a decision and some board and batten

thanks for the input on my small counter top dilemma. 

while the difference in wood doesn't bother me i have decided

to do bead board. i think the 1x4 would have shortened

the wall once we got the open shelving up and the whole purpose of doing

this was to create a feeling of more space.  kinda like

someone with short legs wearing a large cuffed pant, it shortens an already

short leg. or something like that.

while going back and forth on this decision i couldn't just sit idle so here's what i worked on

over the weekend.

a faux board and batten treatment.

try not to be distracted by the mess in the foreground and background.

our focus here are the two walls on each side of the

room opening.

to the left, just out of the picture is our front door.

so when you walk in the house the sitting room is on your left and the dining

on your right. after we opened up all this space

if left a very non-distinct entry. i wanted to do something that

defined the space and give us a place to hang

stuff.

this did the job. using mdf we just cut it to size and

put it up with a bit of glue and a nail gun.

i put it on the short wall just to the right of the door which you cannot

really see, the wall behind the door and to the left after walking in, just past

the sitting room.

after the mdf was attached i caulked it, primed it, and painted it with

a semi gloss ultra white, same as the trim.

also, don't mind the little boys wandering around aimlessly

wondering what mom is doing now.

i added some hooks for our coats and bags

and they will never come down because. . .  putting screws

into mdf? kind of a mess. at least for me. but they are in there

good!

it's certainly not perfect but i'm pretty happy with it. the mdf

was cheap and i was able to get all my cuts out of one sheet.

the horizontal pieces are 3.5 inches and the verticle pieces are

1.5 inches.

after it was nailed to the wall i applied putty and sanded. i found the mdf to be pretty hard to sand.

as a result it is not as smooth as i would like and those flaws really

show with a semi-gloss paint. i may try to go back later with my palm sander

 and smooth out the imperfections and repaint. but for now this will

be just fine.

i will be doing the same treatment in our hall bathroom (and those cuts have already been made out of the same sheet purchased for the entry) so i'll have

another chance to work out the kinks.

also, i hung this guy. little by little we

are replacing all the brass light fixtures in the house.

we can't afford to buy the fixtures i really want from barn light electric

so, for the entry, i settled for an outdoor light from lowes.

it works just fine. and, i hung it myself. that was a first for me. :)


think i'll link up at cottage instincts!