For one of my guest bedrooms, I wanted to do an accent wall, but the room is not huge so I didn’t want anything overpowering. (The room was a goldenrod yellow which had to go.) I considered wallpaper because I like the subtle mix of sheens, but I have textured walls so I decided to do a simple stripe pattern by using one color in high gloss and flat paints. At first I was hesitant to put the high gloss on the wall because I have heard that you can not paint over gloss with a lower sheen, however that is not true. Just rough up the high gloss a bit by going over it with a sheet of sandpaper and you can paint whatever you want with no trouble.
1. You can go ahead and paint the whole wall with your flat color, but I only bought a quart so I measured out 13 inch stripes. Be sure to paint past the lines so that you won’t have gaps when you do your next stripe. You don’t have to be neat.
2. Tape off your stripes.
3. Fill in the stripes with high gloss paint. Peel off tape when you are through and you have an easy but eye-catching accent wall.
I’m Sarah Koch, a Relationship Coach based in Austin, Texas. With over 9 years of professional experience and degrees in Sociology and Counseling Psychology from UT Austin, I specialize in helping people build healthy, fulfilling relationships. On this blog, you’ll find practical tips and insightful guidance for improving communication, resolving conflicts, increasing intimacy, and fostering deeper connections in your romantic relationships, family dynamics, friendships and more.