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 .
Half bath sink room primed and read for wallpaper . I have plotted where the seams will fall and striped with dark paint , to prevent the light colored primer from showing in case the seams gap a bit. Artemis is available as a floor-to-ceiling pattern. So this partial coverage option is an innovative and fun variation on a theme . This is the same pattern Artemis Climbing Walls as yesterday, but reversed , so the flowers go from bottom upward . The ceilings are pretty high. The empty 5 gallon bucket is there on the counter (with non-slip cushioning beneath it) as an un-OSHA approved footrest , so I can safely reach the top corners . Artemis is a very popular wallpaper pattern , especially in this dark / black colorway . Manufacturer is House of Hackney . This install was on four walls in a powder room , instead of a single accent wall. Since this comes as a 4-panel mural instead of traditional rolled goods, the layout was a little more tricky . I cut out the little mock-ups from the instruction insert, and marked them as to roughly where each panel was separated . This is a non-woven material, and can be hung by the paste the wall method, as I did yesterday in the dining room. But today, in the small and chopped up powder room , I opted to paste the paper instead. You will note that this pattern continues uninterrupted from one mural to the next. If you have a wide space to cover and will need more than one mural , this continuation of the design is imperative. Not all do, so check and be extra sure, before you order. Speaking of ordering material … remember that for murals, you MUST add 2″ to EACH side – in other words, a total of FOUR INCHES to BOTH WIDTH and HEIGHT . This will accommodate trimming at floor and ceiling , and also will allow for wonky or off-plumb / level surfaces . Better yet, have your wallpaper installer calculate for you. Houston
Not all wallpapers come as traditional goods with a repeating pattern in a straight or drop match. Companies like House of Hackney (here) or Milton & King (search to find my previous posts), often package their patterns as 4-panel sets, or A & B rolls. These take a little more thought and engineering than just pulling strips off a bolt and slapping them on the wall. You’ve got to keep the 1-2-3-4’s in order, and parlay that into whether you’re moving to the right or the left. In this scenario, I started in the corner, so was moving in both directions. 1, 2, 3, 4. Then 4, 3, 2, 1. In the photo, I’ve measured, cut, and laid out my strips in the order in which they’ll be applied to the two walls. Believe me – I checked everything twice – no, thrice! – before pasting and hanging. Another thing about murals and 4-panel sets,,, you only get one chance to get it right. There are no additional strips sitting around to be called in in case of a goof. Here is the manufacturer’s instruction sheet.
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