Before. Dark tan paint wasn’t doing anything for the room. Glued-on mirror has been pulled off, tar / mastic adhesive removed, the damaged area repaired and resurfaced .
Done. The pattern and murky / muddy colors go nicely with the rustic slate floor .
The homeowner considered many other jungle type patterns , but kept coming back to this. I gotta say – it’s a winner! Dominant flower centered on the toilet . I centered the large flower on the faucet of the pedestal sink . Also, I like to run a bead of caulk along the top of the sink where it meets the wall. This will prevent splashed water from wicking under the cut edge of the wallpaper , which could cause it to curl and peel away from the wall .
The sink was about 3/8″ away from the wall, so the gap had been filled in with caulk . Over the years, the caulk had been painted to match the colors the walls had been painted (there was red before there was the tan). Then came my light blue wallpaper primer . I didn’t want any of those colors showing in the gap between the sink and the wallpaper. So I took a small angled artist’s brush and some craft paint (like you find at hobby stores or Texas Art Supply ) and painted the gap a color that would work nicely with the wallpaper .
Close-up.
The pattern is called Majestic Palm and is by Milton & King , in the House of Heras collection . I really like this company’s papers. For one thing, they have a lot of fun and innovative designs . But also, their material is a dream to work with. It’s a mid-weight non-woven (20% polyester ) material , and is flexible and nice to work with. Note: The NW papers can be hung by the paste the wall method , but I usually opt to paste the paper instead. This renders the material a bit more pliable and easy to work with, especially when doing intricate trimming such as around the decorative moldings on the linen cabinet . Also the best way to ensure that you’ve got paste holding the paper to the wall behind the toilet . Because of the polyester (plastic) content, on-wovens are also more resistant to water splashes and stains . And they’re engineered to strip off the wall easily and in one piece , with no damage to the wall , when it’s time to redecorate . Also breathable and will hold up well in a bathroom or somewhat humid room. The home is in the Cinco Ranch area of Katy / west Houston . installer
Home office work station niche primed and ready for wallpaper. Done. Grasscloth comes 36″ wide, and this niche was about 39″ wide, so it required two strips, both trimmed down to 19.5″ wide. Generally, design-wise, you try not to put a seam down the center. But in this case there was no other viable option. This seam was practically invisible.In the photo, the seam is a little to the right of center. You always see the seams in grasscloth, and this is about as perfect as it gets. The homeowner, who is an interior designer, did a superb job of finding a grasscloth that’s murky blue hue coordinates perfectly with the color of the cabinetry. Unfortunately, I don’t know the manufacturer of this material. Close-up showing the texture.Twin bookshelves flanking the fireplace wall in the family room, primed and ready for wallpaper. Grasscloth has been installed. It’s nice to not have the shelves in place – so much easier to get that paper up!Bookshelf niche on the right.Bookshelf niche on the left. Note the slight shading and color variations . These are typical of natural products like grasscloth, and are not considered a defect. As the manufacturers say, these variations are ” part of the inherent beauty of these natural materials .” Shelves will go in these niches and decorative items will obscure these slight imperfections. TV room bookshelf niche. Yes, t’was I who swiped the smiley face and the horse head into the primer. 🙂Done. This niche is a tad less than 36″ wide, so only one strip was needed, hence, no seams. Any color variations you see are due to shadows. Close-up.Closer-up. Scissors for perspective. These days, people are loving the subtle texture and warmth of grasscloth , paperweaves and other natural materials . The manufacturer of the grasscloth in both the family room and TV room is Schumacher . The home is in the far west area of Katy , a suburb west of Houston.
A toile is a sort of pen-and-ink drawing in one color. It’s a very classic look, and usually includes depictions of life in a by-gone era -although you can find toiles with nautical, fairy tale, animal, and many other themes.
This toile is from the Waverly line. I hung lots and lots of Waverly back in the ’90’s. Today, virtually none of it is available. This particular design has been discontinued.
The homeowners had this exact same wallpaper pattern in three of their former homes. They wanted it in their current home, too. Through thorough sleuthing, the homeowner was able to track down a stash of this pattern. He was able to access it through Sarah at Southwestern Paint on Bissonnet near Kirby.
The toile is by York, in their SureStrip line, one of my favorites. It is pre-pasted, and is designed to strip off the wall easily when it’s time to redecorate.
The powder room was more than a little wonky, with a wavy ceiling line and un-plumb corners. A pattern like this is forgiving, because its so busy and “scratchy” that you don’t notice if some of the motifs are going a little off-track as they move around the room.
The home is in the Cinco Ranch subdivision of Katy in far west Houston.
This homeowner in the Katy area of west Houston had recently retired, and was looking forward to spending a lot more time with her favorite hobby – sewing.
She chose this strong black and white geometric pattern to be an accent wall backdrop to the work she would be doing in her sewing room.
The wallpaper is by Designer Wallpapers. It is a non-woven material, and I hung it using the paste-the-wall process.
Since I don’t need my bulky pasting table for this job, in the top photo, you see me rolling the material out on the floor.
Originally, the homeowner wasn’t “really” thinking about adding wallpaper to her master bedroom. But, in the back of her mind, she must have been “kinda” thinking about it, because, after I finished measuring several bathrooms in the home and was poised to leave, she hauled me into the bedroom and asked what could be done to create more of a haven.
I pulled out some samples of patterns I have hung in other homes, and she immediately zeroed in on this one. My sample was the navy blue colorway, but she grasped that wallpaper comes in different color options, and was able to envision this in a softer color to coordinate with the rest of the walls. (Note that that hot pink is a protective plastic sheet – not the color of the headboard!)
To me, the pattern looks like architectural details from old Roman ruins. The distant photos distort the design a bit, so please look at the close up to get a better idea.
Usually I will place a design like this in the middle of the wall. But in the case of this 18′ wide wall, the bed was not centered on the wall, nor was the chandelier. In addition, there curtains on either side of the wall that obscured the corners.
So I opted to center the circular design motif on the chandelier. This meant the bed had to be moved to the right … a whole 3″. This way, as you walk out of the master bathroom, you see the chandelier, the headboard, and the wallpaper design all synced up vertically.
The pattern doesn’t hit the wall uniformly on the right and left sides of the wall, but the drapes cover that. And, on a wall this wide with lots of furniture in front of it, who cares, anyway?!
The wallpaper is by Designer Wallpapers, one of my favorite companies, and was bought at Southwestern Paint. See link on the right for where to purchase wallpaper in Houston. This home is in Katy.
Resembling a watercolor painting, this wallpaper looks even better in person. The colors are gorgeous, and the pattern is invigorating. The homeowner is in love with this update to her 30 year old guest bathroom in the Katy neighborhood of Houston.
This is the finished look to the room in yesterday’s post. The wallpaper is by Designer Wallpapers, a company that makes very good quality paper.
Although I can’t tell if these are wildflowers or weeds, I really like this pattern. The homeowner does, too!
The original wallpaper in this hall bathroom was dark and dated back to the ’90’s. It had held up well, though. But the homeowner was ready for something new and fresh.
The original wallpaper was hung when the house was new, and was placed directly on the drywall with no primer. That bode badly, but – once I went to work on it, it stripped off relatively easily, and with no damage to the wall. It DID take most of a day, though, to strip both the large sink room and the large potty room.
Then I primed with Roman’s Pro 977 Ultra Prime, specifically formulated for wallpaper.
This is by Designer Wallpapers, and is a heavier non-woven material. It can be hung via the paste-the-wall method – but that works better on single accent walls. For this bathroom, with it’s corners and vanity and doors, I chose to paste the paper, which makes it more flexible, and easier to work into tight areas.
This home is in Katy (far west Houston). I hung paper in their entry a few years back, and was tickled when the homeowner called me to do some more rooms (additional posts to follow).
She also used the same gal to help her select and purchase her perfect paper – Dorota Hartwig at Southwestern Paint on Bissonnet near Kirby, my favorite source for good quality, product knowledge, expert service, and competitive price. (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.
This beautiful bathroom, featured in the November 2019 issue of Better Homes & Gardens magazine, was designed by Veronica Solomon of Casa Vilora Interiors, based out of Katy (Houston), Texas.
I have hung wallpaper for this gal, and can attest that she does stunning work. Congratulations for getting a full-page spread in this national magazine!
I loved the way this pattern looks in the entry of this Katy-area home. It’s funny how your mind works. I took a close up photo of the pattern motif – and almost gasped when I saw it! There is an image hidden in this design. At least, I can see it. Can you?
Some people see a man, some see a woman. Clothing can vary, but all see the figure holding something. What do you see?
Here is what I see: A king wearing a crown and beard, with a hairy chest (or possibly armor), clutching dumbbells in each hand, sitting cross legged like a Buddha.
This young family, in the Tammaron subdivision of Katy in far west Houston, has been in their home for two years, but had never gotten around to decorating their master bedroom. (Look closely, and you’ll see the protective plastic still on the mirrored parts of the headboard.) With a new baby coming next week, whom they plan to have share their bedroom for a while, they wanted to get the room’s décor pulled together so that when the baby comes, she’ll be all they need to focus on.
I am usually booked several months out with work, but I had a schedule change and was able to get this family’s paper up – a mere three days before the baby is due.
Originally, the whole room was painted a deep purple, which you can see to the right in the top photo. It was a pretty color, but it made the large room oppressively dark. In that top picture, the heavily textured wall has been smoothed and primed, and is ready for wallpaper.
The home has pretty contemporary furnishings. The wife’s taste is more glitzy and glamory than the husband’s. So she had to choose something that went with their modern style, but was not so shiny or highbrow that her husband would be uncomfortable.
The second photo shows the finished accent wall. I think she did a super job of choosing a paper with shine and glitz, but that does not overwhelm the room with Hollywood sparkle or femininity. And that one accent wall does much to brighten the dark room.
This wallpaper pattern is a textured, shiny vinyl on a non-woven backing. It was a paste-the-paper procedure, and was very nice to work with. When it’s time to redecorate, the paper is designed to strip off the wall easily and in one piece.
The paper is by York Wallcoverings, and 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.
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