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I finally got the shiplap put up above our vanity and I am in L.O.V.E. I have been trying to get it done for about a month. We have only lived in our new house two months but the projects have been planned for a loooooong time! From the second we picked our floor plan, the project list started. This was really an easy weekend project that made a big impact. We did this same type of “shiplap” in our townhouse going to the basement. The method we use is way cheaper than traditional shiplap. I think it looks just as good too!

Mr. Whitelane and I started out by going to Lowe’s to get some plywood underlayment board. It comes in 4’ by 8’ sheets for $14.48. Then we had Lowe’s cut the board into six-inch strips. They will do straight cuts for free. So, take advantage of that! I was able to get five stripes that were six inches. There was one more strip that came out of the sheet but it was a little less than six inches because of the saw blade. When you make cuts, you lose a little of your board each time due to the width of the blade. After I had my six-inch stripes, I had them cut the boards to the length I need to go across my vanity.

Now that we had our strips, we loaded them up and got to work. NOT! We went home, unloaded them to the garage, and that is where the boards sat for a month. Each weekend we had something come up and it did not get done. I finally got tired of looking at those boards. I decided that we would get it done this past weekend, no matter what! It is a miracle! It actually got done between our kid’s football and soccer games.

Before we started, I took a sander to the all the edges of the six-inch strips. The edges can be a little rough after they are cut. Just to be sure, I like to sand all around the boards to make it smooth. Mr. Whitelane got our little one down for a nap, while I quickly gave the boards a sanding. Now we were ready to nail them up. In most cases, your ceiling is not level. Make sure the first board you put at the top of your wall is level. There may be a gap between certain spots of the board and your ceiling. That’s okay because caulk will hide any gaps.

After the first board is level, things go pretty quick. I used nickels to space between each board to give that small line. I love using my Ryobi Power Strike cordless nail gun. It is so simple and no cords get in the way. We used a jigsaw to cut around our electrical boxes and outlet. It is not perfect but caulk is a lifesaver!

When we got all our boards up, I went back and filled the nail holes with spackle. I then used a lot of caulk to fill and smooth all my gaps. I used to hate caulking because of how messy it got. Mr. Whitelane then introduced me to the best invention ever. A caulk tool makes the perfect smooth lines with half the mess. I love how perfect and easy it is to use. You really need to try one for your next project. It’s a game changer!

Now that everything was spackled and caulked, I let it dry overnight. I then used a foam roller to put on four coats of Sherwin Williams “High Reflective White.” Another great trick I like to use in between painting is to put your roller in a plastic bag in the fridge. Keeping the roller in the fridge stops the paint from drying out. You also don’t have to rinse it out each time. Just grab it out of the fridge and start painting again. When you are done with all your coats, you can trash it or rinse it out.

I put back up my vanity lights and hung my mirrors. Another project marked off the list for this house! I also found the cutest hand towels and soap pump at Target.

The shiplap looks so good with the barn door we got hung!