The crib will go on this wall. Originally it was textured grey paint , as you see on either side . Here is the wall after I’ve skim-floated / skim-coated it, sanded smooth , and primed with a wallpaper primer called Roman Pro 977 Ultra Prime . I have them put a little blue tint in it, so I can see where I’ve rolled it on. This wallpaper comes in one continuous roll ordered by the yard , as you see on my table , as opposed to double roll bolts as most brands are packaged. This cute pattern is called Thatcher . It looks like a simple repetitive pattern , but it was actually fairly complicated . Not all those starburst motifs , and especially not the fan shaped lines around them, are the same. Looks hand painted with a paintbrush . The paper has a clay coated surface , which give it a beautiful matt finish. It’s lovely stuff to work with – seams melt away like butter , and trim lines are spot-on. (Many companies’ are not.) This brand’s papers come with an unprinted selvedge edge that has to be trimmed off by hand. You use a straightedge and single edge razor blade , and follow the manufacturer’s trim guide lines , to remove the selvedge. Today trimming this one bolt to do one wall took a full hour. The brand is Pepper Home . The home is in the Woodland Heights area of Houston . installer
Before. The textured walls have been skim-floated and sanded smooth, and then primed. Welcome to the Jungle!Notice the watercolor-y look of this design. It reminds me of impromptu sketches by artists who work in “plein aire.” “Frida” by Pepper Home
The homeowner was browsing Pepper Home’s website and was instantly smitten by this rather uncommon theme and design. It’s called “Frida.” It sure is fun!
This paper is sold by the yard, was custom-printed, and came in one continuous bolt (54 yards!). It had a selvedge edge that had to be trimmed off by hand (see future posts). The inks are clay-coated, which imparts a rich matt finish, and the substrate is way better than what many other companies are printing on.
I positively loved working with it. The trim marks were spot-on, minimizing a pattern mis-match at the seams. Once pasted and booked, the material became very supple and flexible, and it could be “worked” much better than standard brands. Even better – the seams virtually melted away (became invisible).
I ran silicone caulk along where the wallpaper meets the top of the sink. This will prevent splashed water from pooling on the sink and then wicking itself up into the new wallpaper – which could cause the new wallpaper to curl and peel away from the the wall.
I love all things vintage, and have a keen fondness for old wallpaper in particular. So it really hurt to strip off this beautiful (albeit kitschy) mural – the original installed on one wall of a dining room in this 1960 home in the Timber Grove neighborhood of Houston.
The new homeowners, a young couple, had a more modern vision for the look of their home. This very whimsical “Franz” design feels both modern and mid-century at the same time. And, it perfectly mirrors the thin linear gold lines of the chandelier.
The wallpaper is by a company I had not heard of before – Half Full. It is based in California, and their products are reasonably priced. Unlike many “boutique” manufactures, the company was able to provide sensible product information over the phone, and I was pleased with the quality of their wallpaper.
The surface was printed with a clay-coated ink, and the substrate felt like a pulp material. Installation instructions called for a typical vinyl adhesive, and standard booking times. The material – particularly the edges – did tend to dry out a little too quickly, but a little additional pasting helped with that. There was no detectable shrinkage. I do wish they had printed this black design on a dark substrate, because, even though I used chalk to color the edges of the paper, the white paper backing did show through at the seams just a smidgeon.
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