Plaid Design Master Bedroom Accent Wall

Hey! I can’t believe I completed this bedroom accent wall in under 6 weeks for the 2019 Spring One Room Challenge! This project has really transformed our master bedroom and I’m loving it so much!

A lot of you reached out to help recreate this plaid design accent wall in your home. I’m excited to finally share a detailed step by step tutorial with you.

How I decided on this bedroom accent wall pattern

While browsing Instagram and Pinterest for accent wall ideas, I stumbled on a bedroom with a plaid design accent wall and I fell in LOVE with it. At that moment, I knew I wanted a plaid design accent wall in our master bedroom. I’ve always wanted to create an accent wall in our Master bedroom but wanted to do something quite different. 

In the first week of the One Room Challenge, I put together a design layout for our master bedroom.

I hope with this tutorial you will be able to recreate this plaid design accent wall in your home, at your own pace. Having this in our bedroom has created some incredible visual interest, eye-catching and a great focal point.

As always, please feel free to ask any questions in the comment below. 

Before we go dive into the steps for this project, I’d like to be honest with you. This project was definitely time consuming because it required a lot of precise cuts.

I spent most of my weekends cutting over 50 trim pieces. However, do not be discouraged because once completed, it will be totally worth it and to me has a lot more dimension than if you just decided to do a wallpaper accent wall or paint it.

I advise that you take your time to get all the pieces cut, primed and painted before nailing them to the wall based on your final design.

Let’s Begin!

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.
For more information, see my disclosure here.

Materials 

• 1″ x 8 ft * – cut from 1x6x8 primed boards, using a table saw or have your local home improvement store cut it from a 4ft x 8ft plywood sheet
• 0.5″ x 8ft * – cut using a table saw, as stated above or using a circular saw
• 4ft x 8ft hardboard panel boards
• 1.5″ x 6″ (3) as spacers 
• 1×6 or 1×8 primed boards for baseboards and top board 
• 1×2 board
• caulk – white
• spackle 
• paint brush 
• paint tape 
• medium & fine grit sandpaper
• paint roller
• chalk line
• liquid nails
• primer
• paint of  your choice

Tools 

• Table saw (if you want to cut the 1″, 0.5″ trim and panel boards at home) 
• Miter saw 
• circular saw, if needed
• brad nail gun and 2 inches brad nails
• pin nail gun and 2 inches pin nails
• caulking gun
• leveler 
• stud finder 
• pry bar
• pencil 
• ruler 

Safety gear

• protective googles
• work gloves
• sanding mask
• covered shoes
  
  * Your final design determines the quantity you will need. Always cut extra to make up for mistakes

How To Create Your Plaid Design Bedroom Accent Wall

1. Plan out the bedroom accent wall layout

Take measurements of the wall and determine design layout.  For reference, here is my design layout 

Your final design can be less busy than mine but do not be afraid to be creative with it

2. Prepare your space 

Whether you are doing this in your bedroom or your living room, move furniture away to allow for adequate work space, if needed. 

Find and mark studs using a chalk line (from ceiling to the floor).
At this step, remove existing baseboards, using a pry bar if they are not as thick as the trim boards.

3. Cut the panel board 

Once you have finalized the plaid design layout, cut down the hardboard panel boards. The hardboard panel boards are used as wall covering for my textured walls

These were the measurements I used to cut down the 4′ x 8′ hardboard panel boards for my bedroom wall.

4. Install hardboard panel board

If your walls are smooth, you do not need to install panel.  The panel boards I installed were not long enough to cover the wall vertically and as a result, I had to center the boards on the wall.

TIP: I used a 1×2 trim board as support to secure the board as I nailed it onto the wall.

Nail the panel boards onto the wall at an angle. You can also apply liquid nails onto the back of the panel boards to ensure your boards are fully secured to the wall.

5. Measure, cut and install baseboard and top board 

For reference, our walls are 9ft tall and the panel boards were only 8ft long.

If you have the same measurements as I do, install a 1×8 baseboard and top board to cover the exposed wall space, above and below the panel board (see my design above). The 1×8 boards overlapped the panel boards and secured it.

If your walls are not more than 8ft, use a 1×6 baseboard and top board in this step.

IMPORTANT: Nail in 1×8 boards at the studs.

6. Cut and prepare trim pieces

Cut 1” and 0.5” trim pieces from primed pine 1×6 boards using a table saw. Then sand down the edges.

Prime edges and paint the trim pieces. This will reduce your finishing tasks after they have been nailed in.

Now the bedroom accent wall is ready for the fun part!

7. Cut and nail in your first trim board

Measure, cut and nail in the first 1” board at the half-point of your wall, on top of the panel board seams.

IMPORTANT: Use a leveler to ensure that your boards are installed straight. 

8. Add spacers

Place the spacers next to the right of the first board and nail in the second board. Then place the spacer to the left of the first board and nail in the third board.

9. Add vertical boards

Nail in all the vertical 1” boards at and around the seams, based on your design layout.  You should not have any exposed seams with the panel boards and the panel boards should be fully secured to the wall 

10. Add your horizontal boards

Determine the halfway point between the top board and baseboard. Measure, cut and nail in 1” board horizontally. These boards will be installed in between all three consecutive vertical boards. Use the spacers in between boards and a leveler to confirm all boards are installed leveled.

11. Add your middle boards

For the top and bottom horizontal boards, first measure and mark the length above any outlet on the wall from the baseboard. Then mark the same length from the top board down.

Measure, cut and nail in 1” board horizontally, follow the instructions mentioned in Step 11.

Progress: Once all the 1” boards are installed, you should have squared and rectangle spaces in between the vertical and horizontal trim boards.
Note, that some of the spaces might not be perfectly squared.

12. Add your 0.5″ horizontal boards

Measure and mark the halfway point of each squared area in the vertical direction and nail in a 0.5” boards horizontally. 

Ensure all 0.5″ trim pieces are aligned when nailed for each squared/rectangle area.

13. Add boards in squared areas

Then in both upper and lower section, mark the half point horizontally. Measure, cut and nail in the 0.5” boards vertically for each squared/rectangle areas. Ensure all boards are aligned in both sections. 

For finishing touches, add trim to the edge of the walls.

14. Add connecting pieces

With 1″ boards, measure and cut pieces for the connecting areas

Be very careful when using your table saw. Always have your safety glasses on and watch out for your fingers. Follow the cutting instructions provided with your table saw.

Nail in your connecting trim pieces.

Fill in nail holes and sand with fine sanding paper then caulk gaps.

15. Prime and paint

I used a Benjamin Moore Advance Paint in the color Chantilly Lace (satin finish). This is my go-to paint brand and one of my favorite white paint for trim work in my home. I decided on a white wall to complements the warm undertone, grey paint color (PPG Whiskers) on the rest of the walls.

The Final Look

I love how our wood accent wall turned out! I could have gone the easy way and just added a fun gallery wall or even went the route of painting an accent wall, but I’m really glad I decided to step out of the box!

In case you’re wondering, you can see the full reveal of our newly transformed Master Bedroom here!

Let me know if you have any questions below! I love to hear from you.

If you do recreate this wall in your home, I’d love to see it. Send me an email or tag me on Instagram @simplicityfordesigns

Go and Recreate!