Hello my friends! Long time around here….

I’ve been busy chasing around my busy two-year-old and working on home projects, one project at a time! Right now I’m sharing our dining room refresh that we just completed. I’ll share how we did it, the materials used, and my linkable sources for artwork and more!

To begin….let’s look at our old dining room and why it just wasn’t working for me.

While I am a huge fan of the color teal, this corner just felt so dark because of the darker color. I was also not a fan of the chair rail and brown color underneath. I knew a subtle accent wall could transform the giant expanse of the large wall, but needed to figure out how best to use the space. Board and batten would have looked nice, but ultimately we decided to do a grid wall instead.

The overall effect is subtle, while still giving tons of interest! I’ll share more images below and how we achieved this final look. I love how much lighter and brighter this space feels now. I am also loving the vintage artwork wall I can continue to add to when I find gems that fit into the fold.

To achieve the grid wall look, we used hardboard panels from Home Depot (linked here) and ripped them with a table saw into 3″ strips. The pieces that run vertically are one continuous piece, and the horizontal ones are pieced. My husband adhered the pieces to the wall using Liquid Nails and reinforced them with his nail gun while that glue dried. We used latex, paintable caulk along all of the seams to make a seamless look. I like the look of the hard board rather than a 1″ board for several reasons. Firstly, its flush-enough with the wall that it still works with the existing floor and crown moulding. Secondly, it’s a much cheaper alternative than having to buy several boards. Lastly, since it is relatively flush to the wall, I was still able to hang pictures over the sections using nails or 3M picture hanging strips. It’s a very subtle accent, which was exactly what I was going for. The paint color we used was SW Mindful Gray.

I’ve linked my artwork sources above which were a mix of vintage finds, Etsy and Maris Home. I find myself straying further away from a specific aesthetic in my home decor and really trying to curate interest and individualism. One space at a time, we will get there! Any other questions or links, don’t hesitate to comment below!

xo, Chelsea