It’s been almost over 6 months I completed the board and batten wainscoting in my kids’ bedroom. It is holding up well and I am loving it every time I enter their room.
The impact to the room is AMAZING!! This is definitely a project a beginner can tackle themselves with minimal tools. This is my first time attempting this type of project. I will show you every step I took to complete this project. There are some decisions I made that I would have done differently but that for another blog post.
here is the Before….


let's dive into it...
Materials
- 4′ x 8′ 5mm plywood sheets
- 0.5″ x 3.5″ primed boards* – cut from a 0.5’x 4′ x 8′ mdf sheet
- 1×6 primed boards* – used as baseboards
- 1×2 primed boards*
- primed cove pine moulding
- wood glue
- paintable caulk
- spackle
- wood filler
- liquid nails
- outlet extender
- oil-based primer (for mdf sheets/boards)
*length suitable your room space
Tools
- 1 1/4″ brad nails – used to nail in decorative cove moulding
- 2″ brad nails
- Miter saw
- circular saw
- Brad nail gun (I have a cordless one)
- jigsaw
- leveler
- pencil
- screw driver
- pry bar
- measurement tape
Now that you have all the materials and tools needed, here are the steps to a beautiful board and batten wainscoting
Step 1
Plan out your design
I did not thoroughly plan out the spacing between the boards, but I was able to determine how high I wanted the board and batten wainscoting. Our kids’ bedroom ceiling are 10 ft tall and I wanted the wainscoting to be about a third of the height of the room or more. The total height of the wainscoting includes the baseboards. Refer to the design layout below for details.
I used a 4ft x 8ft plywood sheet as my panel board, 4ft edge as the height and 8ft edge as the length of the panel board.
final design layout...

Tips: Finalize your design plan with estimated measurements for your wainscoting. Then determine the materials cut you will need.
I decided to cut my plywood sheets 16 inches wide because I was planning to install the vertical slat on each studs. Later on, I decided to install the vertical slats, 28-32 inches apart. Although the plywood sheets were already cut at 4ft and 16 inches wide, I had to determine how to hide as many seams as possible… I shared more on it below.
Step 2
Locate studs and mark it with a chalk line


Step 3
Remove existing baseboard

Step 4
Install new baseboards


Step 5
Install top board at the desire height (1×4 boards)




Step 6
Install 1×2 boards on top of the 1×4 boards

Step 7
Measure and cut plywood sheets to cover up any textured walls

For outlets on the wall, cut the outlet opening on the plywood sheet, using a jig saw.
Use an outlet extender for a flush look on your board and batten, especially if the outlet opening is located on either of the horizontal boards and/or vertical slats

For switches that fall on the top boards, cut the opening on the trim board, using a jig saw. Also use an outlet extender for a flush look.


If your switches are not fully enclosed at the top board area, you will need to cut an additional wood piece to frame out the switch.

Step 8
Arrange the cut plywood sheets to visualize how they will look once installed. If satisfied, proceed with Step 8

Step 9
Apply liquid nails on the plywood sheets and nail onto the wall at a 30 degree angle.


Step 10
Cut and prime vertical slats (1×4 boards)

Step 11
Arrange vertical slats using paint tape
Use paint tape to hold the vertical slats to confirm spacing before nailing them onto the wall. Not every boards will be placed in equal distance between each other. However, make sure your vertical slats are balanced equally on the walls.
TIPS: The vertical slats do not have to be nailed onto the studs. For a secure attachment, apply liquid nails to the back of the boards and nail at 30 degrees.


Step 12
Fill in all nail holes

Step 13
caulk and caulk…

Step 14
prepare to paint



Step 15
paint paint paint

Step 16
admire your work
Our finished work…..




What do you think?