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    Home » DIY Crafts » Woodworking

    Build a Board & Batten DIY Hook Wall

    Published: Aug 22, 2013 · Modified: Jan 30, 2020 by Christina Dennis · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads · 37 Comments

    We moved into Our DIY House on July 1st - about 6 weeks ago. We took a relative break for a month (because we were exhausted and I had morning sickness all day). This month, we've finally got the ball rolling again on finishing everything up. We have some painting, trimming, our master bath, and some random finishing to do yet. My goal is to get the majority of it done before Christmas!

    One of the things I wanted to get done before school starts for the year was a DIY board & batten hook wall for our back entry. I thought it would be wonderful to have a place where my little girls could hang up their things by themselves and a spot for us to quickly hang up hoodies and jackets. I didn't want just a plain row of hooks, I wanted something with a little more character and that matched the craftsman feel of our home.       

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    I found inspiration from Casa de Lewis' Board & Batten Detailed How To. I love how she used simple strips and added a shelf to the top of her hook wall. I was pretty sure I could do this with the help of my handy mom who loves woodworking!

    I found the project to be relatively easy with a few annoying bits (including the fact that it took a little longer than I wanted it to), but overall it was a lot of fun!

    Here's what I did:

    Materials:

    • 1 x 6" MDF strips (see my instructions for the amount - I bought 2 12' strips and 3 8' strips)
    • 1 x 3" MDF strips (see my instructions for the amount - I bought 2 8' strips)
    • MDF scraps & bandsaw for optional corbels OR brackets for either end of the shelf
    • hooks (see my instructions for the amount - I bought 7)
    • nail gun & finishing nails
    • circular saw
    • wood glue (I used Gorilla Glue)
    • caulking
    • paint (I used a white semi-gloss)
    • small foam paint roller
    • small paint brush

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    One of the hardest parts of this project is calculating how much material you need (well, maybe it's just hard for me because I'm a HORRIFIC mathematician).

    Here's how I did it for my 5 ft wall:

    I decided to make my board & batten wall 6 feet high because I wanted it to be ⅔ my wall height (9 feet).  So, I calculated that I needed two 6' 1x6" MDF strips for the vertical side pieces. Then, I measured the distance between those strips on my wall for my horizontal pieces. Keeping in mind that the 1x6's are actually 5 ½" wide, I calculated that I needed three  49" 1 x6" MDF strips PLUS a 6' piece for a top shelf.

    For the smaller vertical strips, I decided where I wanted to hang my middle horizontal 1 x6" (in my case, it was around the 3 foot mark) and then I measured the vertical space above and below the middle horizontal piece and calculated how much 1x3" MDF I needed for these 6 strips. In my case, two 8' long pieces of 1x3" MDF did the trick.

    You can usually buy MDF in 8' and 12' strips and sometimes you can even get them to cut them down to size for you at the home improvement store. I used a circular saw at home to cut mine to size, which I like better since you can cut them using trial and error if measurements are slightly off!

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    To prep my wall, I ripped off the baseboard (which was kind of sad because we just put it in). Then, I cut the two vertical side pieces to 6' and air nailed them to the wall (because there were studs on each side).

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    I then measured the horizontal space between the vertical pieces again and cut three strips of 1 x 6" MDF and nailed those into place (on the studs). I put one flush with the floor, one at about 3' and one flush with the tops of the vertical pieces.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    Next, it was time for the smaller vertical strips. After I re-measured and cut them to size, my mom helped me glue them to the wall in place (because there were no studs behind all of them).

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    After that, I sanded all of the strips with a medium grit sanding block to make sure they were smooth.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    Then, I caulked all of the cracks, let it dry, and painted the entire thing (including the wall between the boards) with semi-gloss white paint. I used a foam roller and a small brush for the cracks.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    I painted 3 coats to achieve the look I wanted. After the first coat, some bumps and scratches that I missed sanding appeared, so I sanded those before I continued with my next coats.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    After the paint was dry, my hubby and I installed the hooks. We installed 4 on the middle MDF strip, centered over the 4 boxes, and we installed 3 just below the top strip, centered on each of the small vertical strips. I love how this worked because the four lower hooks are a perfect height for my daughters, and the three upper hooks work for my hubby and I (and they're low enough that the shelf won't interfere with hanging things).

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    My talented mother made corbels for me out of scraps of MDF laminated together. They're 3x3" with a curve cut out of one side with a bandsaw. These are optional - you could also use shelf brackets on either end of the shelf.

    I glued the corbels so that they were flush with the top of my board & batten wall and centered over all 5 of my vertical MDF strips.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    After they dried completely, I cut my final piece of 1x6" MDF to size, placed it over the corbels, nailed the back of it to the top of my wall and glued the bottom to the top of my corbels (I put the glue on the tops of the corbels first).

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    Finally , I caulked all of the cracks around the shelf and corbels, let that dry, and then painted those with my white semi-gloss paint using a small brush and foam roller.

    I am ECSTATIC with the result! This is going to be such a practical storage wall, and it's lovely to look at from my kitchen.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    The corbels under the shelf echo the detail on my DIY fireplace mantel, and the simple craftsman character of this wall blends in so nicely with the feel of our home.

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    Build a DIY Board and Batten Hook Wall - The DIY Mommy

    I'm really proud of this little corner! Now - how should I style it? I'm thinking it needs some handmade baskets or bins on the shelf to house accessories, and some artwork on the wall above!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sarah [NurseLovesFarmer.com]

      August 22, 2013 at 3:50 pm

      My back entry (mudroom) looks identical to yours from what the pictures say and I'm DEFINITELY going to get hubby to do this for me (I'm not as DIY as you;) ) this winter in his off-season! Just love the look and so practical for storage, I ALWAYS need more storage, especially for the zillions of hoodies in this house! Thanks for the tutorial.

      Reply
      • Christina Dennis

        August 28, 2013 at 7:45 pm

        Yes, it's so practical. We're using ours all the time already and I still think it looks pretty even with the jumble of coats and bags on it. 🙂

        Reply
    2. Sara Gibson

      September 03, 2013 at 12:14 pm

      I noticed the parallel between the corbels here and on your fireplace mantel, too! It's those details that really take interior design and decor to the next level. Great job!

      Reply
    3. Lauren

      March 09, 2014 at 11:58 pm

      Beautiful job! Could you tell me how you made these new baseboards meet up with your old baseboards on the adjoining wall? Thanks!

      Reply
    4. Krystal

      March 14, 2014 at 1:06 pm

      Beautiful work! Please tell me where you got the hooks from. I am looking for these exact hooks to add to my mudroom.
      Thanks.

      Reply
      • Christina Dennis

        March 24, 2014 at 12:22 am

        Thanks a bunch, Krystal! I found the hooks at Lowe's and they were under $5 - bonus!

        Reply
        • Jess k

          December 05, 2016 at 11:48 am

          Love this project! Are the hooks lined up and screwed into the wall studs? Or just into plank and drywall?

          Reply
    5. Robert Patrick

      March 15, 2018 at 1:31 pm

      Great project! I’d love to do this, too! Keep up the good posting, Christina!

      Reply
      • Lindsay - The DIY Mommy

        March 16, 2018 at 6:53 pm

        Thank you, Robert

        Reply
    6. Mathew

      August 06, 2019 at 10:54 am

      I always love to do DIY work. Your project is awesome I like it very much. Now I can busy to DIY project because now I'm trying to build a board & batten diy hook wall according to your tips. Hope I make it successfully.

      Thanks for your amazing tips.

      Reply
      • Sarah - The DIY Mommy

        August 07, 2019 at 7:56 am

        You're welcome! Feel free to share it with us on Facebook or Instagram when you're done! We'd love to see it 🙂

        Reply
        • Deb

          March 01, 2021 at 7:45 pm

          Hi, can you tell me how the hooks screwed into the mdf has held up over the years? I was told that mdf will not keep anything secure and break down . I’m so hoping that’s not the case!

          Reply
    7. Sam Maxi

      August 10, 2019 at 6:33 am

      Love this article. I got some good idea about building a board & batten DIY hook wall. I love to do DIY work your article inspired me to do some DIY works.

      Thanks for your amazing article.

      Reply
      • Sarah - The DIY Mommy

        August 12, 2019 at 9:30 am

        Thanks Sam!

        Reply
    8. Morgan

      February 17, 2020 at 9:52 pm

      Your wall looks great! Do you have any problems with the hooks being screwed into the MDF boards... Can they hold weight (like a backpack)?
      Thanks!

      Reply
    9. Lana

      February 22, 2020 at 1:20 pm

      Hi
      Love your wall! I was wondering about hanging wet coats on it and if that would be a problem with dripping against your sheetrock ?
      Thanks.
      Lana

      Reply
      • Sarah - The DIY Mommy

        February 26, 2020 at 1:34 pm

        Perhaps if the caught was really wet and trapped behind other coats you could run into difficulty? One coat left on a hook to dry should be no problem at all!

        Reply
    10. safedoom

      March 24, 2020 at 2:33 am

      Thanks for sharing this,
      My girls and I now have something to do in the upcoming holidays.
      Awesome DIY guide!

      Reply
    11. Natalie

      June 30, 2020 at 8:13 pm

      I noticed multiple people posted about the hooks being supported enough to hold weight, but I didn't see an answer. Are your battons secured into studs? And is this what holds the weight of various hanging items?
      Doing my wall right now! Thanks!

      Reply
      • Sarah - The DIY Mommy

        July 06, 2020 at 3:51 pm

        It's either secured to studs or wood glue was added on the pieces that needed it.

        Reply
    12. turner

      September 07, 2020 at 5:06 am

      Really great DIY ideas its a pleasure to read this

      Reply
    13. Alex Murphy

      September 24, 2020 at 7:55 am

      Very Impressive. This is an amazing article to read & I personally like DIY work so I enjoyed this article very much. Thank you very much for sharing this article with us

      Reply
    14. dayan smith

      November 22, 2020 at 11:13 pm

      Really amazing DIY project idea thank you man for sharing with us this resource.

      Reply
    15. RaisingBB

      January 30, 2021 at 11:14 am

      LOVE this! Using your plans to create this in my house! Thanks for the help!

      Reply
    16. Juniper

      September 12, 2022 at 3:46 pm

      Your drawing was so helpful! I showed it to my husband and he said as soon as our hardwood floor refinishing is done we’ll get started on this project! I’m so excited!!

      Reply

    Trackbacks

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      […] This board and batten hook wall was built by The DIY Mommy with a few strips of MDF, wood glue, a nail gun, a cross cut saw and some hooks. With the help of her mom, she built it over the course of a few days. Click here for the full board and batten hook wall DIY tutorial. […]

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