How to Make a Beautiful Grid Accent Wall
How to make a beautiful grid accent wall? Do you love a beautiful accent wall as much as I do? We have a perfect guest bedroom. It is a great size with a walk in closet and adjoining bathroom. I love this space so much and wanted to make it a little more exciting with an accent wall.
I don’t have a headboard for the bed so creating a beautiful accent wall will serve as a headboard plus make the room more interesting and pretty.
How to Make a Beautiful Grid Accent Wall
We have created shiplap, board and batten accent walls but never a grid wall. I was excited to create something new. The guest bedroom will be the perfect place for a grid wall.
- Step 1 Measure the wall
- Step 2 Decide on the size of grids you want
- Step 3 Do some figuring to find board placement.
- Step 4 Find the studs in the wall so you know where to nail.
I wanted the grids to be equal size and a little smaller. I didn’t want a board going up the middle of the wall. That would divide the wall in half which wasn’t the look I was after. So find the middle of the wall and work your way out.
Creating the grids takes a little figuring.
- Step 5 The easiest way to start is to frame the wall. We left the baseboard on because it is the same style as the wood we are adding. Measure the length for the 2 vertical pieces.
- Step 6 Install the 2 vertical pieces. Nailing to the studs and using liquid nails
- Step 7 Measure, cut and add the top horizontal piece.
You have a framed wall that is ready for the grids.
Figuring Out the Grid Size (Involves Math)
I decided to have a 5 x 5 grid. Once we knew how many we wanted we figured out where the boards go.
There is a lot of flexibility to a grid wall. The grid can be small or as big as you’d like. I consider this one to be a little smaller. Here’s an example of a grid wall we help create that has larger grids.
Figuring out the Vertical Boards for the Grid
I wanted the vertical piece to be one piece so those are the ones I installed first.
To create five squares it required four boards. We were able to purchase pieces from Home Depot that were long enough so we didn’t need to piece them together. This is a option that would work for a grid wall.
We used the same 3 1/2″ mdf trim board for the horizontal and vertical boards. To figure out the spacing we take the total width of the opening inside the frame.
Minus the width of the 4 boards we’re going to install
Divide by how many openings we want.
Our wall is 153″ wide by 120″ tall. To figure out the vertical board placement
153″ – 7″ (2 3 1/2″ mdf trims framing the wall) = 146″ (interior space remaining)
146″ – 14″ (4 3 1/2″ verticals in the middle) = 132″
132″ divided by 5 openings = 26.4 inch horizontal openings
This will give you the size of the openings and where to nail the vertical boards.
- Step 8 After figuring things out and cutting your boards we alway put them in place with out nailing just to double check our measurements.
- Step 9 When you have confirmed they are in the right place and it all looks good begin installation. Nailing to studs and using liquid nails.
Installing the Vertical Boards
Cut the boards to size. Because nothing in our house is square we needed to check the measurement for each board.
If you’re super lucky you’ll find studs to nail too. Chances are you wont hit studs for each board. So secure them with liquid nails. You will run it up the back of the board then nail on an angle to adhere to the wall. Use a long level to make sure its running straight.
After all four vertical boards are installed its time to install the horizontal boards.
Installing the Horizontal Board for the Grid
These are going to be cut in pieces which makes things a little easier to keep straight.
Follow the same steps to figure out the spacing as above. Measure, do a little math and get the spacing.
Because the studs in the wall are running vertical you will probably hit a stud at least once. We still used liquid nails for added security.
- Step 9 Measure each horizontal piece
- Step 10 Cut and install the piece
- Step 11 Repeat until all horizontal boards are in place.
This is an easy step. Measure, cut and install.
Caulking, Sanding and Painting
- Step 12 Sand the joints if you’d like a smoother finish
- Step 12 Caulk all the seams and joints of the grid wall
A grid wall does require a fair bit of caulking. We caulked down the side of the wall then around each piece of wood that was installed.
You can sand each joint if you want a smoother look. I wanted it to be a little more rustic and square so I didn’t sand it smooth.
We did caulk each joint to get the custom look I am after.
After the caulking dried it was time to paint.
Painting the Grid Accent Wall
- Step 13 Paint the grid accent wall
I wanted the grid wall to be the same color as the previously painted walls so I didn’t need to pre paint the trim boards before installation.
I used my good quality paint brush to get along the edges then rolled the rest. My new favorite paint brush is Stinger Brush. It is worth the investment
I also painted the baseboard just on this grid accent wall. Leaving it white doesn’t look right. Baseboards aren’t the funnest to paint against carpet but I was careful and took my time to avoid any disasters.
How to Make a Beautiful Grid Accent Wall
Creating a grid accent wall is a fun and easier diy project. It doesn’t require a lot of materials nor take too much time.
If it seems like there are a lot of steps don’t worry you can knock those out in a real hurry.
Have fun making and creating a beautiful grid accent wall.
Decor to the Door
Be sure to check out the fun products available at Decor to the Door. There is bound to be something you’d love and would look beautiful with your new grid accent wall.