Easy DIY Faux Wood Ceiling Beams: Step By Step Guide

These faux beams were so simple to install and so budget friendly! This step by step guide will show you exactly how we added rustic charm to our basic, drywalled kitchen ceilings! 

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Hello friends! Finally, the DIY faux wood beams tutorial post so many of you have been waiting for!

I know I reference Instagram here on the blog pretty often, but that’s where I generally share more of our day to day routine in my stories, including DIY projects that I’m working on at the time. 

I love interacting with my readers over there, getting feedback and sharing budget friendly decorating tips. A lot of the blog posts I’ve published here recently are actually the result of YOUR interests, and this post is no different!

A few weeks ago I gave you all a glimpse of the end result of the faux wood beams we installed in our kitchen, and I could not believe the number of direct messages I received from followers wanting to know more about the faux ceiling beams.

I’ll do my best to answer all your questions about this simple DIY decorative ceiling beams and share step by step exactly what we did. Let’s get started!

This post contains affiliate links. To read our full disclosure policy, click here.

Supplies Needed for the Easiest Faux Beams Ever –

• 2×6 pine boards (we used 10 footers)
• Plastic hollow wall anchors #8-10
• 2.5 inch wood screws
• Cordless drill
• 1/8 and 1/4 inch drill bit
• Chop saw
• Measuring tape
• Pencil
• Wood stain of your choice
• Rag or brush to apply stain
• Tools to distress boards – chisel, screwdriver, hammer, chain, etc.

I have always loved the look of beams, but the only problem is that our 1930’s home has beautiful coved, plaster ceilings in both the living and dining room, I sort of let the idea go. Then, this past summer I was flipping through some old issues of the Magnolia Journal when I saw a gorgeous photo and the idea hit me – what if we just installed fake beams in our kitchen? 

What I loved about the real wood beams in the above photo was the fact that they weren’t very thick. Our kitchen ceilings are only 8 feet tall, and I didn’t want to make our already narrow, galley style kitchen feel even smaller by installing beams. 

I showed the photo to my husband and asked if he could create the same look using 2×6’s or 2×8’s, and he told me it could (probably) be done. An answer I love to hear.

Before he left for the lumber yard, I told him to pick out the most beat up, rustic boards he could find for this DIY wood beam project. He looked at me like I was crazy, but said he would do his best. I really wanted the rustic look of imperfection in the wood strips: nail holes, knots, dings and dents…you get the idea haha

Just be sure that the boards you choose are NOT warped, we learned that the hard way! Lay them down on the floor first to see if they lay flat. If they are bowed at all it will be so difficult to get them flush with your ceiling!

When he came home with the wood, I could not have been more pleased. He found some great, rustic looking boards!

While most of the boards he chose had great character, some of them definitely looked a little new and perfect still. In order to make those boards look rough and old, we had fun using different tools to distress them…but I’ll get to that in a moment!

Installing the Easiest Faux Beams Ever – Step 1

Before you waste any time beating up wood that you won’t even use, be sure to cut your boards to the proper length. We ended up using 2×6 pine boards, and we simply measured the full length of our kitchen to determine how many beams I wanted and how far apart they would be. 

Each space is different of course but for reference, we purchased 5, 10 foot 2×6 inch boards. We chose to install beams on either end of the kitchen, one in the very center of the kitchen, and then one at the half way mark between the center and each end. Our beams are roughly 5 feet apart.

After marking where each beam would be installed, my husband numbered and measured the length of each location then cut each numbered board accordingly.

Installing the Easiest Faux Beams Ever – Step 2

Once all of your boards are cut to size, it’s time for the fun part! We used a chisel to rough up the edges of the boards that looked a bit too new, and we also made marks on the wood with a hammer and screwdriver. You can do as much or as little distressing as you would like!

Installing the Easiest Faux Beams Ever – Step 3

After distressing all of your boards, it’s time for stain. Choosing the color was quite a long process for me. I played around with so many different colors and mixtures and I made sure to test my concoctions on wood scraps before staining the actual boards. 

I ended up creating my own stain using equal parts Weathered Oak, Pickled Oak, and Golden Oak by Minwax. You can see in the cell phone shot below what the color looks like (I circled the color and sent it to my Mom, lol). When I first stained the boards I was in love, but once they were on the ceiling I felt like they needed to be a bit lighter. I’ll talk more about that later on.

I will say that I didn’t seal my boards with anything, I just haven’t gotten around to it yet. I’m considering using a clear furniture wax or a even a matte Polycrylic, I will update this post once I decide!

I love how the stain settled into the marks and crevices of the wood. Here’s what the beams looked like after staining them –

Installing the Easiest Faux Beams Ever – Step 4

Now it’s time to attach the boards to the ceiling.

Depending on the way your rafters run, you may not need to use anchors. You could use a stud finder and attach your beams right to the studs. Since I wanted beams where there were no rafters (leave it to me to make things difficult), we needed to use anchors. 

First, my husband used an 1/8 inch drill bit (long enough to go through the board) in order to drill pilot holes where he would be placing screws. He held the board up to the ceiling (I gave him a hand with this), then he drilled the screw through the pilot hole just enough to where he put a mark on the ceiling. 

He then removed the board and drilled a 1/4 inch hole on each mark for the anchors.

Once the anchors were in place, he brought the boards back up again and drilled the screws all the way into the anchors, attaching the boards to the ceiling. 

Forgive me for not having a photo of him drilling the boards to the ceiling…I was helping him hold each board in place while he drilled it in. My apologies!

And that’s it! We left the screws on our beams exposed, but if you really wanted to you could counter sink the holes and use wood filler or plugs to hide your screws. They really don’t bother me that much, to me they look like another mark on the wood.

I just love the way these beams turned out. It was so simple and such an affordable project since we already had the screws and anchors. The wood was about $40, so not bad at all!

This past week I wanted the boards to look a little lighter and more weathered, so I brushed straight bleach right on to the beams. Each beam got about 5 coats, and I love how much they lightened. I may even do a few more coats!

So, what do you guys think? I love the rustic warmth these faux beams add to the kitchen. Do you have any other questions? Let me know in the comments below!

UPDATE – I ended up finding real reclaimed wood beams! Read the entire blog post and update here!

PIN IT FOR LATER

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