High End Wall on a DIY Budget

6 Materials
$40
2 Days
Easy

How to transform a wall, and a room, with inexpensive wood lath!

Yeah, I can't leave well enough alone. Good enough is never enough for me. Take our guest bath.... so so. It never felt done or right. Suddenly it hit me, a great wall idea, but all my material options were too expensive.

Alas, never fear. That means it's time to get creative. Enter wood lath. So for under forty bucks, I transformed a room like mad.


This bathroom is hardly ever used for a shower if you're concerned about the wood; it's been used maybe all of six times and won't be for years, so lath will be a-ok. But hey, this idea is great for any room in the house!

Sure, lath is tricky. It's wonky, it's bowed, it's not consistent. It's also rough and tumble. But! It's a budget saver and it actually looks great without veering into design styles I didn't want to veer into.


First I stained it with a mix of Golden Mahogany and paint thinner.


Be sure to come by my blog for the great story of how I revealed this to my unsuspecting husband over at Flipping the Flip!

Next, tacking it to the wall time. I did not plan the vertical seams but I did want an eighth of an inch between each horizontal seam. Easiest, most consistent way to get that? A free paint stirrer.


I have all sorts of great tips on this project, like how I got around the outlet and the light fixture so click the link below to be in the know!

It took a lot of trimming, to say the least. If you don't have a pneumatic nailer, either borrow from a pal or rent from a hardware store.

And there it is! Definitely a high end look on a budget!


Be sure to click the link below for all those hot tips, the fun story, and all sorts of other great stuff!


Affordable Ways to Update Your Home

Explore our guide on 12 High-Impact Ways to Refresh Your Home on a Budget for more creative and affordable home improvement projects!

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Becky at Flipping the Flip
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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  • C50GE C50GE on Oct 18, 2022

    Don’t rent a compressor and Brad nailer. You can purchase a good compressor and nailer combo very inexpensive and have it to fill bike tires, fill air mattresses, blow up hundreds of balloons, loan to friends (or rent to friends) rental on a Brad nailer is $20 per day, compressor is $50 per day. I doubt you will finish this project in a day. If you don’t have room to store it then sell on Marketplace or Craigslist

  • Dawn Jones Dawn Jones on Oct 18, 2022

    Do you have to leave a space between the pieces of wood? I would rather not have spaces.

  • Katherine Katherine on Jan 04, 2023

    If the wood lath is rough,what about dusting or just general cleaning?

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