Materials, with name and reference.
Guide 3 min read
How to use wood slats?
On the headboard, on a wall, on furniture or as a divider: where to use wood slats and what changes with their direction.
Short answer
4
places to use slats: headboard, wall, furniture and divider
Wood slats are used in 4 places: on the bed headboard, to clad a wall, as a detail on a piece of furniture and as a divider between 2 areas. Vertical slats make the ceiling look higher; horizontal slats make the wall look wider. With a felt backing, slats also absorb some of the echo in the room.
A slatted surface is a series of thin, parallel slats with a gap between them. It adds texture and rhythm to a plain surface and warms the room with the colour of the wood. The same idea works on a small piece or on a whole wall.
01On the headboard
Behind the bed, slats act as a headboard and mark out the sleeping area. They can match the width of the bed or run across the whole wall, with the bedside tables in front. Set vertically, they lengthen the wall and add depth.
For the height and width of a headboard, see the guide Headboards: height, width and proportion.
02On a wall
As cladding, slats bring a wall forward: the television wall, the sofa wall or the entrance wall. The direction of the slats changes how the room reads:
- Vertical slats: draw the eye upwards and make the ceiling look higher, especially when they run unbroken from floor to ceiling.
- Horizontal slats: draw the eye sideways and make the wall look wider.
Slats can also clad a column or a beam, so that it no longer looks like a stray element and becomes part of the design of the room.
03On furniture
On furniture, slats appear as a detail: on a front, a back or a base. One slatted surface is enough for a simple piece to gain texture.
On our pieces, slats appear in 2 places. The VETRA bookcase has a slatted wood detail and measures 240 cm wide, 200 cm high and 30 cm deep. The IMPERIUM dining table stands on circular slatted wood bases: the round version is 140 cm in diameter and the rectangular one comes in 180 or 220 cm.
The pieces in this guide
Sizes in cm
04As a divider
This is the most sought-after use. Slats fixed to floor and ceiling separate 2 areas without closing them off: light passes through and the view is broken up. From the front you see the other side; from an angle, the slats look like a wall.
Slats do not block sound. To choose between this and other solutions, see 7 ways to divide a space without a wall.
05Acoustic slats
There are panels of slats mounted on felt. Felt is porous and absorbs some of the sound that hits the wall, which reduces echo in a large living room, an office or a room with a lot of glass and hard floors.
The result depends on the thickness of the felt and the area covered. An acoustic panel improves the sound inside the room, but does not insulate it from noise outside.
06Slats, gaps and finish
- Slat width: the most common are about 4 cm.
- Gap: chosen for the effect. The narrower it is, the more the slats conceal; the wider, the lighter they look.
- Finish: exposed wood warms the room; slats lacquered in the wall colour add texture without changing the colour.
In the same room, repeat the wood of the slats in another element, such as a piece of furniture or the floor, so that they do not stand alone.
07Summary
- Where to use them:Headboard, wall, furniture and divider.
- Vertical slats:The ceiling looks higher.
- Horizontal slats:The wall looks wider.
- Common slat width:About 4 cm.
- Sound:With felt, they reduce echo; they do not insulate.
08Frequently asked questions
Do vertical slats make the ceiling look higher?
Yes. Vertical lines draw the eye upwards. The effect is greatest when the slats run from floor to ceiling without a break.
Where do wood slats work well?
Behind the bed, on the television or sofa wall, as a detail on a piece of furniture and as a divider between the entrance and the living room.
Do wood slats insulate sound?
No. Slats on felt absorb some of the echo inside the room, but do not stop noise from passing into the next room.
How wide should the slats be?
The most common are about 4 cm. The gap between them is chosen for privacy and for the effect you want.
The piece in this article
vetraBookcase in wood, with a slatted back€7.000,00Made to order in 8 weeksSee the piece
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