Custom Accent Walls
in Highland Park, IL

Wall paneling, fireplace walls
and built-ins for your home.

Accent Wall Works designs and installs custom accent walls for Highland Park living rooms, bedrooms and home offices. We plan each wall around your home's light, materials and furniture, from mid-century ravine houses to historic homes east of Sheridan Road.

Discuss My Project →
Bedroom with a custom accent wall

Accent Wall Design That Fits Your Highland Park Home

Many homes in East Highland Park have walls of glass, beamed ceilings and open floor plans, so only a few solid walls are left to work with. We help you choose the one that should carry the room and design it around the view, wood and stone you already have.

Keep the Ravine View in Focus

In a mid-century house with large windows, the solid wall often faces the glass. Slim wall paneling or wood slats in a calm tone frame the view instead of competing with it. We match the finish to the original wood, brick or slate.

Work With the Details of an Older Home

Tudor and Queen Anne houses east of Sheridan Road often keep their original trim and fireplace surrounds. Panel molding or wainscoting can follow those lines and look like part of the house. We plan the profile and height around the trim you want to keep.

Accent Wall Services for Highland Park Homes

Most Highland Park projects start with one of three services. Built-ins add storage where the floor plan has none, wall paneling adds depth to a plain wall, and stone or brick gives a fireplace wall natural texture.

Living room with a beautiful accent wall

Which Wall Should Become Your Accent Wall?

Living Room Accent Walls

In an open mid-century plan, the living room wall is often visible from the kitchen and entry too. Pick the wall you see from the sofa and from the door. Wood slats or paneling there tie the open space together.

Bedroom and Home Office Accent Walls

Behind the bed, soft paneling or a painted wall gives the room a calm backdrop. In a home office, the wall behind the desk is the one your video calls show. A quiet texture there looks good without pulling focus.

How to Plan a Custom Accent Wall

A good custom accent wall starts with the room, not a catalog. Compare the main finishes, then plan the details that shape the final design.


Before you look at samples, answer a few simple questions. They narrow the choice faster than a folder of inspiration photos.



  • Which wall do you see first from the entry?

  • Should the wall frame a view or stand out on its own?

  • Which wood, stone or trim tones should it match?

  • Will a TV, shelves or art hang on it?

  • What should stay in place, from outlets to furniture?

Compare the Main Accent Wall Finishes

Wall paneling adds depth through shadow lines. In a Tudor or another older home, it can repeat the existing trim profile, while a flat grid with thin lines keeps a mid-century room clean.


Wood slats bring warmth and a vertical rhythm that suits high mid-century ceilings. Slat width, gap and wood tone change the effect, so we plan where the pattern starts and ends before installation.


Stone or brick suits a fireplace wall, especially in homes that already use natural materials. Built-in shelving works on the walls beside it, where storage and display share one plan.

What Should Guide Your Wall Design?

Taste matters, but three practical points decide what will work on your wall. We check each of them during the first visit to your Highland Park home.

Daylight and View

Rooms facing the ravines or the lake get changing light through the day. Matte finishes and deeper wood tones keep the wall calm as the sun moves across it.

Ceiling Height and Scale

A tall mid-century ceiling can carry full-height slats or panels. In a lower room, wainscoting or a wider panel grid keeps the wall in proportion.

What the Wall Has to Hold

A TV, shelves or heavy art need support and cable routes planned before the finish goes on. We mark these points first, so nothing has to be cut open later.

How Accent Wall Works Runs Your Project

From the first call to the last piece of trim, every project follows the same clear steps. You always know what happens next.

It starts with a short call and a visit to measure the wall. We look at the light, the trim and anything that needs to stay in place.

Next, you get a design with the material, layout and a written quote. Changes happen at this stage, before any material is ordered.

On installation days, our experienced installers protect floors and furniture and keep to a set schedule. The last step is a walk-through of the finished wall with you.
Wood slat accent wall

What You Get at Each Step


  • A home visit and wall measurements

  • A design with layout and finish samples

  • A written quote before work begins

  • A set installation date

  • A final walk-through with you

What to Send Before We Talk

You do not need a finished design to get started. A few photos and notes help us give you a realistic scope for your Highland Park project.

Photos of Your Wall

Take one straight-on photo and one of each corner, and note the rough width and ceiling height. Show any trim, outlets and vents on that wall.

Walls You Like

Send two or three photos of walls you like and tell us what draws you to them. Mention the furniture and details that have to stay.

Address and Timing

Share your address, the timing you have in mind and any other work planned in the room. That way the installation can fit around it.

Planning a Wall in a Nearby Suburb?

From our base in Libertyville, Accent Wall Works serves homes across Lake County and the North Shore. Choose your town below, or add your address to the quote form so we can confirm the location.

Questions From Highland Park Homeowners

How much does a custom accent wall cost in Highland Park?

The price depends on the wall size, the material and how much prep the wall needs, such as moving outlets or repairing old plaster. Send photos and rough measurements, and we will prepare a free written quote for your wall.

Can you build a fireplace wall with shelves on both sides?

Yes. We plan the fireplace surround, the TV position and the built-in shelving as one design, so the wall reads as a single piece. Tell us what you want to store or display, and we will size the shelves around it.

Do you work in all parts of Highland Park?

Yes, we work across Highland Park, from the lakefront and Ravinia to the neighborhoods west of Route 41. We also serve Deerfield, Lake Forest, Northbrook, Glenview and other nearby suburbs.

Will an accent wall work in a mid-century modern house?

Yes, if the design follows the home’s clean lines. Flat panels, a simple grid or wood slats in a tone that matches the original wood suit these rooms better than traditional raised molding.

Plan Your New
Accent Wall

Upload a photo of your wall, add rough dimensions and a few inspiration images. We will reply with design ideas and a free quote for your project.

Get a Free Quote