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A Clever Design Trick for Hiding Ugly Popcorn Ceilings

Hiding an outdated and unflattering popcorn ceiling can be tricky and expensive, so Home Made Simple designer Thad Mills came up with a crafty way to fix this all-too-common problem. By using bamboo reed fencing, you can quickly and easily cover up an unsightly ceiling while giving any room a modern and tropical update.

Directions

Materials
  • Tape measure
  • Reed fencing (commonly found at local hardware store in 13’x6’ sections)
  • Staple gun
  • Table saw
  • Tin snips
  • Ladder (or stepstool)

    Instructions

    1. Measure the dimensions of the ceiling, and establish how many reed fences you will need.

    2. Start in one corner of the ceiling, and align the first few reeds up to where the wall meets the ceiling. Staple the reed fence to the ceiling with a staple gun centered over the woven wiring, which holds the reeds together.

    3. Work your reed fencing across the ceiling, stapling every 3 inches over the woven wiring to secure the reed fence in place.

    4. Once the first reed fence is up on the ceiling, measure the size of the remaining gap. Roll out a second reed fence on the floor. Measure and mark the amount of remaining reed fencing you will need, and use the tin snips to cut the woven wiring.

    5. Raise this short section of the reed fence to the ceiling where the last fence stops, and staple over the woven wiring to secure in place.

    6. Work across the ceiling, placing staples over the woven wiring every 3 inches to secure the reed fencing.

    Tip: Have someone else hold up the opposite end of the reed fence so it doesn’t hang down and in your way.

    Tip: If there is an alcove and you need to fill in extra reed fencing, measure the gap on the ceiling. Cut out a section of the reed fencing to these dimensions and staple this smaller section up in the same way you did the rest of the fencing across the ceiling.
  • Published 09/09/2016
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