Symmetrical Leopards on Home Office Accent Wall

Moody and dark. A great, snug place to hunker down and spend the day on the computer , working from home . But maybe a little too much dark ?

An accent wall brightens the space and adds interest .  Makes a day at work more inviting.
BTW, those windows with their bull-nosed edges / rounded corners are a bear to hang wallpaper around, requiring special techniques.  I won’t go into details, but, after applying my wallpaper primer, just this one wall took me about six hours. 

Surprise! Look closely and notice the jungle theme , with palm trees and leopards .
I centered the pattern between the windows , for a balanced look. 

Close up.

See the fibers on the torn edge of the wallpaper strip ? This is a non-woven material , also called paste the wall , and has a 20% polyester content . Thus the fibers. This stuff is simpler to hang than traditional wallpapers . Also more washable and stain-resistant , and will strip off the wall easily and with no damage to the wall when you redecorate later.

These days, most people don’t use land lines or phone jacks .  So I removed the wall plate , and stuffed the connector into the wall .  Then I hung the wallpaper over the hole / box .  It’s right above the head of the cat on the left.  If the homeowners ever want to access the phone line , they can easily cut the wallpaper to open up the box , then reconnect it and then screw the wallplate back into place. 

The wallpaper is by York , under the designer Ronald Redding .   The label says it’s a paste the paper installation method , but in actuality, the instruction leaflet enclosed inside the roll is correct – it can be hung via the paste the wall method . Usually I prefer to paste the paper . 
This is a newish townhome in the Sawyer Yards area of Houston .

A Sweet Laundry Room in the Heights

Before: Drab, lifeless khaki paint.

After: Bright and cheerful, and definitely unexpected.

Wallpaper coordinates nicely with the stained glass window.

Fun surprise – Are they pineapples or flower bouquets?

The pattern is “Ludic” by Woodchip & Magnolia.

The home is a nicely renovated bungalow in the Houston Heights. The only place to tuck in a laundry room was in an alcove off the master bedroom. Not only does the wallpaper brighten the space, but it looks pretty when viewed from the bedroom.

The material is “non-woven” and can be hung by pasting the back of the paper, or by pasting the wall. I usually choose to paste the paper.

Trees Brighten and Lighten a West U Powder Room

Plain paint in a khaki color is just drab.

A white background and “movement” from the tree forms brightens and energizes the space.

Almost looks hand-painted.

Most wallpapers by Exclusive Wallcoverings are traditional un-pasted paper, so I was surprised to find that this one was a paper-backed vinyl, and pre-pasted, too.

I am usually not a fan of the lower-priced pre-pasted, paper-backed solid vinyl (read my page to the right). But this brand has figured out how to make a quality product, and I was pleased with it.

Best of all is how the white background lightens up the space, and the intertwined branches bring a lively feel to the room.

The home is in the West University Place neighborhood of Houston.

Wild Bursts of Water-Colory Hues!

Oooooo …. Here’s something fun!

This 5-year old townhome in the Montrose neighborhood of Houston is typically all pale grey and tan. The homeowner wanted to brighten it up, as well as pull in some colors that coordinate with vivid artwork they have collected in Africa.

This pattern with bold swipes of primary colors in a sort of faux-finish design is perfect!

I hung this in a large powder room, as well as two walls in the adjoining bar area (no photo yet – see separate post).

This wallpaper is by Wallquest, and was sold by my favorite source for good quality, product knowledge, expert service, and competitive price – Dorota Hartwig at Southwestern Paint on Bissonnet near Kirby. (713) 520-6262 or dorotasouthwestern@hotmail.com. She is great at helping you find just the perfect paper! Discuss your project and make an appointment before heading over to see her.

Scandinavian-Feel Botanical Mural in a Guest Bathroom

The plants in this wallpaper pattern are native to Scandinavia, and are a nod to the homeowner husband’s Norwegian heritage. The bright colors and white background really brightened up the bathroom.

This product was atypical, as it was 36″ wide (instead of the typical 20.5″ or 27″). Additionally, it came as a 2-panel set mural, with an “A” and a “B” panel. It took three sets to paper this bathroom.

This was a thicker non-woven material. It could be hung by pasting the wall, or by pasting the paper. I chose to paste the paper – which makes more sense when going around pedestal sinks and behind toilets.

Even though non-wovens are virtually impossible to tear, I had to work very gently with this material, because the surface could be creased or marred quite easily, simply by folding or unfolding it.

This wallpaper pattern is called Brita. It is in the A-Street Prints line, by Brewster, and was bought from my favorite source for good quality, product knowledge, expert service, and competitive price – Dorota Hartwig at Southwestern Paint on Bissonnet near Kirby. (713) 520-6262 or dorotasouthwestern@hotmail.com. She is great at helping you find just the perfect paper! Discuss your project and make an appointment before heading over to see her.

Cute Paris Theme for Little Girls’ Shared Bathroom

Most everything in this new home in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston is sleek and white. The homeowner wanted to add just a little pizazz to the hall bathroom shared by her two young daughters.

This Paris-themed design, with its pencil-thin lines and three-color palette is just perfect! I love the way the line drawing effect reiterates the lines in the shower’s subway tile. Charcoal grey, white, and just a touch of red are enough to brighten the room, without overwhelming the serene white color scheme. And it’s a fun design to look at. I mean, who wouldn’t love Paris – especially a Paris with a Ferris wheel?

The wallpaper is by York Wall, in their Sure Strip line, and is a pre-pasted product on a thin non-woven backing. It is designed to strip off the wall easily with no damage when it’s time to redecorate. In the meantime, it is thin and hugs the wall tightly, and the seams are practicably invisible. This brand is very reasonably-priced.

The interior designer for this project is Stacie Cokinos, of Cokinos Design. Stacie specializes in helping choose floor plans, finishes (flooring, countertops, paint colors), fixtures (faucets, lights, knobs), appliances, in new home construction and in remodel projects. Her look is fresh and clean, but very livable for modern families. She is a delight to work with.

Sunny Starburst Entry

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The walls in this 60’s era Meyerland-era entry may have been white, but they did nothing to lighten the small room. The homeowner’s vision of a gold-on-white sunburst medallion motif brightened things immediately. The feel is crisp and playful.

The homeowners plan to change the light fixture in the room, and I am trying to convince them to go with a gold one that is spherical and spoke-like, and resembles the sunburst design.

This wallpaper pattern is by Thibaut Designs, printed on a non-woven substrate, and was intended to be a paste-the-wall installation. However, the paper behaved better and the seams looked better when I pasted the back of the paper, instead of the wall.

was bought at below retail price from Dorota Hartwig at Southwestern Paint on Bissonnet near Kirby. (713) 520-6262 or dorotasouthwestern@hotmail.com. She is great at helping you find just the perfect paper! Discuss your project and make an appointment before heading over to see her.

Wallpaper on Bookshelves Brightens a Dark Room

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This living room in a home in the Bunker Hill Village area has lots of windows, yet gets little natural light, and has skimpy interior lighting. In addition, the dark wood of the built-in bookcases seems to suck up what little light there is.

Interior designer Layne Ogden used this light tan faux grasscloth to both add textural interest to the back of the bookshelves, as well as lighten them up. Just this little touch brings a lot of lightness into the room.

The wallpaper is a vinyl product by Thibaut, with a textured surface that look like real woven grasscloth. Because it’s man-made, there is none of the visible seams or color variations between strips, nor the staining problems that are inherent to real grasscloth, plus it’s washable. It’s a little thick and tricky to trim or turn corners, but I like this product a whole lot and try to steer people toward it when they are considering grasscloth. It is called Bankun Raffia.