Saturday evening we cut the two sheets of 1/2" CDX plywood to size and painted it black. Sunday morning the actual build began.

We screwed the 2x2 lumber to the studs (3" deck screws) and then screwed the painted plywood to those (5/8" deck screws). A laser level and a 4' level were handy here.

I didn't think about this outlet until we began mounting the furring strips. This complicates things a bit but it really just means there needs to be an access panel. I left the wall plate in place and made a cut for clearance.

Laying out the facade boards was the place I felt a bit uneasy. It was hard to know exactly how things were going to come out so we tried to mock up several rows at a time on the floor ahead of time.

I used the laser level to shoot a line for where the boards will end. I want this to feel quite rustic so instead of a perfectly straight edge I tried to vary by up to 1 cm on either side of the line. Securing boards was easy, just slap some construction adhesive on the back and pin nail them (you can't find the holes even if you try). Edges should be weathered so the cut edges always go to the inside.

By Sunday evening, the wall was in place. This is as far as we could go, the TV mount ordered Saturday morning should arrive on Monday.