Easy How To Build a Mid Century Modern Accent Wall

I love a good accent wall! Did you know you can change the look of an entire room by just adding some boards and paint to the wall? So simple. Coming at you this week with another super easy wall treatment tutorial. This one has more of a Mid Century Modern feel to it, but really could be used in many spaces. I chose it as an accent wall in my master bedroom makeover. And I love it!

A wood accent wall can really elevate a space and give it that custom and fresh look. I love the look of a modern accent wall and have incorporated them in several areas of my home. Here’s a great post for more accent wall ideas.

Easy How to Build a Mid Century Modern Accent Wall

Wood Needed for MCM Accent Wall:

Choose ONE of these three options:

28-1x2x8 pine wood (This option will be a little more costly, but the best option if you don’t have a table saw or circular saw)

5-1x5x10 pine wood (This is probably going to be the most affordable option)

1 sheet of 3/4″ MDF or plywood (Depending on the price of wood, this may be more affordable than the 1×5 option)

Materials Needed:

1 1/4″ nail gun nails

Wood Filler

Paint or Stain

Polyurethane (Optional)

Tools Needed:

Miter Saw

Table Saw (Optional)

Nail Gun

Orbital Sander (Or a sandpaper block)

Level

Tape Measure

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Measure:

I knew I wanted my wood slats accent wall to center around my new mid century modern platform bed I recently built. Therefore, my first step was finding the center of the wall. This is found by measuring the full length of the wall and dividing by two. Mark this spot on your wall. Next, I measured the length of my headboard to determine the width of my accent wall; knowing I wanted to add a couple inches on both sides. All said and done, my headboard was 76 inches, so I chose 78 inches for my accent wall. Next, I divided that by two in order to figure out how far to take my accent wall on both sides of the center of my wall….from the center of the wall I measured 39 inches on both sides and, using a level to keep my lines straight, I marked with painter’s tape….

Paint:

I painted a couple coats of Sherwin Williams Shade Grown (a deep green color) in between my tape lines to form a color block on the wall.

Rip and Cut Boards:

For my wood slat accent wall, I decided to go with 1.5 inch wide boards (1×2’s) cut at 65 inches long. Because I had a lot of scrap wood leftover, I decided to use that and save some money. So, I took scrap 1×5’s and ripped them down to a width of 1.5 inches, using my table saw. If you don’t have a table saw, no worries, just pick up 1×2’s and you’ll end up with the same size boards that I used. Another idea (if you have a table saw) is to rip 1.5″ wide strips from a 3/4″ sheet of plywood or MDF board. This will probably save you some money. You’ll need 28 1.5″ wide strips for the same size wooden slat accent wall that I used.

Note: If you’re going to use 1×5 boards (like I used and then ripped to the width I needed), I recommend going with 10 foot boards. You’ll be able to get 6 strips out of just one board. How? A 1×5 is 4.5″ in width, so 4.5 (width of 1×5) divided by 1.5 (width needed for accent wall strips) equals 3 strips. You’ll then cut those 3 strips down to 60″…you can get two 60″ long strips from a 10 foot board. Which in turn gives you 6 strips per 1x5x10 for your accent wall. If you have a table saw or access to a table saw, this is a very cost-effective way of doing this project.

Once you have the right width of strips, you’re ready to make your cuts. Cut each strip to 60 inches.

Build the Accent Wall:

Once you’ve finished all of your cuts, you’re ready to move the project inside to the color block wall….

First step in this project is finding the center of your color block. This is where you will place your first strip (Be sure to use a level along the edge of your strip to ensure that it is straight). Use a nail gun to attach….

I attached my first board starting at the bottom of the wall, so my next board will be from the top of the wall and then back to the bottom and so on, working my way to the end of the wall…

Note: To get the correct spacing between each strip, use a strip as a spacer next to the board already attached and nail gun the next board in….

I found it helpful to nail gun one nail in the middle of my strip, remove the spacer, straighten the strip with the level and nail gun along the strip multiple times, once straight.

Once you’ve come to the end of the wall, go back to the middle and work your way across in the other direction to the other end of the wall; alternating once again between bottom of wall and top of wall. When finished, it will look like this….

PAINT (OR STAIN) ACCENT WALL STRIPS:

Before you paint, you’ll want to fill in all of your nail holes with wood filler, if they’re noticeable. Sand the wood filler smooth, once dry. And now you’re ready to paint! Or you could stain the boards. I chose to paint mine the same color as my background color block wall and went for more of a monochromatic look. After two coats of paint, here’s the end result….

Perfect! Exactly what I was looking for! And with my bed….I love it!!

And a look at it with that beautiful statement ceiling I just finished a couple weeks ago (Full Tutorial here)….

Check out the bottom of this post for links to all of the master bedroom accessories or similar.

Love the bed and want to build it!? Here’s the link!! My newly built, very modern nightstands are a great addition to our platform bed too. I share how to build these nightstands in this post.

FAQ’s for Accent Wall Ideas

Should an accent wall be darker or lighter than the other walls?

You really want this wall to pop, so going with a darker color will achieve that wow factor! It will provide a great contrast to the other walls and will draw the eye to it. If you want to stay in the safe zone, and not venture too far out of your comfort zone, paint the accent wall the same color as the other walls, but go with two or three shades lighter.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with going with a completely different color, you’ll just want to make sure it complements the other walls color. A good rule of thumb for this is to go with a color that is either right next to it on the color wheel or directly across from it. Veering too far away from those two points on the color wheel can get very tricky and will tend to not be very appealing to the eye.

Are wood slat accent walls trendy?

The short answer is yes. The dimensional slat walls like the one in this post does lend itself to being more trendy. However, it’s very much on trend right now, so I say go for it! Since you’re only attaching the boards to one wall and often times just a section of that wall, if you choose to remove them some day, it will not be a hard feat. So, yes, someday wood slat walls could very well become a thing of the past. But they’re fun and easy to install. They add dimension and character to a room. And the possibilities of design are endless.

Will an accent wall make my room feel smaller?

Actually quite the contrary. Adding an accent wall will make a room feel bigger. Accent walls bring in an added texture and detail. They break up the monotony of the four walls and give the appearance and feel of a larger space. Think of it like an accent rug. An accent rug adds detail and grounds a space, also giving the room an air of feeling larger.

If you’re wanting to add more detail and dimension to a room, you’re ready for an accent wall. But if you’re still not sure which wall or what design you want to go with, I’m here to help! Drop your question in the comments below and let’s come up with a plan together. I love helping you turn these building plans into something tangible. You never know what you’re capable of until you try! You’ve got this! Be creative, have fun with it and think outside the box.

Until next week,