Design Question #1: Adding a Board & Batten Feature Wall
Thank you so much for the fantastic questions you have been sending! It’s been so lovely to focus on providing helpful resources during the quarantine. Below is a question I received from Sandy regarding adding a board and batten feature wall to her foyer.
Hi Heather -
First of, thank you for doing this. Such a thoughtful idea and donating money to such a great cause. I'll be sure to donate as well :)
For my foyer (15 ft long and 9 ft high), I plan to do vertical board and batten white. Something similar to one of the two pics below (still deciding on the two and how far apart to have the boards). Do you have any recommendations? Can I just do the main wall or should I do all sides? There is not a lot of wall space on the other sides, so wasn't sure. The ceiling will have wallpaper.
Thanks, Sandy
Hi Sandy! This is a great question! Creating a board and batten feature wall is a great (and inexpensive!) way to make a big impact. I absolutely love the way it modernizes and elevates a standard builder grade space.
Design: Heather DiSabella Interior Design, Photography: Reema Desai Photography
Here is a photo of Sandy’s foyer that she included in her email.
To answer [Sandy’s] question(s): My recommendation is to panel the main wall only. Paneling the adjacent and opposite wall won't translate in an impact-ful way. The paneling will get lost in those small niches and require lots of unnecessary cutting for the contractor which adds up to more in labor costs (no thanks!). By applying the paneling to the main wall only you are essentially creating a beautiful feature wall in the space.
Design: House Seven Design
For the design of the paneling: I'm partial to including the horizontal band to the design to break up height. I would locate this horizontal band at the same height as your door handle so it can serve the dual purpose of protecting the wall. For the spacing width, my recommendation is to split up the wall into 5 equal parts so they will be roughly 3'-0" wide each. This will give you some nicely sized panels to display art within. Or alternatively, you could use large scale artwork and mount over the paneling for a modern look.
Design: Studio McGee
You mentioned that you want to add wallpaper to the ceiling too - great idea! I say go for it! Assuming this wallpaper will have a pattern, I would recommend keeping the paneling very simple, ie. no fussy molding.
One note about the materials: ask your contractor to use MDF instead of standard 2x4's. You will get crisper, sharper edges with MDF.
Lastly, after looking at your photos, I'd love to see you update those pendants to something with a more modern look to compliment your board and batten design. Perhaps something like this or this.
Design: Heather Wilson
Sandy, thank you so much for your question!
