I Hated This ’70s-Era Home Feature — Now I’m So Glad I Didn’t Paint Over It

When I toured my now-home, which was built in 1979, I was extremely stressed out — and needed to move ASAP. It was the summer of 2020, my kids had been out of school since March, and I was getting a divorce. So when I viewed what would become my home, I looked the other way at a feature I initially hated and took the plunge. I felt like I had no other choice.

I liked so much about my house, but the wood-paneled ceiling in my living room and what would become my bedroom was not one of those things. That same wood covered the window frames and doors as well. Everything felt gloomy, dark, and dumpy, and I had always associated wood paneling with that cheesy laminate people had in their basements in the ’80s. 

But being picky was not an option. The things that gave me pause — the dark wood, the white walls, the Brady Bunch-style staircase — would have to be dealt with another day. The current owners were the original owners, and they were moving out to downsize. They’d staged the house well enough with their own furniture, which was fine but not to my taste. 

All I saw was someone else’s home. However, the location was great, the layout was good, and the size was ideal, and it was time to move. As we were looking at the house, I asked the Realtor about the ceilings, and she was professionally neutral. I asked her how hard it would be to paint it. I could tell she disapproved, even though she said, “You can absolutely paint it!” I began trying to picture the house with an all-white ceiling. 

I’d been living in a 1950s traditional ranch, and the windowsills and doors were all painted a high gloss white. The interior walls were now Sherwin-Williams’ Agreeable Gray, since we were putting that house on the market, but the living room had bright blue paint I’d lovingly picked out when we moved in several years earlier. I was used to that clean, uniform look, and stepping from the 1950s to the 1970s was jarring. 

While the house had been full of relics of someone else’s life, on moving day, it was empty — a blank canvas punctuated with warm, dark wood. I was so incredibly full of adrenaline, I just remember sitting on the floor against the wall in the living room and looking at the big space, my entire life gaping in front of me, all of it uncertain. 

I moved my own things into the house, lovingly curating a clutter-core aesthetic that made me feel safe and happy. I had to buy a lot of new stuff since I was moving during a divorce and had left half my previous belongings behind with the ex. I tried to match the house the best I could without knowing anything about 1970s design, and wanting my house to feel as “normal” as possible. 

One night, maybe my first full weekend without the kids, I walked through my house and realized how beautiful it was. The dark wood on the ceilings, windows, and doors was well suited to the architecture and, now that I was calm enough to notice it, the wood was so stylish. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t liked it at first — but I’m glad that I chose my home and, even more pressingly, didn’t have the time or wherewithal to try to change my wood ceilings before I moved in.

Now I get compliments on the vintage wood paneled ceilings all the time. I think it’s a perfect combination of funky ’70s charm and classy, spa-like coziness. It’s practically hygge. So often with homes, you’re not sure if you’re going to love something or not until you live with it. In my case, my wood-paneling became one of my favorite features of my home.