Hand Trimming Wallpaper

Some wallpapers (usually the higher-end brands) are not pre-trimmed at the factory. They come with an unprinted selvedge edge, much like fabric. This needs to be trimmed off before the paper can go up on the wall.

If you’re lucky, the manufacturer will have provided printed trim guides / marks. And if you’re really lucky, the trim guides will be “true” (accurate).

Trimming off this selvedge takes concentration, precision, and the right tools. Here you see my table, protective polystyrene strip, brass-bound straightedge, plus a good old trusty single edge razor blade.

Hand Trimming Wallpaper

A lot of high-end wallpapers come with an unprinted selvedge edge that has to be trimmed off by hand before the paper can go up on the wall.

Hmmm … they charge you more because it’s a “designer brand.” But they give you less, because it takes a lot of time, precision, and razor blades to trim this off, when the company could have simply done it at their factory.

O.K., moving past that … To trim off the selvedge, I used my 6′ brass-bound straight edge and lots of new, sharp, single-edge razor blades. The “Trim” mark guides printed on the material by the manufacturer were pretty much on-target.

Thus the pattern on the trimmed strips matched up very nicely once pasted and hung on the wall.

Hand Trimming Off the Selvedge Edge

This wallpaper pattern by Lindsay Cowels came with an unprinted selvedge edge, which had to be trimmed off by hand before the paper could go up.

I used a brass-bound straightedge and plenty of new razor blades to do this trimming.

Selvedge Edge Needs To Be Trimmed Off By Hand

The wallpaper mentioned in my previous post had an unprinted selvedge edge that had to be trimmed off by hand. I used my heavy brass-bound straight edge (not shown) as a guide. This takes a lot more time and precision than hanging pre-trimmed goods.