I’ve mentioned this year’s big task, operation siding, many times. While we’re still no closer to finishing due to weather, we have made some progress inside. In the form of a reclaimed cedar planked wall.
Our bedroom has received so little attention (only a coat of paint and plain Jane white curtains) and neither Ben or I ever felt excited about it. Sad, because master bedrooms should feel like a retreat.
I never thought I’d love tattered old wood as much as I do in here. The reclaimed wood feels like a big, warm hug for the room. And the perfect starting point for a full makeover.
Okay, calling it ‘reclaimed’ makes it sound super special and old. Really, it’s just the back of old cedar siding.
Yes, our old, blue cedar siding. While the finished side had seen better days, most of the backs were in great shape.
Several months ago, I told Ben I wanted to plank our headboard wall in old wood. Being a dude, he was immediately on board. Did ya get that pun? We tossed out the idea of pallets, but we’d have to save and disassemble them. Old barn wood can get pretty expensive these days. So when we pulled off the siding, we knew we wanted to save it from the landfill and put it to use. The first step was pulling out every nail and staple. Our siding is similar to tongue and groove, so Ben cut off the edges by running each piece through the table saw. In the photo above, we had already finished one side. Our pieces are 6 inches wide once ripped down.
Most of the pieces had cupped over time, creating a slightly less than straight piece. To remove this and allow the boards to sit flat against the wall, Ben ran the blue sides through the planer. We have the 13 inch Ridgid, if you’re looking for a nice, affordable planer.
In our original plan, we wanted to plane both sides to a smooth finish. Unfortunately, the cedar had different plans. It gummed up and dulled the blades really quickly. On to plan b. Installing the planks as is to paint over. To secure each piece to the wall, we marked out studs, drawing a line up with a level. The arrows show each line:
Using the 2 1/2 inch 16 gauge nails, we nailed into each stud on the top and bottom. Rather than butting the boards together, we used nickles to leave a small gap between each board.
This process was super quick and we had a nearly finished wall in about two hours.
Once we finished, we put the room back together, including the curtains. And we absolutely loved the wall. Old holes, bits of tar paper residue, and all; no painting necessary.
One of the quickest, biggest impact projects we’ve done. Let’s plank all the walls now! And the first thing we’ve done in our room that has made me downright giddy to tackle more.
Because the rest of the room certainly needs help. A lot of help. And this was just the project to motivate my ass.
Next up, scraping the popcorn ceilings. Fortunately I have experience in this department and it was surprisingly fun to do. It’s the patching after that sucked the big one. But, but! (and mine is a big one) if I want to work on the rest of the room, it must happen first. I’ll be back with the rest of the plan for the room soon. Until then, let’s talk old wood. That’s what he said.
ourhumbleabodeblog.com 
I love it Amanda! I love the rustic feel of it. It looks great paired with your platform bed
Thanks, Shavonda!! So glad you love the rusticness, too! The bed looks a million times better in there now, but I think we’re still going to change it because our layout is changing slightly since we built (and never finished) it.
Thanks!
Amanda
So genius to re-use wood siding you no longer and use it in a pretty functional way in your bedroom!
Hey Katrina!
Thanks, lady! We’re always happy when we can reuse/repurpose things, so this was perfect. 😀
Thanks!
Amanda
wow, it looks great! and good for you to reuse something and keep it out of the landfill!
Lorie
Thanks, Lorie!! When possible, we definitely prefer to reuse materials. This was the best way we could save those cedar boards.
Thanks!
Amanda
I would love to know the stain color – beautiful!
Love it!!
Thanks, Diana! Me too. 😀
This looks great!
Glad you like it, Alex!
Thanks!
Amanda
Looks very interesting, but have you read up on exterior paint/stain ingredients inside your home? I’ve heard there are things in it that definitely should not be indoors such as fungicides. Maybe the paint is old enough as to not to be a concern?
Hi Kay!
We did discuss that issue. Cedar has more natural pest/mold deterring properties than most wood. Our pieces have been opaque stained once, so the boards should be harmful chemical free. We might add a matte clear coat to seal it all.
Thanks for your concerns! It’s definitely something to think about before adding wood inside. 😀
Thanks!
Amanda
haha when you said “Installing the planks as is to paint over” I was like please nooo, but then I scrolled down and saw you loved it as is as well. Yay for accidental beautiful design!
Hey Joyce!
Ha, it was a happy accident. Glad it all worked out the way it did.
Thanks!
Amanda
I love the wall but it really clashes with your flooring. I would think painting it would help or maybe a giant rug to cover up the flooring?
Thanks for your compliment and suggestions!! Style wise, you’re totally right. The wall clashes with the floor. I know this sounds cliche, but it doesn’t look that dissimilar in person. We really love the wall as it is. Maybe down the road we’ll want to paint. It’s always an option.
Once we figure out a solid furniture layout I’d love to get a rug for the room. We have the areas around the bed but also a sitting area at the end of the bed to tackle. By no means is this room finished or near. So many things to do and elements to add before we’ll consider it done.
Thanks!
Amanda
Oh my, I LOVE it! when you first said ‘to paint over’ I was like NOOOOO, then I saw that you hadn’t seen the end result yet. It is so beautiful! love it!
Thanks so much, Sara! Initially, we didn’t think we’d like how rough and unfinished the unplaned wood looked. Once we got it up though, we loved it. Such a big difference for the boring rectangle of a room we’ve lived in for the past 2+ years.
Thanks!
Amanda
Oh my gosh, I love it! It looks fabulous! =)
Thanks, Kristin! We’re pretty happy with it. 🙂
You should paint the planks white. They clash with your flooring.
Gorgeous!! I absolutely love that you chose to reuse your old siding. Waste from construction and redecoration projects are one of the biggest contributors to our landfills.
I also love the hanging light you have in your Master, where is it from?
Thanks!! – Ashley
Hi Ashley!
Whenever possible, we love to reuse construction materials. The boards were still in good shape, and have so much character, why not use them?! 🙂 I actually made the light. Here’s a link to the tutorial: https://ourhumbleabodeblog.com/2013/05/06/when-pins-collide/
Thanks!
Amanda
Beautiful wall! Very rustic. Im doing my home in a rustic theme.You have my attention. What is your game plan for the ceiling?