Beadboard in the dining room.

BACKSPLASH: BEFORE

BACKSPLASH: AFTER

My dad did this project for me. I hope he knows how grateful I am. I couldn't be happier. He put up with me and my screaming kids, not to mention made do with all the ghetto tools we had or didn't have that we did need. Thanks Dad. I love it.

The cost breakdown went as follows:

6, 4' x 8' sheets of beadboard paneling ($19.99 at Home Depot, $24.99 at Lowes)
2, 14' x 2 1/4" molding (I used the stuff typically used for baseboards)
3 tubes of liquid nails construction adhesive
3 tubes of white paintable caulk
3 packages of jigsaw blades
Total spent was $146.
I had lots of chair rail left over though, because they didn't have the length I needed to allow for no seams on my big wall. There's just enough beadboard left over for some fun scraps to play with. I already had the while gloss paint which is the same as my baseboards, so painting was easy.

The process went like this:
measure room size
determine height for beadboard (don't forget to allow extra inches of chair rail)
purchase supplies (I found a sheet that was damaged so the guy took off 5 bucks for me)
cut paneling (I had HD do this for me...free service)
mark and make cuts for outlets
apply liquid nail to the back of the paneling
stick it on the wall, ensuring it's level
use a finish nailer to nail in the grooves into a stud
repeat until finished
caulk all nail holes and seams
cut and miter chair rail
glue and nail it to the wall
caulk holes and seams
...then finally paint. (I tried to pre paint, and it doesn't work, so save yourself a step and wait)


This was a scary project to attempt at first, but now that I've seen my dad install it, I'm confident I could do err..boss this project on my own (with the right tools this time, of course).


I love that it added more contrast to my walls and cabinets which are a little closer in color than I would have liked. The white is fresh and clean, just how I like it.


Thanks again Dad for doing all the work, and thanks to my husband who paid for it. Love you both.

This was a re-post from July 2010.