DIY Network

Bark Wall Stripes Natural bark gives walls an organic feel. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-153

Stripe your walls with all-natural tree bark.

Many of us love the warm look of wood paneling, or the organic texture of grasscloth. Michele Beschen takes natural wall treatments even further by embellishing her walls with natural tree bark she stripped herself.

The B. Original host shows how to prepare and attach these organic embellishments, giving your walls a uniquely natural feel. Scroll down for her how-to.

Note: For this project, Michele Beschen used the bark she stripped from a tree branch when making a rustic handrail . If you don’t already have bark strips from another project, you can strip bark from a large tree branch with a draw knife.

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	Figure A
	Figure B

Bark Wall Stripes

• Soak your bark strips from two hours to overnight to make them nice and pliable (figure A).

• Remove the bark strips from the water and blot with a towel. Make sure the strips stay flat as they dry; you may need to weight them down with heavy flat objects like large ceramic tiles. The strips will dry fairly quickly.

• Once the strips are dry, you can attach them to the wall. The final arrangement is up to you: Attach them vertically or horizontally, with bark facing in or out. You can even alternate which way the bark faces. To give the wall a broken bamboo effect, leave about ½" of space in between the strips.
  
  
• Attach the bark strips with ¾" brad nails (figure B). Each strip should get three nails—one at each end and one in the center.