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.