I’m FINALLY ready to reveal the bead board treatment we did last week in the upstairs bathroom. It took us awhile to compete all the finishing work (painting, new outlet covers, etc…). So before I show you the after, let’s take a look at the before.

We didn’t change anything except for adding the wall treatment. First the chair rail went up.

This is a miter box. It costs about $8 at a home improvement store. You don’t need a fancy miter saw to install chair rail, and this box makes it easy. Visualization of how the pieces fit together can be a little complicated, but you’ll get the hang of it. Fortunately the hubbs did most of the sawing, but I’m confident if left to my own devices I would have figured it out.

Once we cut the pieces, we installed them by using a liquid nails adhesive and small brads.

We don’t have a finish nailer (I’m quietly shedding a tear…), so I just hammered small brads in most of the way.

Then I used a nail punch to push it below the surface. Don’t try to do this with a hammer alone, you will dent your molding! Not that I know anything about that…errrr…

I spackled all the holes, and we proceeded to the paneling. Now I thought bead board would be an easy intro into wall treatments because I’ve used it before in the kitchen. It turned out to be a little more difficult than I expected because of all the obstacles. We had to cut around the window, wall unit, mirror, vanity, etc…

Huge props to my super handy hubby, who despite trying to hide from me…

Ended up doing a lot of the measuring and cutting. So here’s the paneling all installed (using the liquid nails and brads).

It looks pretty nice already, but you can’t see the nail holes and smudges in this picture. My goal was to paint the paneling AND trim to create a bright white cohesive look. But before painting, I caulked around every edge. I like to use the caulk in the squeezable tube because I find I have better control than if I use a caulk gun.

Now is a good time for the DIY pledge. Repeat after me: caulk is my friend, it will hide imperfections and make me look like a pro. If I do not use it in wet areas, I will end up with mold. And mold is bad.

After the caulk set overnight, I carefully rolled slapped up a few coats of Glidden’s off-the-shelf eggshell white, and here’s the finished bathroom:

So, what do you think? I’m really pleased with the results. It’s not perfect of course, but it’s definitely an improvement on our boring builder grade bathroom. Next I think I’ll tackle some board and batten!


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28 Responses

  5. Jenn

    I think this look great! I’m always amazing at how a little bead board can completely make over a room.

    Reply
  12. Lisa

    Love the bathroom!!! The beadboard really made your bathroom color stand out! Found your blog from the paint party. Thanks for sharing over there.

    Reply
    • Lovely Crafty Home

      The color on the walls or the beadboard? The wall color is Moody Blue by Sherwin Williams. I believe the paint color on the beadboard is an off the shelf white, but I can’t remember which one I used. It’s something on hand that I had that I touch up trim work with so it’s a bit glossy. Hope that helps!

      Reply
  16. Tania @ Carnoustie Lane

    Hi, I’m a first time visitor and love your blog and projects. I am planning the same beadboard in my powder room and have a question: Did you replace the baseboard? How did you accommodate for the beadboard at the baseboard? Thanks!

    Tania

    Reply
  19. Renu By Leviton

    [...] been in the house. Some of them I’ve changed to match structural elements, like the craftsman style plate in my bathroom and the tile plates on my kitchen [...]

    Reply
  21. Brandy

    Hi, I love your remodel. I am dying to know where did you get your lightswitch and outlet covers from? Those are so elegant and beautiful. I’m doing a remodel in beadboard in my powder room and am struggling to figure out how to make the outlets blend nicely. Thanks!

    Reply
  22. Gemma

    What type of beadboard did you use? Wood, composite or vinyl? Also, did you put it on plaster walls?

    Reply
    • Rachael Evans

      It’s the fiberboard/mdf style, comes in 4×8 sheets at Home Depot. My walls are all drywall, but I don’t see why you couldn’t put it on plaster. Just make sure you get an adhesive meant for that.

      Reply
  23. Stacy

    I love your bathroom! I have been telling my husband we need to do it to ours downstairs. Was it hard to get around the plumbing of the toilet?? We have a pedestal sink… I am afraid it will be hard to put on without taking out the toilet and sink first :(

    Reply

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