You guys, I adore the show Fixer Upper on HGTV. A. Dore. It.
Don't even get me started on how I can spend a Sunday afternoon vegging out in front of the tv watching old episodes on Netflix. Start the day off in my jammies and next thing you know it's dinnertime and I still haven't taken a shower.
Day gone.
OK, I'm 4 sentences into this post and I just lied to you.
I'm about to make blog suicide here.
Here it comes . . .
Shiplap
I just can't do it. Not in my house. Not in my lifetime.
I know, I know. It's all the rage on their Fixer Upper program. Shiplap on walls, shiplap on fireplaces, shiplap on ceilings.
Here a shiplap, there a shiplap, everywhere a shiplap lap.
But seriously, you know what I see when I look at shiplap?
Paneling from the 1970's.
And here's the thing. I lived in the 70's. I saw people go paneling crazy in their houses.
No room was off limits and there were entire homes covered head to toe in the stuff. Head. To. Toe.
Wood tone paneling, faux barnwood paneling, cheap laminated paneling. Even avocado colored paneling.
Avocado colored wood???
And then, sometime in the 80's, everyone got tired of paneling. Really really tired of it.
And then had to figure out how to get rid of it.
Huge undertaking. HUGE.
It wasn't just nailed up there, it was glued with some sort of super human strength glue. And when you took it down it split into pieces and the plaster behind it would chunk off and you'd be left with a huge mess which cost a fortune to then fix.
So whenever I see the gorgeous rooms on Fixer Upper, I ooh and ah over their kitchen renovations, their amazing transformation of the ugly and the outdated and their creative use of space.
But when I see the shiplap walls, all I can picture is the Brady Bunch rec room.
Marcia, Marcia, Marcia.
Or is it Joanna, Joanna, Joanna?
There's just some trends that I am too old to look at in awe and wonder and not have flashbacks to the first time they came around.
Rock on Chip and Joanna, you're still my heroes. I'm not breaking up with you or anything, but I just can't get on board with the shiplap/paneling trend this go-round.
So I'll see you Sunday. I'll be the one sitting on the couch with the unwashed hair.
Are there any design trends that you just can't get on board with?
Jeffrey Hanning
Here is my problem with shiplap. It was used in construction because it was cheap. It was a lot cheaper than plaster that would have cracked and looked really bad in most parts of Texas. Another reason its bad to leaved exposed. Older homes, particularly in Texas were not insulated at all. Siding on the outside walls and shiplap on the inside covered with wallpaper. If you pull everything off the shiplap and don't insulate its going to leak like a sieve, (hot air, cold air, wind), You can't just throw insulation in the walls of an old house either, it can not breathe like it was meant to and mold and rot become a problem. So, unless you are going all the way and strip the siding off the outside, put up a real vapor barrier and then insulate the shiplap is going to cause problems. Of course this just for exterior walls, interior walls are a different matter. Just my thought on the matter
Pam
Very interesting! I was coming at it from a "decorating" angle, but I guess there's also the construction aspect. Great points!
Tony
Closed cell insulation. We bought an old church building that is 100% shiplap interior- stem to stern.
Leslie
While I still
Like the look of ship lap, especially in the renovations they do, you've given a VERY good argument on why someone should think long and hard before they start to use a nail gun to attach the stiff to every square inch of their walls- especially considering the tutorials for how to achieve the look for less have you attaching the stuff to every stud... Then filling in the holes to hide it.... Yep. I think you've talked me out of it for my house... That would be worse than wallpaper to remove!!! I'm really glad I found this post!! 🙂
Pam
Glad it helped 🙂 Kim at Savvy Southern Style used wallpaper that looks like shiplap in her bedroom and it really does look nice - here's the link if you want to check it out. If I remember correctly, I think she said it was the totally removable kind. Sort of like contact paper for walls, but looks more realistic 🙂
Monica
I have my own take on the farmhouse craze. I grew up in a farm house that was built in the late 1800's. My kitchen had beadboard and wood counters and painted white cabinets. My grandmother (who lived with us) had a large cararra marble cutting board on the counter at all times. We had zebra wood paneling in the entire house. These are solid materials, authenic materials built by craftsmen. So I am naturally drawn to farmhouse style. Fast forward *cough* a few years and now its a "thing". Now I feel like I cant have marble, or paneling or farmhouse style because its SO in, and if it's in it will be OUT. I just bought a house with natural wood cabinets in the kitchen and as much as I love cream cabinets I might very well leave them wood colored only because everyone and their dog is painting their cabinets white. Im at a point in my life where I want things to be unique. As much as I love the look of shiplap I'd never put it on my walls because it will be the board and batten of the early 2000's (remember that?) I'm trying not to get too sucked in to Pinterest and make my home MY own style. I cant say that I wont use any pine planks (vertically) in this new house only because I think it looks cozy and I have low ceilings, but if I do it will be knowing that in 5 years they may look dated and I'll have to be ok with that.
Amanda Thompson
I found this blog when I googled shiplap and totally agree. I have another dilemna! The white painted cupboards in my new home. We are gutting it because they are not solid but I am not sure what to replace it with!!! The trend would tell me gray cupboards but in 10 years I am sure we are all going to be de-graying everything. I want to do wood but I am not sure what wood! My last kitchen was remodeled with modern dark wood and all the buyers wanted white. I'm not a fan of white, at all. What the heck people?! What wood?! Help!
Pam
I see gray cabinets all over the place right now, but I honestly think it's going to be a very quick trend. I sort of like the color of pecan. It's a nice warm brown, but not as dark as cherry and not as rustic as oak.
Kristen
I agree ^^^???!!! I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this!! I just moved into a brand new home from a home that had painted paneling. I hated it!!!! I guess my old house is trendy again ?. I think there will be some super regretful ppl come 10 years from now.
Tonya
After reading the comments, I can pretty much assume my home would be offensive to many here. I painted my kitchen cabinets white, I faux shiplapped a wall and ceiling with drywall damage (a very economical solution to a very ugly problem), I love subway tile (something we had growing up in our bathroom) and used it liberally in both the kitchen and bath, and I am quite positive I have some of those 'non authentic' antiques. It seems people feel so strongly about design and decor. It's wonderful to have an opinion, to talk of our likes and dislikes, but I always walk away from these posts feeling a bit deflated. A friend of mine actually sent me here...she teasingly said 'hey, everyone hates your house!' Looking at my diy curtains I can't help but smile. I like them. That is all that is supposed to matter, right? And here I thought that women were judging me about my lack of fashion sense and really they were just hating on my pedestal sink with no storage!
Pam
No!!! Please don't take my post that way. All I was trying to say (and maybe I didn't say it clearly enough) is that I love the shiplap look IN SOMEONE ELSE'S HOUSE. Having seen the paneling trend come and go and the aftermath of getting that stuff off the walls, I just can't get on board with the shiplap look HERE. Do you read Golden Boys And Me's blog? She has the cutest house and it's covered in shiplap (and subway tile) and I ADORE it. Every single time she writes a post I see something else I want to do to my house . . . well, except for the shiplap 🙂
And BTW, I had to fight tooth and nail with both my husband and the contractor who did my son's bathroom to get my pedestal sink in there. They both were adamant that I would not like it because it had no storage, blah blah blah. I seriously can't tell you how much the contractor tried to talk me out of it. And, of course, they were wrong. I LOVE it!!!
KathyT
Sorry to necra-post but I agree wholeheartedly. We should invent an easy to remove shiplap product. Thin strips could be glued to paper and go up like wallpaper. We will get rich. But then again, one of the commenters here said she would do shiplap but never wallpaper, because it is so difficult to remove. I shook my head on that one. Shiplap is going to be much more difficult to make go away than any paper. I do remember the shiplap walls in my grandmother's house where the new upstairs was added and an outside wall became an inside wall. It was really beautiful and it fit that waterfront property perfectly. It was genuine rather than contrived. Before I do anything to my house I think about how difficult it will be to undo. How an architectural detail will age depends on the house style and how well the two fit. The shiplap will probably look better on a beach house 30 years from now than it will on most new suburban construction. Just like the 60s paneling looks great on a mid-century modern house, but it got terribly dated in my parents 40s Colonial. It is pretty now. But I would caution people to use it very sparingly like on an island, or one wall of a bathroom or bedroom like in my grandmother's house. Wall to wall is just silly, and any fade this popular will burn bright and fade quickly. Gosh it is going to be such a mess.
Pam
Someone makes a product that is like peel and stick flooring (remember the tiles people used to use) but it's for use on walls to look like shiplap. Sounds even worse to get off than paneling would be 🙂
Rebecca
So glad I'm not the only one who can't figure out the shiplap craze. It's EVVVERYWHERE.
KrissieM
I'm done with bowls of lemons on every kitchen counter. Bowls of balls on the coffee table make no sense and have all the personality of a hotel lobby. If you need to put something there for the sake of not having an empty table, why not a pretty houseplant, or fresh flowers?
Resin countertops with pennies or bottle caps may not be overdone, but they are certainly done enough. Never ever will one of these ghastly things be in my house.
P.S. I'm installing shiplap in my bedroom soon. I hate that it's being done so much, because I really love the look and always have. I agree it is the next paneling though. 🙂
Shannon Fox
Drive by comment 😉
I love this post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Pam
Thank you Shannon!
Patrice
I thought i was the only person who felt that ship lap was just another word for paneling turned horizontal ship lap is paneling paneling is ship lap painted love Joanna's designs wish she can get away from everthing rustic her rustsize is beautifully designed just not for everyone or every home
Becky
Ha ha, I thought of the same thing with the shiplap. I admit, I do like it - sometimes. I'm having a little tug of war with myself...add a little shiplap or don't add a little shiplap? And from what I understand, it's not glued to the walls, it's nailed. But you'd still have quite an undertaking to get it all off of the wall when you get sick of it, and lots of little holes to fill. Still better than the super human strength glue that was used for the wood paneling. We ended up just painting over that lovely wood paneling that graced the basement walls of my childhood home. It's pretty funny though, the biggest reason that I'm not in a hurry to put any shiplap in my home is because it does remind me of the wood paneling trend. It's kind of like bringing wall paper back. I don't know why it's making a comeback. Let's just not go there! 🙂
Fonda Rush
I recently saw a commercial for Fixer Upper. Chip says "If you [Joanna] and a French door had a baby, it would be shiplap." I've also seen another, but it's difficult to describe. It's basically Chip saying "Shiplap...Shiplap...Shiplap". Shiplap is overly done. It's becoming trite instead of trendy. Their own show proves it!
I've seen a few Fixer Upper shows, and the style never changes. It's the same colors...same "open concept"... same everything. Then Joanna is so proud of herself. It doesn't take much to do the same thing over and over again. It's sickeningly sweet to bring the kids in, and Chip is a big goofball. When they're done with the house, whose house is it really? It's so staged with stuff that doesn't belong to the homeowners. How much do they get to keep? And if it doesn't come from Magnolia Antiques or whatever it's called, it comes from Wayfair or some other sponsor. It seems like Wayfair is THE HGTV sponsor, because that's what Ellen's Design Challenge uses, too. Probably other shows, too. The Property Brothers have a style they don't deviate from, too. Every make-over is the same, and it gets boring.
Vickie
I've said the very same thing to our daughters. It's a trend that like everything else will run its course. I love the look, but I'm not about to cover every surface in our home with shiplap. Our previous home had several rooms covered with 70's paneling when we moved in, and it was a bear to remove. My favorite was our den which was covered in baby blue woodgrain paneling. :o)
Pam
OK, you got me. I have never seen baby blue paneling. I'm so jealous!
KathyT
I have seen the baby blue paneling! I had it in my room as a teenager. I loved it.
lorraine
I can't get used to seeing everything in white! White couch..white walls..white tables..white with beige pillows. I'm a retired nurse and it minds me of a surgery room. That's why I love your site. I have cabinets like yours in my kitchen which I'm not spending 3 months painting them WhITE! So, thanks for keeping it real! I go to your site EVERYDAY !
Cheryl @ The Creative Me and My McG
I'm sure that last photo is what our family room looked like back in the 70's. We purchased the house almost two years ago and I can't wait to paint it...they had painted it olive green, which for them worked with their furniture. For now I am trying to decorate around the color because in the long list of things to do in this house...it's going to be awhile before it gets tackled. I LOVE the look of shiplap, but I wouldn't do a whole room in it. I like it as an accent wall, but would never glue it down, because lets face it trends fade fast and you are right when you say it will be terrible to remove when you get tired of it.