• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Partner
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Southern Hospitality

Adventures in Decorating, Thrifting, Cooking, Fashion & Gardening

  • My Home
  • Categories
    • A+ Blogs
    • My Blog Story
    • Decorating
    • DIY/How-To
    • Family
    • Gardening
    • In the Kitchen
    • My Home Tours
    • Thrifting
    • Travel
  • DIY Gallery
  • Fashion
  • Feature Friday
  • Shop My Home
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Beadboard Wainscot in the Dining Room

September 11, 2017 By Rhoda 48 Comments

998 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

Good Monday morning!  We are dealing with Tropical Storm Irma here in Georgia today, so I’m staying home all day long.  It’s going to be a nasty 24 hours for us with this stuff blowing through.  Praying for safety for everyone in the storm’s path and hoping for the best.  I’ve got plenty to do around here, planning to start painting the master bedroom.  We are moving along on the projects and slowly getting more crossed off the to-do list.

Once again, my talented husband, Mark, used his woodworking skills and totally changed the dining room space in our new house.  That was something we discussed when we first looked at the house, adding trim and woodwork in the house to add character to it that wasn’t completely there. There was a good amount of bulky trim around the windows and baseboards, as well as nice crown molding throughout most of the house, but we both love more trim work in a house and it’s a pretty inexpensive way to add character and charm in a newly built home, without spending a ton of money. It helps to have a talented man who can do this, so I’m very blessed in that regard!

Here it is in demo mode.  I don’t hate picture frame molding, but it’s not something he loves and we really wanted to do a tall wainscot treatment in the dining room and we’ll also do another one in the living room.

He pulled all the old molding off, getting it ready for new beadboard and trim.

I’m sure there are different ways of doing all of this, but this is how Mark does it. He started with the top board in place, a 1×6 board (by the way, we used all MDF boards for this project).  We decided on 6′ tall for the wainscot and our ceilings are 9′ tall, so 2/3 up the wall seemed visually pleasing to us.

Measuring, mitering the corners, and nailing into place.

Notice that door way by the kitchen. We originally had one idea on how to trim this out, but after it was done, we both hated it, so he went back and fixed it to what we should have done in the first place.  Just goes to show, that trying to save time and not do what your gut tells you to do can come back to bite you in the butt.  I didn’t take a pic of the final after this doorway was trimmed out, but it just looked messy and not cohesive with the other trim he added around the large doorway facing the living room.  Sometimes you just have to fix things and this was one of those cases.

After all the top boards were installed, he started adding the MDF beadboard panels.

Cutting the trim boards with the miter saw.

This was a piece of trim that we ended up tearing out and not using.

I don’t remember what this tool is called, but it cuts through wood and he used this to scribe a line down the wall and then he went back and added the chunky door frame molding when we both didn’t like the outcome the first time.

If at first you don’t succeed, don’t be afraid to redo and fix it. We are so happy with the outcome the 2nd time!

And here’s the doorway after.

He likes using these tongue and groove beadboard panels from Home Depot. They come in narrow panels and snap together.  He used Liquid Nails and brad nails to install them all. I didn’t get pics of that process.

After the beadboard panels were in, it was time to caulk.  He also added a small trim piece underneath the top board and it hides the top of the panels.  If you don’t want to add this piece, you could always install the beadboard panels first and then top with the 1×6 board and leave off this trim, but we like the way it looks and it meant he didn’t have to cut the panels exact to fit.  The trim piece covers any imperfections.

After caulking, it all comes together and ready to paint.  He did add a top piece of trim too, a simple 1″ x 2″ board that was found in the lumber area of Home Depot.

He nailed those in and caulked underneath and then painted it all.

It wall came out so good and we are really thrilled with the results.  We used Semi-Gloss white trim paint to match our other trim.  He also framed out that doorway going to the living room, which was just plain before.

And here’s the doorway going to the kitchen after trimming it out as well with the large chunky door molding. It looks so much better than the first go around and we are so glad it was changed We wouldn’t have been happy with it in the long run.

Framing out that doorway makes it look so stately.

We love how it all turned out, with the trim pieces all done and painted.

There was already crown  molding in here, so it just adds to that too. Adding trim and molding is such a great way to add character to a house.

As a reminder, here’s the dining room Before. Notice the plain doorway on the right going to the living room.

You can see the doorway going to the kitchen and it was plain too.

And here’s that same doorway After with all the beadboard and trim in place.  So much better!

A Before shot before we moved in the house, dining room to living room view.

And the After!

After it was finished, we got the dining room table, chairs and buffet moved in and now it’s ready for me to get busy in here.  I’m ordering samples of grasscloth wallpaper to put above the wainscot in here and I can’t wait to get that done.  We are also adding plantation shutters on the windows and I’ll add some drapery panels too. I just love fabric on the windows in a dining room.  I’m not sure I can use my old drapes  in the rooms downstairs, since the walls here are 9′ tall instead of 8′ at my old house.

So, that’s another project marked off our to do list!  Hope you enjoyed seeing this transformation, it sure is fun to see changes around here and really make this house our own.  Adding trim like this is not hugely expensive and such a great way to add character and charm. It definitely helps to have a handy husband too!  I’m not confident enough in my skills to take on big projects like this and that’s why I always did my beadboard wallpaper, but I love this look even better!

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

Related


Don't Miss a Post, join my list!

Filed Under: House Renovation 48 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Melanie says

    September 11, 2017 at 7:25 am

    Nice job!! Cannot wait to see how you decorate this room!

    Reply
  2. Rita C at Panoply says

    September 11, 2017 at 7:34 am

    Nice!

    Reply
  3. Kathy says

    September 11, 2017 at 7:37 am

    Looks great! Just curious, what is the total height of your beadboard with trim?

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      September 11, 2017 at 8:32 am

      Kathy, we went up 6′ tall on the height with the top trim. The ceilings are 9′.

  4. Barbara Hunnicutt Moore says

    September 11, 2017 at 8:03 am

    looks so great!!

    Reply
  5. Bonnie E says

    September 11, 2017 at 8:12 am

    Great job! Love!

    Reply
  6. Jan says

    September 11, 2017 at 8:17 am

    Just lovely. Good work, Mark!

    Reply
  7. Gilda says

    September 11, 2017 at 8:21 am

    Admittedly not as fun to see as when your dad did stuff for you!!!!! interesting post

    Reply
  8. Deanna Rabe says

    September 11, 2017 at 8:37 am

    I love how moulding completely changes the look and feel of a room!

    Reply
  9. Andrea G Corley says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:16 am

    Wow what an amazing difference. Makes the room look bigger! Is Mark for hire… haha

    Enjoy the raining day and be safe.
    A

    Reply
  10. Melissa says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:22 am

    Maybe you can take your of window treatments and add another piece of material or trim to the top or bottom to lengthen and add color/interest to them? Love how this room turned out!

    Reply
  11. Donna says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:25 am

    Amazing transformation! I love what you and Mark are doing to make your new house a home. You are both very talented people. Hope the storm has lessened in your area…

    Reply
  12. Stacey says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:34 am

    Looks fabulous! I think you picked the right man for the job. 😉

    Reply
  13. Celia says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:37 am

    Looking good Rhoda! Your finishing touches will be the icing on the cake!! What a great team you and Mark are!!
    Celia

    Reply
  14. Edith ( Penny) says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:39 am

    Hello Gorgeous Dining Room!! What a talented guy, Mark is!! We can hardly wait to see what you do next. I so adore grasscloth too?

    Reply
  15. Guerrina says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:02 am

    Beautiful work! Door frame moulding makes a huge impact. I did the same to the wide doorway between LR & DR and gives the illusion of taller ceilings!

    Reply
  16. Connie says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:14 am

    It sure it nice to have such a talented husband and one who likes to see things done right and takes time to accomplish what he wants. He is a keeper! LOL Can’t wait to see all your things in this new environment.

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      September 11, 2017 at 12:52 pm

      THanks, Connie, it sure is nice to have a guy to enjoys doing this and is good at it too!

  17. Anise Butler says

    September 11, 2017 at 11:19 am

    The dining room looks great. Your table and chairs fit perfectly in there, too.
    I’m curious about Mark’s shoes. They look very comfortable and I think my husband might like them.

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      September 11, 2017 at 12:52 pm

      Hi, Anise, those are Crocs and he loves them. I really like them too and he has a couple of pair. They are a canvas type fabric and very casual, but look great with jeans and shorts.

  18. Jennifer @ Decorated Chaos says

    September 11, 2017 at 11:39 am

    He did a great job, esp on those corners!

    Reply
  19. jeannette says

    September 11, 2017 at 11:40 am

    What a difference trim work makes! Turned out very nice and makes the house look so elegant. I’m sure you’re thrilled your hubby can do much of the work you both want done.

    Reply
  20. Carolekozak says

    September 11, 2017 at 11:58 am

    Oh wow what memories this conjures up for me. We just used ALL these tools. I know how hard that trim work is. We just did the same thing in our home and it is tedious work and he did a beautiful job so cudos to Mark. The only thing I saw a little differently was. When he was outside on his manly saw I remember my hubby made me hold up those long pieces of trim so I had to chuckle because you were overe there taking pics lol Can’t wait to see which color grass cloth you choose that is what’s next here for us as well

    Reply
    • Rhoda says

      September 11, 2017 at 12:53 pm

      HI, Carole! Oh fun for you too. He has a helper thing that holds his trim pieces so that’s what he used most of the time. I’m getting ready to order grasscloth so can’t wait to get this done too.

Newer Comments »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Thanks for stopping by! I’m Rhoda, from Atlanta, GA and I love decorating and DIY projects. Decorating a home doesn’t have to cost a fortune and I’ve spent years thrifting at antiques markets and yard sales, finding those treasures that make a home unique. I’m here to inspire and encourage other women to find their own inner creativity. Won’t you join me?

Click Here

Click Here

Email Series
How to Decorate in
Classic Timeless Style
.....without breaking the bank!

House Renovation Journey!

Our Paint Colors

Archives

Categories

Footer Widget Header2

Featured here:

Better Homes and Gardens
Atlanta Magazine
Better Homes and Gardens

Footer

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Partner

Copyright © 2023 · Southern Hospitality · Blog Design by Little Blue Deer
Privacy Policy

Get my FREE Email Series How to Decorate in Classic Timeless Style....without breaking the bank!
After years of decorating my own homes, I've learned a few tricks on how to create a classic home on a budget. Hope you'll join me!
Your information will *never* be shared or sold to a 3rd party.