Beautiful symmetry … But look closer – those intertwining lines aren’t fronds of vegetation – they’re snakes ! The wall before. It’s a mid-century home, but the drywall here is new. Per my request, the contractor left it taped and floated , but not painted or covered with any coating . I had planned to simply prime this wall. But after examining it more closely, the surface was a little grittier than I like. So I ended up applying a very light skim-coat and sanding it smooth . Here the smoothed wall has been primed with Roman Pro 977 Ultra Prime . I’m plotted out the center of the wall and am using my laser level to ensure that the design in my first strip falls right along the center, and also is nice and plumb . My work table with two strips of wallpaper . Spoonflower packages its wallpaper differently from other companies. It comes in widths of 24″ and lengths of your choice of 3,’ 6,’ 9,’ or 12.’ Get their Pre-Pasted Removable Smooth option, which is water-activated , and is wonderful stuff. Do NOT get the Peel & Stick , nor the Traditional Pebble . The P&S and the Traditional are both very difficult to work with, and can lead to bubbles and creases on your walls , plus cause damage when the wallpaper is stripped off later. Back to the photo – the blue cube thing in front is my laser level , shooting its red line at the wall. Close-up I’m using this blue plastic tape on the edge of this strip of wallpaper. This will prevent paste from getting onto the wall or ceiling. The accent wall stops in this left hand corner, so I need to trim off the excess. But I don’t want to get paste onto the un-papered wall. Paste can cause the wall paint to crackle and flake off. So here you see how the blue tape is keeping paste off the wall. Once I finish trimming, I’ll check the back to make sure all of the blue tape has been removed. Any areas where the blue tape might be still on the back of the wallpaper , the paper won’t adhere to the wall . This tape is available to paperhangers / installers . If you’re interested, shoot me an email wallpaperlady@att.net Another thing about Spoonflower , the seams are meant to be overlapped, by 3/4″ . Note that this does create a ridge that runs vertically the length of each seam. In the grand scheme of things, this isn’t very noticeable. Actually, there are advantages to overlapping seams in this manner. No worries about white substrates showing at the seams, nor the paper shrinking and leaving gaps at the seams. Also, in case of unstable walls that might come apart ( delaminate ) under the tension of the drying / shrinking wallpaper, overlapping disperses the tension and helps prevent wall failure. This pattern is called Serpents and Apples and is by Spoonflower . Spoonflower has a lot of cute designs , and also a good number of fun avant garde patterns like this one. The homeowners have some other non-typical décor that will meld perfectly with this wallpaper. Think life-sized skeletons . … Notice how that light fixture hanging in the center of the wall kinda looks like a skull ? … The home is in the Oak Forest area of northwest Houston .
The vanity and marble countertop have been removed. This makes it easier for me to work, and also allows the paper to go down behind the countertop, rather than being cut along the top of the backsplash. So no worries about splashed water wicking up under the wallpaper and causing curling.What a beautiful room for a 10 year old girl!Peacocks and posies . This is a non-woven or paste-the-wall material. It was pretty thick and stiff. N-Ws contain minimum 20% polyester. There are many advantages to using them as wallpaper, including easy removal when it’s time to redecorate, because the strong material is supposed to stay in one piece and strip easily off the wall. One of my colleagues says it’s made of fiberglass. In this close-up shot, you can see the fibers and plastic-like sheen. I have a hunch my friend is correct!Manufacturer is Graham & Brown , pattern name is Resplendence , color is Blush ( dusty pink ).
In the photo, you see where the painter let his paint roller bop against the top of the wall. There are other areas where they painted the ceiling, but let their brush run along the top 2″ of wallpaper.
So what’s the problem? My task for today is to strip off the wallpaper. But the paint on top of it makes it difficult (impossible) for water to penetrate the wallpaper. Water needs to be able to soak through, so it can saturate the material and reactivate the paste.
If water can’t pass through this barrier and soften the paste, it will be a long road to hoe to get that paper off the wall easily and without damage to the underlying surface.
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