Creating a Modern Wood Accent Wall

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Before we dive into all the fun details of this modern wood accent wall, there’s something I need to say. I officially completed a DIY woodworking project on my own beginning to end. If you’re new here or hearing this for the first time, there’s a back story to this. We recently flipped our guest bathroom in 33 days for the One Room Challenge. It was an amazing experience but it left us exhausted. Well, that is until I decided to enter the Refresh Your Walls Blogger Challenge by HomeRight just days after completing the bathroom.

But there was a catch. Ryan had already fully committed to not starting another home project until after the holidays a.k.a. 2019. So, what do I do? I announce to my Instagram buddies I’m going to learn how to use wood working tools and complete this project 100% on my own from start to finish. Because if you say it on Instagram, it has to happen, right? So, now you know why I’m so thrilled to say I completed this project on my own, it turned out amazing and you can do it too!

 * HomeRight and Clare sponsored this post but all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog and projects like this possible!

I decided to focus on Oliver’s bedroom since we’re about to transition him to a big boy room in the coming months. But I knew I couldn’t just paint a wall. It had to be a little more special than that. That’s when I spotted a modern wall with wood detail on the front cover of Do It Yourself Magazine and knew that’s what I wanted to try.

I also already knew the exact paint color I wanted to use: Current Mood by Clare. It’s a moody green that’s full of all kinds of perfection when it comes to a bold wall. I couldn’t think of a better color for a little boy’s room. For the remaining walls in the bedroom, I went with Whipped (also by Clare). It’s the same color we used in our guest bathroom. It’s a creamy white that flows beautifully with the moody green.

Now, let’s chat about this wall. I’m a firm believer in not re-inventing the wheel and found Lindi of Love Create Celebrate’s tutorial on how to build this type of wall.  With her tutorial in hand, I jumped right in! The only difference in our methods was how and when I painted. Which I’m so excited to share about because it saved me so much time on this project!

Before even thinking about attaching the MDF boards to the wall, I decided to paint the wall first. Want to know a little secret? I didn’t even use a paint tray. I used HomeRight’s Paintstick E-Z Twist which allowed me to suck the paint into the handle of the roller directly from the can. Then with a simple twist of the handle, the paint moved from the handle to the roller.

This meant no running back to reload on paint every few strokes and it ended up covering an 8-ft x 8-ft  area before reloading.  You can purchase it at Lowe’s Home Improvement which can be found on a wire rack next to the paint counter (or here on Amazon). Here’s a quick video of me showing you how to use it!

Next up I decided to use my HomeRight Super Finish Max Paint Sprayer to go ahead and paint all of the MDF boards. Just in case you’re wanting to try this in your home, I used a table saw to rip down a large piece of MDF board down to 1 inch sections (the MDF board itself was 1/2 an inch thick). After all the painting was done, all I had left to do was measure, cut, and attach the MDF strips to the wall with a brad nailer.

I did end up filling in the nail holes with wood putty, caulking all of the seams and touching those areas up with paint to create a flawless finish. But, my friends, it was all done within a weekend as Oliver’s room went through a complete transformation. Here’s what his room looked like when moved into our home and what it looks like now with this wall refresh. 

And then there’s a little something that brings me so much joy. From Oliver’s playroom, as you enter the hallway, you get an amazing view of the new accent wall while getting a view other parts of our home. You can see first hand how our home is coming to together.

This budget friendly project ended up having a huge impact on this room where it doesn’t even feel like the same space. And to say I’m proud is an understatement. Ryan did end up offering help, he even cut a piece of wood, but I kindly declined. I wanted to prove it to myself that I could do it and I did! I want to encourage you to try something new this week in your home. Step out of your comfort zone and let’s do this together while transforming our homes by completing one project at a time!

Thank you to HomeRight for inviting me to participate in their Refresh Your Walls Blogger Challenge and to Clare for providing the gorgeous paint!

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