
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| And another view in case you haven’t seen enough |
Our hallway has gone through a few more makeovers as the years have gone by, but the board and batten has stayed the same. I still love it!
And here it is now –
Material Details
I have received a lot of questions about the board sizes and the measurements I used. Here are the details:
The wood we used was primed MDF. The sizes are as follows:
- Vertical boards: 1 x 2 1/2″ mdf
- Large horizontal board: 1 x 7 1/2″ mdf
- Top “trim” pies 1 x 1/2″ mdc
Additional tools needed:
The spacing in between the boards was about 12 inches. We used a paint stick as a guide. You’ll want to measure your wall to make sure that the boards are able to be evenly spaced, and reflective of one another so that it is aesthetically pleasing.
TIP: Cut the bottom of your vertical boards at an angle so that they “taper” towards the trim (assuming you’re not going to replace your baseboards). That really helps give it a more seamless look overall.
As for the height, that’s a matter of personal preference. Ours are about 65″ high, from the floor to the top of the trim piece. But, you can eyeball it and see what works best for your space. We have 9′ ceilings , so that height worked best for us.
We caulked around all of the mdf pieces and the paint that we used was an antique white (Porter Paints) in a latex semi-gloss that matched our trim paint.
Jenny
Related
I’m Jenny, a wife of 28 years, mother of three, and a corporate drop-out. I’m a creative minded blogger, business owner and DIYer, and love transforming furniture, cabinets and rooms in my home. I’m a card carrying paint geek, and am always amazed at the power of paint in making budget-friendly updates to your home. I’m a serial house-stalker, and never tire of a great home tour or a before and after renovation. I’m a firm believer in restyling, refreshing and renewing things in your home to make it your own - without breaking the budget. I’ll show you how!
87 Comments
Jena @ Involving Color
January 6, 2011 at 6:51 pmJenny, I LOVE the board and batten! Your home is just gorgeous. I'm so glad I came across your blog. I'm a follower!
Rachael@Lovely Crafty Home
January 7, 2011 at 12:33 amLOVE this!! I'm about to start a B&B project, so I'm so happy to have found your before and after pics! Can you tell me a bit about how you finished the top? What kind of molding is on top of that long board creating the ledge? Will you share this on my party tomorrow?
Restoration House
January 7, 2011 at 12:38 amThis looks so great. This may be a project for this year!
Kim:)
Tracy Suzanne
January 7, 2011 at 5:58 amHi Jenny, I'm Tracy and I'm new to your blog. I just found you over at Transformation Thursdays. I'm you're newest follower as tonasun.
I just love your makeover. The board and batten looks wonderful in that space. I know your husband and you must be so proud of it. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Hugs…Tracy 🙂
P.S. Stop by and visit my blog anytime.
mommyinthemountains
January 7, 2011 at 8:13 pmLooks lovely! I really like it. I think I may attempt this.
Rachael@Lovely Crafty Home
January 7, 2011 at 9:41 pmThanks SO much for sharing at my party! Come back soon!
Amy
January 7, 2011 at 9:59 pmI think it looks so much better! We keep putting it up at our house as well.
theultimate
January 7, 2011 at 10:02 pmWow! That looks amazing! Your house is just beautiful.
Found you through j-a-girl and so glad I did! =]
Elaine
January 7, 2011 at 10:49 pmLooks great! Love how it totally brightens up the space.
Grace @ Sense and Simplicity
January 7, 2011 at 11:19 pmYour hall looks fantastic now – the combination of the board and batten and the lighter colour on the bottom just make it seem so much more interesting and fresh. I can't believe you started a project like that so close to Christmas – very impressive!
Courtney {a thoughtful place}
January 7, 2011 at 11:53 pmReally stunning. I love it. It is so fresh and crisp. Did you just paint inside of the boards, or are they boards as well? Well done
Ellie
January 8, 2011 at 3:18 amI love how it looks! I think I'll just scroll back up and enjoy the eye candy again. 🙂
Tiffany
January 8, 2011 at 2:19 pmGreat project!
Lisa at Paint in my Hair
January 8, 2011 at 2:53 pmlooks awesome! I am dying to try this but can't figure out how because I have baseboard heaters. I LOVE yours though! I'm your newest follower!
Kim @ Sand and Sisal
January 8, 2011 at 9:28 pmJenny-
I just came over from Just a Girl's party and wow-o-wow! What a beautiful hallway. I think we all have a board and battan project in the makes. After seeing yours finished I'm excited for ours! Great job! I'm going to tweet this on Twitter and I just became a follower also!
Rhoda @ Southern Hospitality
January 8, 2011 at 10:13 pmJenny, it is beautiful!! I'm dying to do this too, although it's not gonna happen this year, but maybe one of these days. You made it look so easy & it's amazing how this stuff really amps up the hallways. Gorgeous! Love that little piece on top too, that really finishes it off.
Now, where did you get that beautiful rug?
Amy Nabors
January 8, 2011 at 10:22 pmWow! Looks wonderful!
Lorie
January 9, 2011 at 1:01 amI absolutely love it!!
Deb
January 9, 2011 at 3:06 amYour hallway looks awesome Jenny…I love it! We are hoping to do some B&B in our entry/laundry room one day too! ~Deb~
Cheri
January 9, 2011 at 6:06 amLove the rug, love the green paint, love the design of your home, love the board and batten. A swooning new follower!!
Rhonda
January 9, 2011 at 1:07 pmThat is so beautiful… WOW! How long did the project take you?
Kristi
January 10, 2011 at 12:16 amWow!!! That looks awesome! It really brightened that space up. You guys did a great job!
Love that rug too! Do you mind me asking where you got it.
Just B @ Love Where You Live
January 10, 2011 at 12:23 amWhat a beautiful result! I love the green wall color, any shade of my green is my favorite, but the white makes the space look very clean, bright and finished. Great job. 🙂
Carrie @ Dittle Dattle
January 10, 2011 at 12:31 amJust gorgeous! And I must say I love your area rug 😀
I would be honored to have you add it to my blog party
Amaze Me Monday Blog Party
vintage vine
January 10, 2011 at 3:44 amYou guys did a great job!!! I love this look, like you said it is so clean looking.
House Revivals
January 10, 2011 at 5:34 amIt looks beautiful! Tell your hubby "great job"!
~Amanda
Carrie @ Dittle Dattle
January 10, 2011 at 12:51 pmThank you so much for linking up to
Amaze Me Monday Blog Party
Becca
January 10, 2011 at 2:05 pmThis is absolutely stunning! Your hallway looks so fresh, crisp and *alive*! And, that rug is gorgeous. Thanks for sharing.
Janell @ Isabella and Max
January 10, 2011 at 2:16 pmYou have got to be kidding me! This is amazing! I am writing an article for Houzz this week on wainscoting, and this could definitely be in it. This treatment adds so much character to a space, great job!
Janell
Rachael@Lovely Crafty Home
January 10, 2011 at 4:17 pmJust wanted to let you know I featured you today, so feel free to stop by and grab a button if you want! 🙂
Melissa Miller
January 10, 2011 at 4:23 pmWOW! Jenny this really looks beautiful in your lovely hallway. Love the wall color and rug as well.
Warmly, ~Melissa 🙂
Sausha @ {show and tell}
January 11, 2011 at 5:57 pmlooks awesome – so clean and white. i did the same in my room a while back – i couldnt decide if i wanted to top piece to finish it off – but looking at yours definately makes me want to add it – thanks!!!
Pam
January 11, 2011 at 10:43 pmThis is beautiful! I love the height of the b&b. I found you from Centsational Girl. I'm now a follower. 🙂
[email protected]
January 12, 2011 at 6:14 pmTHAT was AMAZING!!! LOVE THIS!!! You have GOT to link this up at
*ENTER LINKY PAR-TAY Here! *
xoxokara
Christa @ Stories of a House
January 16, 2011 at 2:11 amI LOVE board and batten. Great work! I am drooling over that rug 🙂
Melanie
January 17, 2011 at 1:31 amYou home is absolutely beautiful. Love the color on the walls, love the board & batten, and love the rug!
Jaime
January 17, 2011 at 12:06 pmYou make it look so easy! Can you tell me what size boards you used, 1 x 4 on the vertical and 1 x 8 on the horizontal? Would love to know. Thanks
Dixie Sargent Redmond
January 17, 2011 at 1:52 pmWow! I am trying to convince my hubby to do this. It looks great!
Billie Ross
January 17, 2011 at 9:56 pmJenny,
This is such an amazing transformation! We also have a long narrow entry hallway — but ours is the front entrance. Ours is also flat paint — and we have 2 kids and a dog! I've been wondering what I could do to this hallway because there isn't room for even a table or shelf. It needs some personality… I think this may be exactly what I've been looking for!
Thank you for the inspiration
Billie
http://www.designedforlife.blogspot.com
Faith, Trust, and a Little Pixie Dust
January 18, 2011 at 4:20 amWow, I love the way this turned out. What is the brand name of the rug?