Raised panel wainscoting is a simple way to add elegant style and character to any home. This raised panel design comes together in about a day’s work, but looks like it belongs in an old-world manor or castle.
Raised panel wainscoting is a simple way to add elegant style and character to any home.
Raised panel wainscoting is a simple way to add elegant style and character to any home. It’s a great way to add elegance and character to your home. How do you know if raised panel wainscoting is right for your home?
Raised panel wainscoting is a simple way to add elegant style and character to any home. For instance, if you are looking for something unique, then this may be the perfect solution for you.
This raised panel design comes together in about a day’s work, but looks like it belongs in an old-world manor or castle.
This raised panel design comes together in about a day’s work, but looks like it belongs in an old-world manor or castle.
We used pine 1x10s for the frame, but you can use whatever width and type of wood you prefer. For this particular project, we chose to lay out each piece on the floor so we could get a feel for how wide it should be before cutting them down to size. This step is not necessary; you can make your own decisions based on what look you’re going for and what materials are available at your local home improvement store.
Cut the rails and stiles from 1×4 poplar, 1×6 poplar or 1×8 poplar.
First, cut the rails and stiles from 1×4 poplar, 1×6 poplar or 1×8 poplar. If you’re using a jigsaw, clamp a straightedge to the side of your workbench so that it extends beyond the table and rests against your work piece (this will help prevent slippage). Position the blade on top of your work piece, then slide it along until all four sides are equal in length. If you have a miter saw with an adjustable stop block (see below), use that instead to make sure each piece matches up perfectly when you cut them all at once.
Once they’re cut, measure up from the floor and mark where each wall stud center is at 36 inches apart–this is where we want our rail screws/nailers to go through into our walls so there won’t be any gaps between panels if we do not install them evenly spaced apart like above! Now drill holes for these screws using an appropriately sized bit; if you find yourself having trouble holding onto smaller pieces without getting sore hands after just 20 minutes of working on this project then try using pliers instead of clamps since their grip will provide more force than fingers alone can offer.
Measure up from the floor and mark the wall stud centers at 36 inches on all of the walls you wish to install panels on.
Step 1: Measure up from the floor and mark the wall stud centers at 36 inches on all of the walls you wish to install panels on.
In order to create raised panels, you will need to know where your wall studs are located. If you have never done this before, use a stud finder or magnetic level with a bubble that shows how far out of plumb (not straight) something is. Place it against each vertical wall surface in turn and move around until it has found a spot where it goes off scale for more than half an hour. This is usually close enough for our purposes! Mark those locations with pencil along with each corner of the room’s width and length measurements which will tell us where our panel joints should go later.
Next, measure in from each corner of the room the width of one stile and mark this location on the wall.
Next, measure in from each corner of the room the width of one stile and mark this location on the wall. Next, mark all stud centers at 36 inches on all walls you wish to install panels. The height of these marks will be the top rail height (39-1/2 inches) and bottom rail height (31 inches). Cut pieces of 3/4-inch plywood to fit between each pair of vertical stiles as well as top horizontal rails using a miter saw or skill saw.
These marks will be used to locate each pair of stiles that frame a panel.
These marks will be used to locate each pair of stiles that frame a panel. The measurements should be at the same height on all walls.
- Measure in from the corner of each room the width of one stile, and draw a line at this measurement (see photo). If you’re working with 4x4s, for example, this distance should be about 16″. There will be a horizontal line between two tall vertical lines; that’s what you want.
Cut pieces of 3/4-inch plywood to fit between each pair of vertical stiles as well as top horizontal rails. This will create “prefinished” plywood panels that can be installed quickly using brad nails or construction adhesive.
Cut pieces of 3/4-inch plywood to fit between each pair of vertical stiles as well as top horizontal rails. This will create “prefinished” plywood panels that can be installed quickly using brad nails or construction adhesive.
Measure the width and height of your panel, then measure the depth at its center point (your measurements may vary based on whether you have a set of stairs). Cut the plywood to fit those dimensions with enough overhang on all sides so it will cover your existing wall structure and hide any gaps between boards.
Use brad nails or construction adhesive to hold your panels in place once they’re cut out from a matching finish for your flooring material; plan on putting three or four nails into each stile piece, depending on how thick your materials are or how wide apart they sit on top railings. Make sure you put at least one nail into each corner where two edges meet up with one another when looking down upon them face-on, due to wood not having great strength along those points otherwise.
Measure from an end of a stile at each corner and make a line marking where your next two stiles will go for your first raised panel.
- Measure from an end of a stile at each corner and make a line marking where your next two stiles will go for your first raised panel.
- Mark the top line on each of the three walls, and measure from this mark to find where to place your next two stiles in order to make another raised panel, then repeat this process until you reach the end of the room (or hallway).
Conclusion
Use these instructions to make your own raised panel. After that you can use your imagination to come up with more creative ways of decorating your room.
