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?
Martha Ramsey says
I would paint the paneling. My grandparents built a colonial ranch in the 1950s. The living room fireplace wall had paneling painted a matte gray/beige the same as the fireplace and other trim in the room. Very classy and spanned many eras.
Lizzy says
Live with it for a while. What’s in that photo isn’t typical cheap Seventies paneling. It may be better grade cheap paneling, but I’ve never seen the book matched burl veneer look before. Can’t tell much from a picture.
The Seventies had crummy stuff – and fantastic design! Don’t confuse Halston’s townhouse with the really awful. This is a good time to learn something about Seventies design, and it’s very back in style. The stuff I remember is back in the furniture stores.
Design runs 5 to 5, we refer to the Seventies or the Fifties, but actually 55 to 65 or 75 to 85 tend to cover it better. Early Seventies (really late Sixties) saw the beginnings of Art Deco Revival, because it was hitting thrift stores. We talk about it being Eighties, but the best of it was Seventies, fueled by the Tut Exhibition. There’s more great design from the period, so get some library books before you splash paint on the paneling. It might be something you want to go with. Just look at some old magazine from the era (public library!) and see what you think. There were preserved houses from the Seventies when I was house hunting, the furniture was marvelous!
If you decide you hate it, paint it. But give it a little time.
Elisabeth says
Thank you. That makes sense about the 5 to 5 instead of years 1 through 9 in a decade. And yes I should look for more books and magazines. I can tell from what I have seen that paneling of one type or another was ubiquitous at the time.
rich says
Real wood-grain vaneer or phony masonite type material?
Real wood – it stays
fake wood – sheet rock it.
Jason Byrne says
Elizabeth – we moved into a 1970s house in Australia about 5 years ago. It had fake wood paneling all down a side wall. It was in bad condition and I struggled to see its aesthetic value. So I tore it out. They had braced it and drilled holes into the concrete block wall, which meant we had to render over that wall. I chose a 1970s style render finish which worked well. Just a couple of months ago we finally had saved up enough money to get a carpenter to come in and do some wood paneling for us in Australian hardwood timber, in front of the kitchen. It looks so much better than the original fake stuff and oozes period charm. So my advice is to go for real wood if you can afford it. I can send Pam photos if she is able to upload. Jason
Margie C. says
I vote for giving it a good cleaning, but not too harsh a cleaning. I’ll bet it will lighten up considerably. I think it’s lovely, but that also depends on how much is in the house–too much can be dark and overwhelming. I don’t think you should paint it before you’ve lived with it for a year. Trust me, a year will go very quickly, and you may find some great stuff that goes well with paneling.
Elisabeth says
sounds like a plan. Thank you.
Kathy Burgess says
What a pickled type of finish? There is a paint you can use but I do not remember the company so you do not had to go through the problems and chemicals of doing an actual pickled finish. It would certainly lighten things up without the expense of a total redo.
Cari says
I bought a 1967 Buddy Mobile Home. I attempted to clean the walls (it was a lot of elbow grease) but I bailed (too early in the process). So I just wiped them real good and painted over them with Kilz, zero VOC. In hindsight, I wish I had not covered them because they did have a neat pattern and shine to them. My advice to you (if you haven’t decided yet) is to clean one or two panel with tsp (or something that really strips away the years of dirt and oils) then oil it down with a good wood oil. Then see what that looks like first before painting. You can’t go back once you paint because it would be time and labor intensive to strip every tiny speck of paint from the paneling. The reason I suggest this experiment is because I saw a house with the same paneling as mine, that was cleaned thoroughly and it was gorgeous!! Whatever you do, I wish you joy! Take care.
Elisabeth says
thanks for the wish! back at you. I will keep it I think and see how it feels.
Laurie says
Can you try to clean it up to see if it will lighten up and look brighter/cleaner/fresher?
Angie Garcia-Johnson says
Our 1957 custom ranch has a wood paneled room originally used as an office for the realtor that built the house. We are only second owner and bought it because it had no updates except the lovely office paneling had been painted. It’s really luscious paneling (the closet and hidden ‘desk in a closet’ weren’t painted). So tempted to strip it but it would be a big job and the fact that faded or damaged spots are hiding behind the paint give me pause.
Mary says
We have paneling in our living room that was already painted when we bought our house in 1988. We actually like it and have continued to paint it.