Transform Your Space with a DIY Slat Wall Accent Wall

My friend was doing a quick DIY Slat Wall project in her home and asked if I could help! OF COURSE I SAID YES! Being a work from home mom is so rewarding and so fun, but it absolutely can get lonely. When friends ask for help with their projects I always say yes. Not only do I get to hang out with my friends and my kids get to play with their friends. But I also get the privilege of having DIY be my job, so when we are doing projects, I am working! Its a win-win!

This is not the only time I have done a slat wall project. I did it in my kitchen HERE and in my pantry HERE. Check those projects out too! It is a simple but very impactful project! The only tools you need is a nail gun, miter saw, and paint supplies.

DIY Slat Wall Supplies

DIY Slat Wall Step 1: Prep the room and paint

We are painting the whole room black, so we taped everything off. Ceiling, baseboards, corners, windows. All of it. We then covered the floor with THIS painters tape and plastic in one. Tape it on and then the plastic pulls out and you can cover the carpets.

Because we are painting the entire room, we brought out the big guns! My 18 inch paint rollers.

Whenever you paint black (or other dark colors), you will need to do a couple coats. Also, if you paint back and forth in multiple directions, and NOT load your roller too much, it helps avoid lines in the walls.

We did 2 coats on all the walls and then let that dry!

Step 2: Cut and Stain the boards.

My friends walls are 9 feet. It is hard to find 1×2 that are longer than 8 feet. So we got 1×4 that were 10 feet and cut them in half the long way. If you do this you will need a table saw. But depending on your space you may be able to just get 1×2.

We then measured the walls and cut the slats to size. Once everything was the correct size, we stained them all. We used this stain and polyurethane in one.

Because we nailed them on the wall, we only stained the sides and fronts of each piece.

Step 3: Install the boards for your DIY Slat Wall

We are installing the boards on a small portion of the wall to act as an accent wall. The first board was installed in the middle of the wall. We measured the wall and found the center, and installed the first board there. To make sure each slat was perfectly spaced, we took a scrap piece of the same trim and turned it on its side, and used it as a guide. Sliding the scrap piece up and down the first pice as we secured the second piece in place next to it. Then repeat that until you have all the boards you want up.