• Home
  • Projects
    • Room Makeovers
    • DIY Home Improvements
    • Decorating Ideas
    • Organization
    • Furniture Makeovers
    • Crafts
  • Holidays
    • Winter
    • Spring
    • Summer
    • Fall
  • Printables
  • Recipes

How to Nest for Less™

How to Create a Plank Wall

in DIY: Build It on

Sharing is caring!

355 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet

Are you looking to add a unique touch to the walls of your home? You could make a bold statement by installing a plank wall. Keep reading to learn how you can create a plank wall in your home!

How to install a planked wall poster.
Table Of Contents
  1. Wood Plank Wall
  2. Supplies Needed for Plank Wall
  3. How to Create A Wood Plank Wall
    • 1. Mark the Studs
    • 2. Create A Diagram
    • 3. Choose the Layout
    • 3. Spacing
    • 4. Outlets
    • 5. Make Adjustments
  4. Painting A Wood Plank Wall
    • Prep the Plank Wall
    • Prime the Plank Wall
    • Paint
    • Caulking the Edges
  5. Completed Plank Wall

Wood Plank Wall

Wood plank walls have become increasingly popular in recent years due to their ability to instantly transform any room and add a rustic charm. Not only are they an affordable DIY project, but they’re also stylish and can be customized to fit any home décor.

Supplies Needed for Plank Wall

1×4 or 1×6 boards (but you could use reclaimed wood or barn wood)

saw (we used a table saw & jig saw)

nail gun

stud finder

electrical spacers

level

white paint

caulk

How to Create A Wood Plank Wall

1. Mark the Studs

Using a permanent marker, make 4-5 markings from the floor to the ceiling for each stud.

Man on a ladder marking the studs for the plank wall.

2. Create A Diagram

On a piece of paper, diagram your plank wall project. Write everything on the paper– wall measurements, stud locations, etc.

3. Choose the Layout

Take a look at where your studs are placed, and map out the location of your boards. We wanted to make sure every board hit at least two studs so it would be tightly secured to the wall.

We actually ended up with doing a pattern of 4 rows (seen below) with 1×6 boards.

Begin with the top left corner of the room and work your way across row by row.

Numbers on the plank wall for the math calculations.

Use your level every so often to stay in a straight line as not all walls are even and level.

3. Spacing

For spacing in between boards, you can use a coin like a penny or nickel.

We just eyed it. But I actually did a bigger space on all sides of each board, probably about 1/2 inch. This was mainly to hide the imperfections of the board edges and helped keep my rows level.

4. Outlets

Use a jigsaw to make a cut out in the board for the outlet. Attach the board to the wall.

Then, use electrical spacers to bring out the outlets. Make sure you buy longer screws if you’re doing this step!

A bag full of spacers on the floor with a plank.
Putting the plank around an electrical outlet.

5. Make Adjustments

Then, continue to the bottom of the wall with your wide planks. We opted not to take the baseboards off the wall, instead we carried the plank wall to the baseboard. Also, we ended up using 1×4 boards at the very bottom row so we didn’t have to rip a 1×6.

The planked wall completed in girls bedroom.

Painting A Wood Plank Wall

Prep the Plank Wall

First, fill the nail holes.

Prime the Plank Wall

After you’ve waited the recommended time after filling the nail holes, prime the wall. This will keep the wood from seeping through the paint.

Painting the planked wall white.

Paint

Once the primer has fully dried, paint the plank wall with interior paint. Because we primed the walls, we only needed one coat of paint.

Caulking the Edges

If you want you can caulk the edges, wait until you’re ready to paint the other three walls.

Completed Plank Wall

And after a day’s work Ellie’s bedroom has made a huge transformation. I’m loving the white plank walls against the iron frame beds. And that bedding… swoon!

Two wrought iron beds in front of white planked wall.

I’m thinking a pale teal for Ellie’s bedroom? And I need some pops of color above the beds. Oh, and I’m looking for a new nightstand and dresser to paint. Yeah, still lots to do.

Up close picture of the white planked wall.
White plank wall girls bedroom with a banner on the wall.

SEE THE ENTIRE BEDROOM MAKEOVER HERE!

  • DIY Fire Pit – How to Build a Patio Fire Pit
  • Fall DIY Wood Sign
  • How to Make Shiplap Walls and Shelves
  • Adding Shiplap to Built Ins
  • Easy Board and Batten Tutorial
  • DIY Kitchen Platter Rack
popular-projects
« What’s For Lunch?
DIY Vinyl Lettering Painted Sign »
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

We love to conquer DIY, home improvement projects, and room makeovers. We're not experts; we just try to design on a dime.

Follow us as we try to update our latest house one project at a time. Check out our archives for over 1,000 DIY and home-related projects. Enjoy! Read More…

ARCHIVES

Copyright Policy

All text and images on this site are copyright of How to Nest for Less, LLC. Unless otherwise noted, you may not use this content without written permission.

This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content.

The owner(s) of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner(s) of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers’ own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.

How to Nest for Less is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Privacy

Copyright © 2025 · glam theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2025 · Glam Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

355 shares