Many of us agree that Knotty (Pine) is Nice — but what about its flashier cousin, 1960s-1970s wood paneling that got kinda … designy? Elisabeth is new to her 1968 house and her eyes are a bit in shock at her two-tone inlaid wall paneling. This sure must have been hip back in the day. She asks us: Should it stay or should it go?
Hi,
I’ve just purchased a 1964 home. It is exciting but a bit overwhelming. There is a lot of paneling in the house. Looking at the May 1968 House and Garden magazine I can identify it as Georgia-Pacific Inlaid Paneling. I know it was marketed as the affordable option to real wood inlay work. It is not tongue and groove and it is not knotty pine. I am in a quandary as to whether to keep it. If it were real wood I would not have a question. I don’t mind trying to keep it with the intent of staying in keeping with the spirit of the times. However I would probably need some kind of confirmation that it is a good idea. My first instinct was “ugh, paneling”. I am new to this. Also the expense of remove and replace is weighing on me. Thanks for your time and any advice.
Best,
Elisabeth
Wow, Elisabeth, you are so ingenious to find that ad. Which wood is ‘yours’? Elm with walnut inlay? Pecan with walnut inlay? Cherry with walnut inlay? Or Walnut with pecan inlay? Surely a reader will know.
I have my own opinions, of course, but first, let’s hear from readers:
Should Elisabeth keep her circa-1970s paneling…
Or should she rip it out or paint over it?
Ali says
My 1959 rancher has one wall of wood paneling. I don’t know much about it except it is very similar to the accent wall at my grandparent’s 1968 house in another state. So I was willing to keep it for sentimental reasons but considered painting it. It is on the fireplace wall which already had wood shelving on one side, and I hunted down, on CL, coordinating shelves for the other side. No way did I want to prep a lot of finished wood in great shape for painting. Since I already knew I would have a lot of color and texture on that wall in the form of books and mantel décor, I decided to stick with the wood paneling, unpainted, as backdrop. 1.5 years in, I love it as it “stands up” to the many colors and textures on the bookshelves and mantel. Other sections of the room (a large living/dining combo) also have wood furniture and the floor is oak laminate so we picked a rich, medium blue for the walls to keep it from looking like a cabin. We receive a lot of compliments on the room. One design trick I love is to find a patterned piece, be it fabric, wall paper, even dishware, that appeals to you and then pull your colors from it. So IF you can find a patterned piece that has your paneling color in it, and you love the patterned piece, then you will know that you can make the paneling work for you.
Elisabeth says
thanks for the tip!
Gary Minter says
Elizabeth,
Don’t get crazy and do something rash or impulsive that you will regret later. The amount of houses that actually have the original walls and laminate surfaces are dwindling quickly. Seems everyone wants is a house with white walls, granite counter tops and stainless appliances. very soon that fad will go away and you will be trying to replace what you had and it is extremely difficult to replace or even source… not to mention that you are a minority in being lucky enough to have found an original house with such beauty built in. In stead, I would change your furniture to try and reflect the era of your house and embrace it.
I have built new and have made the house look as though it were 60 years old and my friends love it as do I. I also own a 1963 executive home in Kerrville Texas that I had to Retro back to that era because someone along the way decided it was not good.
You will be rewarded by hard decisions now. You would never try to make a 1957 Ford Thunderbird in to a modern day SUV. OR TAKE A ROLEX Submariner and try to convert it to a digital watch? Think long and hard before you do something you can’t take back….Please.
Gary Minter
Opinionated hardhead…
Elisabeth says
Thanks! After all the input I feel like I need to give the paneling a chance to hang around like it has been for a long time anyway.
Courtney says
I’m an architectural historian in the historic preservation field. My thoughts are that you don’t live in an historic house museum or National Register of Historic Places property; it’s your home and you should love it. Of course that attitude often leads to tragedies like people tearing out awesome old bathrooms and original features of their house, but again, at the end of the day it’s their home and their living space. Also, the fact is that “old” does not automatically equal “good.”
I personally dislike wood paneling and my preference would be to remove it. I don’t really care for painted paneling either but it might be easier for you to go that route. My in-laws did that and it looks fine. The suggestion to live with it for say, 6 months is a good one. If you still don’t like it, you’re not going to look your retro card! 🙂 You can still get a period look with paint, furnishings, art, etc. I hereby give you permission to get rid of the paneling! 🙂
Elisabeth says
haha this is funny. I won’t lose my retro card. Good to know! You are right. It is not true that old equals good and we have established this was the economical option at the time. So I will just give it a chance and see.
Kathy says
How I h*** [edited] the idea of painting it. Either let it be what it is or remove it. If it was me, I would leave it for a year and see if it grew on me. A dark room can be very cozy and comforting. A good compromise would be to remove all but an accent wall or two. Don’t be afraid of what’s underneath. Wall repair is a useful skill to delvelop.
Juliana says
We have cherry paneling in our 1961 ranch and have no plans to get rid of it. At first I thought about painting it, but 5 years in, I like it. Since it’s in our den and we want that room dark for watching movies and such, it stays.. If anything, we may eventually get rid of the two Formica-covered built-in bookcases. They don’t match the paneling at all.
Stephanie says
I would paint it… why dry wall when instead you can have an interesting texture on the walls.
Scott says
I’d live with it a bit and see how you two get along. I made a few rash decisions in my house that I regret deeply charging into like a bull. No harm in seeing how it plays with the furniture pieces you end up with.
I can definitely understand paneling overload, perhaps some key accent walls could stay paneled while others become ordinary walls again. One hint of caution I discovered in my house, sometimes wall treatments are hiding some really bad walls underneath. Not structural issues, but lots and lots of work nonetheless.
As an amusing aside we had this exact same paneling at my house, except the strips were narrower. If you stare it intently for a bit the print motif gets super trippy and you’ll start seeing faces!
Elisabeth says
I do believe that about staring at it. It does look a little trippy.
KStacey says
I’m kinda seeing a squinting Tiki-God type face in the grain now. I say if it comes down, save some pieces to make a tiki bar! 🙂
ChrisICU says
Elizabeth, I commented earlier about the paneling and included a couple of links as examples. Are you sure that what you have is the same Georgia-Pacific paneling? I know they appear similar, but what’s on your wall looks different and a better quality. Anyway, if you do decide that you don’t like it and decide to remove it, then I hope you would give me the chance to get it. I’d love it in my home.
Elisabeth says
I think it is because they had a few different wood combinations for the paneling listed in the advertisement. But I really can’t swear that it is the Georgia-Pacific. I should try to see if there are any advertisements with the other combos. probably not too many people care about it so I don’t know how much info is preserved… Do you think it can be removed without damaging it? I will know more next month but I think I might try to keep it and work with it. but I will keep you in mind.
Jacquelyn says
I moved into my small ranch and there was an accent paneled wall.
It was a light wood but you could see the outline of everything they had up on the wall. I painted it and it looks great! Save yourself the aggravation and paint it, I think you will be pleasantly surprised!
pattie says
did u have to prep the paneling before painting?
Pam Kueber says
Folks, I will again remind to work with your own pros to assess what you are working with for hazards: Be Safe / Renovate Safe https://retrorenovation.com/renovate-safe/
Emily Wilson says
What Elisabeth should do should be completely based on her decor choices in the room. I lean toward going “all out” with an era correct spread of furniture and decorations if she keeps it. If she doesn’t want to commit to that, I’d say it should go. Otherwise, it won’t go with another thing she has.
Gerry says
About 14 years ago, we had pecky cyprus, beautiful and was expensive, but over the years, it got darker and darker, so we had sheet rock put over it, which meant we had to move the door and window facings out, but painted it a beautiful beige, then the four bedrooms had very good paneling but they too made the room dark, so we just had the painters paint over it; it doesn’t look bad at all. The color we used was Botany Beige and we have the entire house painted in that color with the exception of a half bath. We thought when we built this house, that this would prevent any maintenance but over the years, it just got too dark, so my suggestion is paint it. Knotty pine no thoughts; it was such a pretty wood. Pecky cyprus (from Fl.), you cannot paint over it, thus sheet rock.
Elisabeth says
Hi Emily,
I think about that right? But we may have a kind of codified idea of what an era looked like. I think there must have been a mix of things for most people unless they could have just started fresh. This house has challenged my idea of what look I wanted in seeking a midcentury house. But there was a lot of flux and variation at the time. I lived in a modest 1961 build when I was a child. It had some of the vibe though with the layout and the cabinets, green appliances etc. It was some kind of aqua type blue on the outside. We called it our blue house.. We had a mix of second hand stuff that mom upcycled a few things from the era, and some antiques. We had 2 butterfly chairs. A coffee table made from an antique door. I thought we had black Lucite cube end tables but my mom said she got wood cubes and lacquered them. She made book shelves with planks of wood and the decorative cement blocks. Luckily we did not have a mishap with that DIY idea. Not to get all rambling on you…But I think there some flexibility in the types of décor and furnishings. But there needs to be some unifying factors too. One of the things that gets touted about midcentury design is that it can mix with other items and is versatile. So we will see.