Decorating & Design
August 14, 2020
15 Charming Summer Spaces That Will Inspire You To Panel Every Wall

You can blame the mania for shiplap on Joanna Gaines of HGTV’s Fixer Upper fame, but she’s onto something. Boring walls get an immediate hit of texture, dimension and interest from panelling — it even makes a new-build home look heritage. While summer cabins and cottages are best-known for their charming panelled surfaces, there’s no rule that says you can’t bring this architectural treatment to your city space, wherever that may be. Keep scrolling to see some of our favorite summer hideaways that make a case for thinking inside the box (panelling) when it comes to this handsome treatment.

This loft-style children’s room, complete with ship-style built-in beds and thematic nautical flags, feels extra hardworking thanks to a sturdy envelope of panelling.

A painted floor pattern that continues on the coffee table adds a contemporary, graphic touch, while timeless board-and-batten walls — decorated with nautical accessories — give this boathouse a dose of character.

Giving walls a dramatic facelift often involves wallpaper, but in this colorful country home, the lower portion is bedecked in a charming beadboard trim. Consider this your new motto: the more visual interest, the merrier!

There’s no doubt that a splash of color in a small space can yield a dramatically different feel. A vanity painted in the same duck egg blue as the board-and-batten wainscotting lends this rejuvenating room a charming look that frequents boutique hotel bathrooms.

Delicate vertical panelling is the perfect backdrop to display renderings of Muskoka cottage must-haves (read: paddles).

Designer Sam Sacks was inspired by a mishmash of surf, safari and Dutch colonial styles when it came down to to decorating her Frontenac County, Ontario, cottage. Crisp white panelling turned out to be the perfect backdrop for her warm and inviting crop of furniture.

Vintage furniture looks anything but dated at the cottage thanks to a modern envelope of white shiplap.

Any room can be transformed from ordinary to eye-catching with a statement wall of box panelling. Paired with dreamy white drapery and linens, this relaxing blue bedroom feels like the ultimate sanctuary to catch some zzz’s.

Large architectural corbels accentuate the handsome pine panelling that works its way around this relaxed, two-storey Muskoka, Ontario, great room.

A striking exposed vaulted ceiling — swathed in a rich shade of navy — makes a grand impression and frames the beautiful view in this cottage Muskoka room.

Adding architectural interest to bathrooms can be tricky — they’re functional rooms after all, plus they call for hardworking materials. In this all-white cottage bathroom, an envelope of horizontal panels on the walls accented by vertical panels on the ceiling does the trick.

Charming, beadboard, coffered ceilings give this Cape Cod-inspired coastal hangout spot a lived-in vibe, while board-and-batten moulding on the walls accentuates a large, framed photograph.

While we love the way white-painted panelling adds interest to walls yet acts like a blank canvas, natural wood panelling is great, too — especially if you’re looking to inject some rustic appeal. Here, an original, panelled, oak ceiling from the ’90s helps warm up artist Matha Sturdy’s minimal collection of white furniture in her island digs near West Vancouver.

With two windows sans wall coverings, this bright, vertical-panelled guest bedroom is bound to feel like a zen zone.

Forgoing a traditional backsplash for thin, vertical panelling means your curated assortment of dishes will feel cool and casual rather than fussy.