We’ve had a lot of action on our home improvement projects lately, including finishing our shiplap ceiling! It turned out exactly as I had envisioned and truly transformed the space! Ready to see?! (post includes commissionable links; for more information, see my full disclosure statement {here})
Let’s start with a look at the “before”. Those of you who have been around the blog for a while know that I’ve had plans to remove these columns and load-bearing half wall separating our kitchen and “circus room” (named for its tent-like peaked ceiling) for quite some time now:
Plus the circus room ceiling was in need of an upgrade. So the half-wall and columns came down (a support beam was added to carry the load) and our shiplap ceiling was completed. Here’s what that same space looks like after remodeling:
Shiplapping the ceiling wasn’t exactly smooth sailing from start to finish. Initially we had decided on using interlocking tongue and groove wood shiplap planks. But once our contractor started installing it, he realized that the ceiling angles of the eight sides were slightly different from one another. Because of this, the shiplap planks on one angle weren’t lining up with the planks on the adjacent angles. The difference was barely noticeable with the first few planks it would have become more and more obvious as the shiplap reached the top.
So… the first few rows of shiplap were removed and it was on to plan B! Plan B involved using pieces of 2 x 8 lumber for the planks and leaving a gap between the lumbar pieces to mimic the tongue and groove look of shiplap. This is similar to the method that we used for DIY shiplap walls in our bedroom, but with thicker pieces of lumbar that wouldn’t warp when installed on a ceiling. It was fairly tedious work because to get the planks to line up, our contractor had to cut some of them down to a narrower width. While this meant that our boards were slightly different widths from angle to angle, it was a difference of less than ½″ between boards so is not at all apparent.
Our contractors did an awesome job with the planking and the final trimwork between the angles and at the top of the ceiling;
It’s hard to express how much bigger the space now feels from the combination of removing the half-wall, adding the shiplap ceiling, and making the floors continuous with the wood floors in our kitchen! Photos don’t do it justice but I think you’ll still see a huge difference from the “before”:
to the “after”:
Once our shiplap ceiling was done, the ceiling and room were painted (Benjamin Moore Simply White) and our chandelier was hung. {This tiered chandelier} ended up being the perfect light fixture for our space:
and the old green carpet that was in the room was pulled up and replaced with white oak hardwoods (which is what we have throughout the rest of our first floor).
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You might also notice that we pulled up the old green carpet and laid new hardwoods that are continuous with those of the kitchen. They “toothed in” the new floors with the old (which involves removing some of the old boards where they join). Believe it or not, the flooring is exactly the same (white oak) in both spaces – it’s just that the old flooring was finished with an oil-based polyurethane that yellowed over time:
We lived with this awkward transition from one room to the other for several months until our kitchen remodel when we sanded and refinished the hardwoods in both the kitchen and circus room to match those in the rest of our house. Now you can’t see this transition AT ALL – the flooring looks uniform throughout both spaces. You can get details on the hardwood floor refinishing {here} that was done throughout our first floor.
Now I just need to finish decorating! We’ve got the basics in place but need a new (MUCH larger rug) and new coffee table that fit the space better:
For our rug, I’m considering one of {these oushak rugs} from Loom & Co. that come in custom sizes. I ordered yarn samples of three of my favorite rugs (from left to right below, Frida Cream, Amelia, & Everett):
and think I like the Everett rug best:
I haven’t pulled the trigger yet but wow, this rug would really make the space!
For furniture in the room, I ordered {this beach house sofa} and I’m using this pair of slipcovered swivel chairs that we had in the living room of our previous home:
We bought these chairs close to 15 years ago when we lived in Cincinnati and I still love them! I bought them from a local design shop but Serena & Lily started carrying them a few years ago {here} (they’re Lee Industries brand who makes all Serena & Lily upholstered furniture). While we’ll normally have them facing into the circus room, I love that we’ll also be able to swivel them around to talk to people in the kitchen.
I also needed to do something about the wood blinds on the windows. I hate that they block so much light even when they’re open and we’re constantly getting up and down to play with the blinds since the sun moves from one window to the next throughout the day. The Serena smart shades that we have on our front doors and in our girls’ room (more on those {here}) were the perfect solution!
And for those of you want an update on our fireplace reno, my post about mounting a tv above the fireplace has all the details!
Have a great week everyone!
