Shiplap Half Wall DIY

When I shiplapped our fireplace awhile back, I’m not gonna lie, I thought it was a huge pain. This is mostly because I used pine boards with quarters in between to get the spacing. I wanted to do it in other places in our house but shied away from it… that is until I discovered tongue and groove pre-fab shiplap from lowes. This made doing our half-wall much easier. That said, I caution you that this is NOT a beginners project. There are a lot of dangerous tools involved, precise cuts to be made if going around outlets, and a fair amount of finishing work! So if you decide to take on this project, consider yourself warned!  And as always, I am a DIYer, not a professional. This is what worked for me.

Here are the tools and supplies I used to complete this project:

• Miter Saw
• Jig saw (if you need to make anything other than straight cuts)
• Screwdriver (to remove outlets)
• Hammer
• Nail punch
• Tape Measure
• Stud Finder
• Level
• 2 inch trim nails
• Tongue and groove shiplap
• Nail hole filler
• White paintable caulk with gun or in squeeze tube
• Sandpaper
• Paint
• White paintable caulking

1. *Please use caution when working around open electrical outlets! Turn off the breaker. I removed outlet covers and unscrewed electrical boxes to pull them forward to be level with shiplap. If you do this, you may need to purchase longer screws to tighten them back to the wall.
2. Measure your first board and make cut using a miter saw.
3. Place board, using level to insure your start board is square. Once level nail into studs. I placed my first board groove side up, tongue side down, to help the transition from thin trim to thick shiplap without adding additional trim at the bottom.
4. Continue your cuts, locking boards together and nailing them in one by one.
5. If you run into an outlet, hold your board in place on the wall and mark your cut with a pen or pencil. Alternately, use a tape measure to find the correct measurements. Use the jigsaw to cut the hole for the outlet out of your shiplap board. Precise cuts are key so that the electrical outlet cover fully covers the hole you have cut.
6. I only went half way up the wall, so I needed to trim out the top to make it look complete. I used a trim board with a bottom that fit tightly into the groove of the shiplap. I actually didn’t even nail it in as it fit so snuggly. I just used caulking to adhere it.  It made the project look more finished to me.
7. Set trim nails deep into the shiplap boards using a nail punch.
8. Fill nail holes with nail filler and sand smooth after applicable dry time.
9. Caulk the edges between the shiplap, wall, and other trim pieces.
10. Once all filler and caulking has dried, paint!

Whalla!