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Ok. That was a crazy(unplanned!) break. But big things are brewing and changes are coming to both this blog and our space. More on that soon! Promise!

But now that I’m back to the blog life lets chat about RV walls. Specifically how we remedied the dark and dirty walls in our fifth wheel with some awesome faux shiplap! In case you forgot the way it looked before…. lets take a trip down memory lane:

[Right after we brought the fifthwheel home]

[Halfway through demo]

Most of the walls were covered in the beige wall paper but the slide out that houses our living room and dining room had a bit of extra flair. The bottom half had a decorative border of plastic faux stone tiles and dark stone wall paper. How a designer thought dark and stoney was a good look in such a tiny space…I will never know!

So these items had to go. ASAP! But after doing the demo we needed a way to cover the ugly bits. We thought about painting it but its such a small amount of wall we wanted to so something a bit extra. Enter faux shiplap!

We’ve all heard and seen the wood planks a certain tv star has made so popular recently. And I do love the look. But I dont need it covering all my surfaces. Plus, real shiplap is pretty dang heavy. So adding just a touch of the treatment was the trick!

We’ve used faux shiplap in some of our spaces before and the method is super simple. We cut down sheets of 1/4″ plywood on our table saw to 6″ widths and glued them straight to the wall. The look comes out best if you vary the grains as you are attaching them. In other words, dont glue them on exactly as they were in full sheets.

One Pinterest trick that seems to really help with spacing is using pennies! Yup, the same ones that are collecting in the bottom of your purse or center console of the car. Grab a handful and stick them between the planks to keep them perfectly spaced while the adhesive dries. Once everything has set for 24 hours pull them from the gaps and enjoy getting use out of that change cup!

You can leave the planks naked if you want a more natural look. I’d hit them with a quick coat of wax just to help protect the wood if you go this route. For us, we needed more contrast since the wood was nearly the same as the existing beige wall paper.

We wanted to keep some of the natural woodgrain so we went with a white wash. I used my trusty chalk paint and mixed it up 1 part paint to 3 parts water. You can adjust to show more or less of your wood grain. Just use a scrap to test on as this dries a little different from how it goes on.

Also, Im kinda obsessed with my new mixing cup! Yes thats a hairdressers dye cup. You can get them at the beauty supply store for the whopping price of 99 cents! They’re cheap, have liquid measurement markers, and come with a convenient handle. I know you can get things similar at the hardware store but if I have a choice between 10 bucks or just 1… well, thats a no brainer!

I slap this wash on pretty quick(and without much precision LOL!) so it doesn’t have time to form lines from drying between sections. Once the planks have dried completely I add a coat of  wax and dry overnight. I didn’t want a shiny finish so I went super light on coverage and barely buffed it with a rag.

The section that is covered in the faux shiplap is relatively small but I feel like it still makes a big difference. This project is crazy affordable, easy to DIY, and looks good on just about any wall. Couldn’t be happier we added this to our tiny space!

So are you #teamshiplap? Have any gracing the walls of your home? You know Id love to hear all about it in the comments!

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Oh padded valances…. sigh. Why did you become an RV staple? I’ll never know! When we did all the demo on the fifth wheel I happily took out every last one. I knew this was something I’d do the day we first looked at this unit! It immediately brightened up the space and I was so excited to find new window treatments that kept all the pretty light!

As you can see the valances also covered and enclosed the pull down day/night shades. After spending some time with these shades (and breaking one on our very first trip!) I knew they had to come out as well. Im sure people are cringing at the idea because shades are not cheap to replace but the idea of living full time with these was crazy. So out they went! Also, my fam doesn’t normally or intentionally match on demo day! LOL!

Once everything was gone I realized I really wanted to preserve all that brightness. I looked at several different window treatments… roller shades, blinds, curtains… so many options! It became clear I was going to need multiple solutions to get both the look and privacy we needed.

Eventually I found these curtains on Amazon. Being that RV windows are crazy sizes I didn’t even bother trying to find ones sized to match. I ordered the biggest ones they had and planned to cut down to size. I really liked the linen texture and the sheer coverage. They let in a ton of light and they’re a fraction of the price of true linen.

It took a few days to cut and hem all the panels to size but it was very simple sewing. All straight lines and long stitches! It took 3 sets total to make panels for all the windows and I puzzled out as many as possible per section. We installed light weight wrap around curtain rods to hang them on and even used some of the same holes left from the valances.

*Everything we’ve hung (pre-existing holes or not!) has been mounted with molly bolts. We find its the most secure way to hang anything permanent in our fifth wheel and works perfectly with the luan walls.

When it came to the bedroom we wanted the option for a bit more privacy. I felt like I saw the same cheap rollers used in several RV makeovers. Im sure they are an inexpensive solution if you are working on a budget but again we are talking FULL TIME USE. And the one thing nearly everyone agrees on is the roller shades eventually loose their ability to roll back up. We aint got time for items that have a short shelf life! Ha!

So we headed to Home Depot to check out a few other options. After feeling a few window treatments in person we settled on Cordless Cellular Shades. If you buy them in the store they will also cut them to size for free while you do your other shopping. Obviously this was a perk as we needed some seriously non traditional sizes.

The shades fit perfectly within the curtain rods we had and were incredibly easy to mount. The shades themselves are cordless and move up or down soooooo smoothly! We got the blackout versions which were a little more but totally worth it and doable since its only 3 small windows.

In addition to the shades I also added a bit of tassel trim to the curtains in the bedroom. Im not 100% set on the bedroom color scheme for the new space but I know it will include some Navy as I plan to recycle some pieces from our loft. For now, this little addition is really perking up the simple window treatments!

Have you replaced any window treatments in your living space lately? Is your RV full of bulky padded valances? Do you love em’ or hate em’? You know I’d love to hear all about it in the comments!