i pulled the strips off, slapped some plaster in the crack, and then covered with paintable wallpaper. It's time consuming and a pain but it looks nice. You can get the wall paper with a textured pattern,but i got plain. looks just like drywall.

My husband is a drywall finisher. he pulled off the strips and finished them in a traditional way with mud and tape.. then did a roll coat finish on the entire wall. it looks great!!