It's probably social media's fault that I got a wild hair and decided I wanted to do some aesthetic remodeling in the dining room. Our breaker box sits at an awkward height on our dining room wall; that space used to be our garage, and the floor used to be lower. When we remodeled, the general contractor arranged to have our cabinet maker craft a door to go over the box, and that was fine. But then I saw reel after reel of people adding different wainscotings to their walls, and it got me to thinking. I mulled over my options for a long time and came up with a solution to the obvious and awkward box cover that would also enhance our dining room: bead board wainscoting. I knew this was a project too big and technical for me to handle, so I told my dad what I wanted to do. Boy, did he deliver.
We spent several days on this project which proved to be more complicated that I realized: In order to cover the box with bead board, we had to build the wall out about an inch so that the bead board would fit over the box's cover. With some plywood from Home Depot (and another sheet or two from his shop because my plywood wasn't thick enough to give us the clearance we needed), we were able to do the job. Dad was patient and thorough (both trademarks of his), and I learned A LOT about this type of project as I worked alongside him. Not only do I have a gorgeous dining room, but I also have a new-to-me table saw that he gifted me when we needed one on-site. (He had bought it from Goodwill because "it was too good a deal.")
The "before picture" taken on Wednesday, February 4. Dad came over this day so we could take some measurements and go shopping for supplies. You can see the door over the box next to the left window.
Dad giving Peach some love. Peach was on her way to hang out in the laundry room (like we let her do sometimes when it'd cold outside), but Peach deemed in necessary to stop by and get pets from one of her favorite people before settling down.
After removing the wallpaper, cupboard door and all the trim. Thursday, February 5.
The start of the plywood being cut. Thursday, February 5.
The north wall patched and painted after the wallpaper ripped up the finish. Tuesday, February 10.
Measurements and starting to cut plywood. We also added insulation around the windows because our builders (cough, cough) neglected to do. Tuesday, February 10.
Dad cutting wood in our shop. Tuesday, February 10.
More cutting and starting to attach plywood. Wednesday, February 11.
Me using the table saw for the first time. I took shop classes in middle school, but students weren't allowed to use the table saw. Thursday, February 12.
Dad smoothing out the layers of wood. Thursday, February 12. You can see both layers of plywood and then the layer of bead board on top.
All plywood and bead board attached. Thursday, February 12.
Bead board around the box cut back. Outlets extended and reattached. Tuesday, February 17.
Window trim and baseboards reattached. Top piece on top of bead board added. Tuesday, February 17.
Coving above bead board on the west wall attached. Box cover cut and fitted. Most of the trim caulked. Wallpaper installed on west wall. Friday, February 27.
Finally finished! I installed the rest of the wallpaper, Dad and I installed the trim piece that goes under the picture shelf. I finished caulking and painting everything. Then it just took me a while to get the frames, put our pictures in them and place them all. I learned the hard way that the frames will tip and glass will break if you just set them on the wall. (The door to the garage is on the same wall, so closing the door can tip the pictures.) All of the pictures are now secured and going nowhere.
