I highly recommend a few items although you don't HAVE to have them it just makes this project go so much faster. I bought a pancake compressor with three nail guns included saved me on this project and a miter saw. I bought both from Home Depot and they didn't pay me to say that it is just where I happen to shop. I actually had this all measured out and went to Home Depot and they cut the mdf primed boards for me. However I later purchased the miter saw and was then able to cut things right here at my house. The nail gun I used is a 16 gauge gun that can shoot nails up to 3 inches. I used a 2.5 inch nail to cover the thickness of the board and wall. Ok so I recommend deciding how you want your boards spaced first and measure and mark on the wall where you want them. I tried to do every 16 inches because that is how far apart my studs were but then I realized my wall wasn't an even length and so I have some that look a little off on the ends. Lesson learned