Wood Veneer Hub slatted panels are an easy home office upgrade

As someone who has painted walls in almost every apartment I’ve lived in as an adult, let me tell you, painting sucks. I’ve learned tricks over the years to get the job done faster (I even have a set of painting tools!), but it’s still a long, annoying process that can take longer than expected.

Last year I had the privilege of becoming a homeowner and naturally the Big Algorithm took notice and started posting all kinds of home renovation projects, products and services on my Instagram. (Did you know you can get a free roof replacement? Yes, it sounds too good to be true.) However, one did catch my attention:Wood veneer bucket. I saw ad after ad on my feed showing home setups with a beautiful wood slat accent wall. It was exactly my kind of aesthetic.

The company promises easy installation—a room makeover that won’t require a laborious day of painting—and it largely delivers. As WIRED’s resident home office product tester, I decided to try these panels for my office. I’ve made standing desks, office chairs, webcams, desk lamps, and even filing cabinets, but I’ve never tried anything that would drastically change the look of my space.

Pretty easy installation

Wood Veneer Hub Slatpanels, as they are called, consist of strips of medium density fibreboard bonded to recycled felt material with sound dampening properties. Each box has two slat panels with approximately nine slats per panel; You will need to measure the walls (or ceiling!) to find the required size. You can choose between the Unfinished or Oiled Finish option, and I suggest the latter – it costs a little more but saves you the trouble of applying a finish and protects the wood.

I decided to try them on a wall in my home office, as an accent wall. It took about 13 Slatpanels (they sent me seven boxes, meaning I was left with a spare Slatpanel) and I screwed them into the studs. You can install them on top of the baseboard, but I decided it looked better without my baseboard so I removed it. There is a small gap between the panels and the floor, but it’s barely noticeable. This also meant that I didn’t have to cut any panels (except for outlets and light switches).

That’s the tricky part: making holes. I needed to make some holes for outlets, a light switch, and my lamp. If you have a chainsaw, you’re already in a much better place than I am. I had a simple handsaw and no work table, so it was difficult to get straight lines while cutting the pieces. I used my Milwaukee Fastback Knife to cut from the felt side first, and it did a surprisingly good job. Be smarter than me and use a level or long ruler and tape it to the panels to keep those lines straight. Fortunately, you have to look closely to see how irregular my holes are, or at least that’s what I keep telling myself.