Before and After: This Ridiculously Impressive Accent Wall Will Inspire You

Builder-grade homes have a lot going for them—usually lots of space, for one, plus modern finishes and layouts—but they can lack in the charm department. For Gbeke Omosebi, of Simplicity for Designs, that was one thing that bothered her—especially when it came to her bedroom. “Our master bedroom is big and I love it,” Gbeke says. “But it lacked personality. Every time I walked into the room, I knew I wanted to update it.”

After she added board and batten wainscoting to her kids’ bedroom and updated their door and window trim, Gbeke was inspired to do something similar with her own bedroom. “These changes transformed the room from boring to adding dimension and character,” Gbeke says—something she definitely wanted more of in her home. So with the help of her husband, she got to work creating an accent wall with a twist.

After sketching out her ideas for the accent wall design, Gbeke took measurements and sketched out the layout. Her raised plaid design definitely required some skill and patience! She started by nailing up smooth hardboards to cover the overly rough texture of the wall, giving her a clean slate for her design. Then she installed wide wood boards on the bottom and top of the wall, to serve as the baseboard and crown molding.

Gbeke used 1-inch and 1/2-inch thick trim pieces for the lines of her plaid design, choosing pre-primed pine that she painted before installing. Gbeke nailed up her vertical pieces first, then added the horizontal lines in pieces; in the spaces where the lines intersect, she added small connecting pieces to give the illusion that the lines overlap. (You can read more of her specific instructions here.)

Once the pieces were up, Gbeke filled the nail holes, sanded, and painted the whole wall bright white (Benjamin Moore’s Chantilly Lace). “We love how the plaid accent wall elevates our bedroom by adding dimension and texture,” Gbeke says. “We also love how bright and airy our bedroom is.”

Her advice, as someone who totally nailed a complicated project? “Spend a good amount of time mapping out your project and always have a design plan.”

Inspired? Submit your own project here.