Tutorial~DIY Herringbone {Chevron} Wall

Recently, my daughter and I designed her new bedroom around a custom pop art canvas of her dog, Murphie.  {If you missed it you can see it here}.  After the reveal, I decided it would be fun to incorporate a bold, graphic pattern on the wall behind the art.




It was a quick, easy, inexpensive project that had a huge impact on the space.  I thought I'd share the tutorial in case anyone would like to use the same simple technique. 


Here's how I did it..
Using the art as my color guide, I chose a beautiful dark gray {Cityscape by Sherwin Williams} as my base color.  For the accent color, I chose a lighter shade, two colors down the same paint chip card{Argos}.  This created a tone on tone effect which is a little more subtle than a contrasting color combo would be.








 I gathered the following supplies:

one gallon of the base paint color {Cityscape}
one quart of the accent paint color {Argos}
chalk
painters tape
level
step ladder
hat
paint roller, brush and tray







I painted the wall the base color and let it cure for 24 hours.




I measured the length of the wall and divided it by 4 {in this case my wall was 142 inches,  142 / 4= 35.5}.   Using chalk, and my level {which features a ruler, eliminating the need for a tape measure} I made a light mark every 35.5 inches across the wall. 





Using the level, I followed the marks to create 3 evenly spaced, vertical chalk lines.  I measured the height of my wall and divided it by 6 {in this case, the wall was 96 inches tall, 96 / 6 = 16}.  Every 16 inches down the wall, I made a mark along each vertical chalk line.  These lines created my taping guide.  Using the painters tape, I connected the dots, diagonally, in a herringbone pattern.  I was very careful to make sure the tape covered the side of the stripe that would be my base color in the end.  Otherwise, the stripes would not be the same size. 





The paint rolling part is where the hat came into play.  Paint-in-the-hair happens, no matter how hard I try to avoid it.  If I were using pink or purple, it could be kinda hot.  Gray, not so much.  

The small pieces of painters tape were used to remind me which stripes were going to be the base color and which stripes were the accent color.  Using my base paint color {Cityscape} I sealed the edges of the painters tape.  It's only necessary to seal the edge where the accent color is going to be applied.  




This "sealing coat" is the key to crisp lines without seepage. 




After the sealing coat was applied and completely dry, I rolled on the accent color.  




While the accent color was still wet, I carefully removed the tape to reveal a perfectly crisp herringbone wall.  




After the paint was completely dry, I removed my chalk lines, lightly with a slightly damp rag.





I used this same basic technique to create the stripes in my boys room {click here to view}.
Thanks for stopping by. 








52 comments:

  1. Love everything about it! Beautiful! Great tutorial and tips!
    Kim @ Sand & Sisal

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  2. this is the best tutorial I've seen on how to do a chevron wall. Thank you!! :)

    It looks amazing!

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  3. WOW! Just yesterday I was googling and searching Pinterest for a herringbone-painted wall and found lots I liked but none I loved. This wall (and room!) is AH-mazing. I love what you've done and hope to use it as inspiration in my own house.

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  4. Wow! I love it! It really made a huge difference to the wall! Sooo cute!

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  5. This looks beautiful! I painted stripes in my hallway using the same technique...now I am looking around the house to see where I could add a chevron wall!

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  6. Ridiculously cute wall treatment!

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  7. Wowsa!!! I didn't think that her room could get any cuter, but it did!! She's one lucky girl! And, I LOVE the tutorial...I've been wanting to do this in my twin boys' room, but wasn't sure how to do it. Thanks for showing us how to 'work the math', lol! ~Kerri, A Pop of Pretty

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  8. I love the chevron on the wall. I may use this technique.

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  9. Love the room! Where can I find that bedding? It's too cute!

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  10. I think I can do this!

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  11. This room is so incredibly gorgeous! I've just discovered your blog via Pinterest & I am pinning all kinds of goodies of yours. This room is my fav so far. :) I'm a new follower. Looking forward to seeing more great projects & decorating from you!

    ~Steph @ Silver Boxes

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  12. Hi Sarah, Can you explain the "sealing" step in a little more detail? I'm trying this this weekend and want to be sure I get clean lines like yours!
    thanks!

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    1. Sure Kate, after painting your base color, apply your tape and then paint over the tape with the base color before applying the accent color. Hope that clarifies this step :) Have fun, thanks for stopping by!

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  13. It's beautiful! I think I want to do this in MY bedroom. I have the same question as kate1 though....I'm not sure about the sealing step....

    GREAT JOB!

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  14. Hi there, I'm loving this color theme. I was wondering where did you get your chandelier from? Or is it something you made? Please specify.
    Thanks.

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  15. Hi there,
    I'm loving this color pallet, it looks amazing.
    I'm thinking of doing a similar color scheme for my new apt. My question to you is where can I find that chandelier? Or did you make that as well?
    Please advise!
    Thanks

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  16. Hi there, I'm loving this color theme. I was wondering where did you get your chandelier from? Or is it something you made? Please specify.
    Thanks.

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  17. Nice room!...P.S. Just a tip instead of a baseball cap for the hair, try using a disposible shower cap (Any dollar store) It covers the whole head and leaves the ponytail paint free too:)

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  18. I love it! I've been thinking of doing chevron stripes in my faux fireplace, so I could definitely use this tutorial! Love the picture of Murphy, too. I was so inspired by it that I had my cousin, who's a graphic artist create a graphic print from a painting my grandfather did, it's not the same style, but inspired by your blog nonetheless :)

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  19. I have question, are the other 3 walls the accent shade argos?

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  20. Love it! Thank you! Question-what brand of paint did you used?

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  21. I just finished painting my wall in a tan color and I have to say your tutorial made it super easy! I am in love with my wall and can't wait to see more tutorials from you

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  22. I just finished painting my wall with your tutorial and I have to say it was very easy thanks to you! didnt take long at all! thank you for sharing :-)

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  23. I love this room! Where did you find the bedding? I've been looking all over for something with these colors.

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  24. It's such a refreshing color choice, love the wall treatment but I was more drawn to the puppy print, was it a DIY? It looks like our Bichon and I'd attempt one if you had any tricks to doing one! Love the room entirely and I'm drawn to your site frequently. Thank-you for the inspirations.

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  25. I followed your steps and the wall came out perfect! Thanks for the sealing tip!

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  26. Did you only do one coat of your accent color? I have City Scape dried on my walls right now, going for the next steps tomorrow.
    Love it!
    Thanks for your help!

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    1. Hi there, yes, I only applied one coat of the accent color. It will be up to you to determine if your wall needs more than one. Have fun and enjoy your new accent wall. Sarah

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  27. Where do u get that bed spread?

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  28. Thanks for the tutorial. I did this to my teens room and she loves it. Great color combo.

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  29. How did you get that portrait of Murphie?

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  30. Love it! Using the level to create your pattern is a great idea!

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  31. Where did you get the chandelier? Very elegant!

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  32. Just did this in my daughter's room this past weekend in black & white and it turned out amazing!! Thanks for the easy instructions. P.S.: I highly recommend Frog brand painters tape, it worked extremely well & I didn't have to seal the edges of the tape.

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  33. Yes frog tape is awesome - we just replicated this on my daughter's wall this weekend. Turned out amazing - Thanks for the great, easy-to-follow tutorial!!

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  34. What did you do for the other 3 walls? thank you

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  35. How did you arrive at the numbers that you divided the wall dimensions by?

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  36. im doing this for my bedroom this weekend!!

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  37. im doing this for my bedroom this week!

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  38. Where did you get the dog art from??? Adorable!

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  39. Yes I am also interested in the dog art.. I would like to get this done with my Daughters dog on it . Very cute! Please let us know :)

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    1. Hi there, Thanks! I had the art made from a photo of Murphie (our dog) at Allpopart.com. Best, Sarah

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  40. Looks amazing! What paint colors did you use for the other walls, ceiling and trim? Can't wait to do this in my daughter's room!

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  41. Looks amazing! What colors did you use on the other walls, ceiling and trim? I can't wait to do this for my daughter! She is going to LOVE IT!!!

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