Do .
Hello , beautiful people .
My name is Zach and welcome to this episode of the wall .
Now , a lot of people look behind me and they see a simple wall , but you and I , we see something different .
We see a blank canvas and today we're going to make that blank canvas a work of art .
So something that's been blowing up , my social media lately is the slat wood wall .
So it's really nice on its own .
But you know that we're a little bit extra .
So I want to take it up to the next level .
And the last time I was at Lowe's , I saw this really cool concrete style panel and I figured that that would be the perfect thing to take this wall up to the next level .
So is the concrete style panel that I found and this is the pine that I'm gonna be using .
And I feel like the best way to make this kind of pop and bring that real industrial look out is by throwing some black behind the slat woods .
And I feel like that's really going to bring out that New York City loft condo vibe or Mississauga type of vibe Saga City .
Am I right baby .
So , the first thing we're gonna do is make sure that the wall is nice , clean , flat and flush .
That is a nice clean flat wall .
The second thing we're gonna do is mark out our studs so that when we fix our panels to the wall , we're sure that we're gonna have a really nice long lasting job .
So the layout is where we get to be really creative .
So some people want to use this as a centerpiece to throw their TV on maybe as a headboard or we can even get wild and go on a diagonal .
But what I want to do is pretty simple and symmetrical .
So I'm gonna be doing four ft right down the center with the concrete style panels on either side .
So to achieve that , what I'm gonna do is mark out the center of my wall with a tape measure and a pencil .
And then I'm gonna be using my good friend the laser level to make sure that I have really nice , crispy lines .
So now I set up the laser level on the line that I marked out so that I'm sure that I'm gonna be painting enough to get that really nice cool black .
Look behind the slat wood .
I'm gonna mark it off with a little piece of tape on the top and bottom of the wall .
Now I'm gonna go do the same thing on the other side easy is that now it's time to unleash our inner artist and get painting .
Now before getting started , I was sure to put a little bit of painter's tape on the top molding and along the floor so that I'm not getting any paint anywhere I'm not supposed to .
All right .
So now that I'm just about done painting , I'm gonna take off my tape so that I don't have any little white spots once I'm done to paint .
So I'm realizing as I pull this tape off , I don't have any reference points anymore for exactly where my wood was supposed to go .
But on the plus side , at least I'm 100% sure that I painted in the right zone .
So as good .
So what I'm gonna do to compensate for that is remeasure my center and remark my left line where I'm gonna be starting from so that everything looks perfect .
All right .
So now that my paint is drying up , I've decided to come back to the workshop to start working on my wood slats .
So safety first , we're gonna get our glasses on .
We're gonna make sure that we have our push stick because we don't want our hands going past the edge of the table .
Saw , I've already got my guide set up at 2.5 inches .
So we're ready to rip .
We're , we're ready to rip as soon as I figure out how to turn on the table So , so I decided to go with 2.5 inch slots with about an inch space in between .
But if you want to go with something a little bit smaller or a little bit bigger , that's where you're allowed to get creative .
I recommend taking a stroll to Lowe's .
There's plenty of options there in Pine , in MD F , you can find everything under the sun .
All right .
So now that I've got all my wood slots cut , I'm going to take a few important steps to really protect the wood and make sure that it stays looking amazing for a long time .
So , the first thing I'm gonna do is sand it down .
That's going to open up the pores of the wood and allow me to stain it .
So to stay in it , I'm gonna use this Golden Oak color for Min Wax .
I think it's gonna look super awesome against the black .
And then I'm gonna hit it with the Helmsman varnish and once that's dry , I'm gonna give it just a very light sanding so that the top coat of varnish can stick on to it and then we're ready to go .
Hm .
All right .
So now the paint is dry , the var is dry .
I was able to find my center again .
I marked out my starting line to make sure that I'm exactly where I want to be .
And now I'm going to set up my laser level to make sure that that first piece is absolutely 100% perfect .
Now , because all of these pieces end up falling between the studs , we're gonna throw a little bit of adhesive on the back to make sure that we get a really strong bond .
That first piece is gonna dictate how all the other pieces line up a little pro tip that I want to share with you guys is cutting a template or a jig .
That's the exact size of the space that you want between each slot .
That way you're gonna be able to ensure that every piece is super evenly spaced and you're gonna have a really nice finish product .
Let's get to it .
Tata I'm going to be measuring out an outlet that I have on my wall so that I can cut a hole for it with my oscillating tool .
Now , before you touch anything electrical , make sure that your breaker is off and that there's no power because safety is super important .
So when I take my measure , I'm going to start from the slat wall and then I'm going to measure to either side of the plug and I'm going to do the same .
When I come from the floor up , I'm going to measure the bottom and the top of the plug .
All right .
So now I'm going to mark off those measures that I took and I'm going to make sure that I'm marking them off in the same direction that I took the measures , which is also going to be the same direction that I'm placing the panel on the wall .
I'm going to use my speed square to make sure that I get a really nice cut and we're ready to cut .
Another trick that I want to share with you guys is to make sure that the screws line up exactly with the box behind the wall .
We're going to cut two small triangles into the middle of the top and bottom side of the box .
So once your cut is completed , that's exactly how you want it to look .
Now , let's get this bad boy on the wall .
So now I'm ready to take the plug out and when I put this panel on , I'm gonna be gluing the back side of it and then tacking it in making sure that I'm trying to get as many studs that I marched before as I can .
Now that my plug is reinstalled , nice and tight .
I can put the finishing plate back on .
That looks amazing .
I'm starting to get excited about this wall .
Now , it's gonna be the exact same process for all of the other panels .
We're gonna glue them and then tack them into the stunts .
Wow , this is really turning into something special guys .
The last thing that we need to do is measure the last two pieces on the top that we have to install .
So depending on how your wall layout is , you might have to measure the height .
You might have to measure the length .
All right , I've got my first measure .
I'm gonna make sure that it lines up exactly the same on the other side .
All right .
So the last cut of the day I'm stoked .
Now that the panels are cut , I'm going to install them the same way that I did the others .
Wow .
It looks so amazing in here guys .
I honestly can't even believe that we're in the same room anymore .
And we did this together .
I would say the most important part of this project is make sure that you have all of your measures lined up before you get started .
You'll save yourself a lot of headaches down the road .
If you do the prep , work up front .
What I really love about this project is the nice contrast between the concrete versus the natural wood .
I just can't get over how gorgeous it is .
If you guys like this video , I encourage you to share it with a friend .
Let me know in the comments , what you like the most about the video .
Give us a like , thank you so much for joining me and I'll see you next time .