OK, so this master bathroom suffered a water leak, and the plumber had to cut through the drywall in the potty room in order to access the shower fixtures. Here the contractor has replaced the cut-out piece of Sheetrock. He did a really nice job. For the most part. Of course, he didn’t bother to remove the wallpaper before doing his repairs. This is vinyl paper (thick, slick, slippery, backing absorbs moisture) and really should have been removed first. But I was able to work around the patched-in area.The prep for this small room was a lot more involved than I anticipated, and required an extra day. Too complicated to get into, but there were two layers of wallpaper, and no primer by either of the previous installers. Original install dates back to the ’80’s. It took me a day and a half just to do the prep on this small commode room. The room finished. Note the stripes centered nicely on that back wall. The pattern and material were chosen to coordinate with the green stripes in the main area of the master bathroom. Kill point (final corner) over the door. I “shrank” some sections in order to get even widths and maintain the pattern repeat and match.The plumbing problem also damaged an area on this wall outside the water closet. So this area around the door needed to be replaced. The homeowners didn’t have any left over paper, so they chose something similar in color, style, and composition to the green striped paper you see to the right. Here is that transition door wall finished. We decided to use the stripe to define the ‘break’ between the two patterns. The alternative would have been placing the stripe against the door molding … but I felt that would be too repetitive, plus it would have left a cut-off section of flowers running along the side of the green stripe, and same on the opposite side of the door frame. And, yes, the wall definitely is not straight, square, or plumb. And here is that opposite side of the door frame, with the stripe running nicely along the shower tile. Some overlapping was involved in this job. Since the wallpaper is vinyl, and vinyl is slick, you need a special paste to be able to grab ahold of the glossy surface. These days, I sure don’t use often border paste, also sometimes called VOV or Vinyl Over Vinyl . But I was mighty glad to find this 10+ year old container deep in the bowels of my van. Still fresh and sticky, too!Besides borders not being popular today, these “satin” and “silk” look wallpapers are not very common. But this is exactly what the homeowners were looking for, to coordinate with the existing, 30-year-old paper in their master bath. Saved them having to replace all the wallpaper in both rooms! This paper is very economical, too. The couple shopped with Dorota at the Sherwin-Williams in the Rice Village, and she was able to track down the perfect material, pattern, and color. Now, aside from all the positive things I just said about this paper in this current application, I do want to make clear that I am not at all fond of this type material. Without getting into a long schpiel here, please click and read the page link to the right “Stay Away From Pre-Pasted Paper-Backed Solid Vinyl …. ” I will also add that I’ve developed a technique to work with these materials, and so far the installs, including today’s, have been going nicely. One double roll bolt had some of these blue mark printing defects running through about half of it. Luckily, most of these were on a section of paper that was cut off in order to turn a corner, so was discarded and not put on the wall. Exclusive Wallcoverings is the manufacturer. Usually I work with their non-woven or traditional paper products, which are quite nice. The home is in the West University area of Houston.
My favorite resource for finding your dream wallpaper is Dorota at the Sherwin-Williams store on University Blvd (contact info below). I stopped in to the store today to check out their huge selection. This is by far my favorite place to shop in Houston!
More than a hundred books, and a large table to spread them out on.York One of my favorite brands! Lots of lines and options.Thibaut Another of my all-time favorites. Just about everything they sell gets my stamp of approval!A Street Prints Wonderful quality non-woven material, lots of fun patterns.Brewster A great, dependable company that makes many lines under many names. Buy with confidence!Seabrook has long roots in the U.S. Very good brand.Rifle Paper A wonderful new line made by York, gaining popularity swiftly due to cute and innovative designs. Check out their Peacock.
No picture – Sherwin-Williams’s Easy Walls line is very good … It’s pre-pasted and a thin non-woven; easily hung and easily removed. I suspect it’s made by York, in their SureStrip line.
Essentials A compilation of other brands, most of which are good quality. A few “duds,” so consult with me or Dorota before buying. Overall, this line is the best of the lower-priced options.
Moving on to not-so-good (IMO)
Norwall Budget-priced, but long considered one of my least favored brands. Recently, though, I think they’ve improved their product. Plus, I think I have discovered a way to “tame the beast.” Still, better to avoid pre-pasted solid-vinyl products – see my page to the right.Basix Pre-pasted, paper-backed, solid-vinyl – my least preferred of all the wallpapers out there. Cheap, yes. But … ya get what ya pay for. Please click and read my page to the right.Mostly lower-end, pre-pasted paper-backed solid-vinyl materials … best to stick to brands at the top of the page.
NOTE: Avoid any and all peel & stick papers, including the S-W Easy Change line. Click and read my page to the right.
Where to Buy Wallpaper in Houston:
BEST OPTION FOR ASSISTANCE IN WALLPAPER SELECTION: Dorota Hartwig is my No. 1 go-to for personal help finding your perfect paper. At the Sherwin-Williams at 2525 University. With 20+ years selling wallpaper, she knows what’s in all the books and can quickly help you narrow down the search. Most major brands are available, with those wonderful S-W prices! There are four parking spots in front of the store, but better is the free 2-hour parking on the shopping center roof across the street. Her hours right now are Tuesday-Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – best to be there before 1:00 p.m. – but that can change, so call first. (713) 529-6515
In addition to the above in-store books, if you find something on-line, she may be able to get it for you. Here are some sure-bets:
No reason to search anywhere else! Plus, as I mentioned, she knows what’s in ALL the books, so can track down exactly what you’re looking for, saving you time and hassle.
You are looking at seams in a bathroom that are curling and opening up. This is due to a combination of things.
1, Probably the walls were not prepped properly. Wallpaper should be hung over smooth walls primed with a product designed to be used under wallpaper. Not paint primer and not bare Sheetrock and not glossy paint overspray around the woodwork.
2, Humidity is the great enemy of wallpaper. Especially in a small enclosed bathroom with poor ventilation. If your home has this environment, make sure to run the exhaust fan while showering, and leave the bathroom door open for ventilation, so the humid air can circulate out and fresh, dry air can venture in.
3, Manufacturers tout solid vinyl wallpaper as ” bathroom ” paper because splashed water will run off it. But this is misleading. What’s also going to happen is that humidity will find its way in between the wallpaper seams and then into the gritty manila-type paper backing. Once that backing absorbs moisture, it will expand. When that happens, it will push away from the surface, creating the curled seams you see here.
Taking it a step further, often this paper backing will actually delaminate from the decorative vinyl layer.
Tjhis is not a ” loose seam ” and cannot be glued back down. Your bet bet is to strip off all the wallpaper, properly prep the walls, and hang new paper.
Stay away from the low-end pre-pasted, paper-backed, solid-vinyl papers. A better option would be a thin acrylic-coated paper (not vinyl) or one of the newish non-woven (part polyester) papers.
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.
There are a couple of issues going on in this master bathroom, causing the wallpaper to curl at the seams and the layers to delaminate.
For starters, the previous installer did not bother to remove the original wallpaper, but hung on top of it. He did prime over the original wallpaper, which is good,,,, but that primer felt too slick to provide a good surface for the new wallpaper to stick to. I have a feeling it was not formulated for wallpaper.
Second, there has been a lot of steam and humidity in this room over about 15 years. This particular type of paper does allow moisture to find its way into the seams, causing curling and delaminating.
These pre-pasted, paper-backed, solid vinyl wallpapers are among my very least favorites.
Read more about this material by clicking the link below.
The first photo shows the original “cloud blue” wallpaper (along with some damage to the wall from when the pedestal sink was removed. I repaired that damage before hanging the new paper.) It was on a “satin” textured solid vinyl material, and both the pattern and the type of paper were very common back in the ’90’s.
Unfortunately, these paper-backed solid vinyl papers don’t hold up well, and have a tendency to curl at the seams and at baseboards, moldings, etc. Plus the shiny look is just … uh… a bit tacky.
Time for an update. The new paper is a complete 180* change – it’s dark and playful, with a small pattern that is more of a backdrop than a focal point in itself. The mirror and hand towel will help set off the paper.
In addition, this paper is on a non-woven substrate, which should not present the curling problems that the vinyl did. And the non-wovens are designed to strip off the wall easily when it’s time to redecorate.
This wallpaper pattern is by York, in their Sure Strip line, which I like a lot, 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.
Today I stripped off this paper. It was dark and dated. But also, it had started curling up a bit at the seams.
The homeowners said this started after Hurricane Harvey, when they were without power for two weeks, and the lack of air conditioning allowed humidity to permeate the house.
So here we have paper-backed, pre-pasted, solid-vinyl wallpaper doing what it does best – succumbing to humidity, by allowing moisture to wick in behind the seams, which causes the paper backing to swell, pushing the vinyl surface back in a curl. Sometimes, the paper backing actually delaminates (comes apart from) the vinyl layer.
My main reason why I encourage people to steer away from these materials. The price point is attractive, but the quality and longevity is not.
Interestingly as a side note, it looks like the previous installer did not pay attention to the pattern match. Well, no biggie. On this design, it is not very noticeable, and the homeowners have lived with it happily for 20 years or more.
I hung this paper in a master bathroom in Bellaire more than 20 years ago. It is still in perfect shape!
This is due partly to the good quality paper the homeowner chose (not low-end, pre-pasted, paper-backed, solid vinyl), to good ventilation removing humidity from the room, to good installation techniques, and to the great primer I used at that time – Oil Based KILZ Original. Unfortunately, EPA regulations forced changes to this primer, and wallpaper paste will no longer stick to it.
The homeowners are going to renovate and update the bathroom, so I was there taking measurements for the new room. When it comes time to remove this old paper, I know that it will strip off easily and cleanly, because of the installation and primer used when it was put up.
People often think that vinyl wallpaper will be good in a bathroom, because water will roll off it. but in reality, very little water gets splashed on the walls – but a lot of moisture can get wicked into the seams.
These photos (you may want to scroll to enlarge them) show how the lower-end, paper-backed, solid-vinyl wallpapers tend to perform poorly in humid rooms like bathrooms. The problem is that moisture gets in between the seams and into the paper backing. That backing absorbs moisture and expands, curling away from the wall. The backing can actually go a step further and delaminate from the top vinyl layer.
This type of paper often performs like this when you’ve got people taking steamy showers, forgetting to turn on the vent fan, forgetting to keep the door open for air circulation, etc. Neither of these situations can be fixed. You will be stuck with these slightly curled seams.
The thing is, there are plenty of nice, paper or non-woven wallpapers out there, that will hold up a lot better in bathrooms.
I’ve said it before – these budget-friendly, pre-pasted, manila paper-baked solid vinyl wallpaper products are generally not good quality, and the Norwall brand is about at the bottom of the list. In fact, I often will decline to hang it. Do a Search here on those terms, or click the Page to the right “Stay Away From … ” for more info.
However, this homeowner, a Meyerland neighborhood (Houston) victim of the Hurricane Harvey flooding, and a client for whom I had worked back in the ’90’s, really loved the pattern, as well as the price-point. And she wanted her entry to look as it had before the flood ravaged her home.
I was pleasantly surprised. The paper went up OK, and the seams looked fine. It’s possible that the company has improved its product. But it’s more likely that my new installation method helped.
Instead of following the manufacturer’s instructions to run the paper through a water tray, which makes the material too wet and promotes bubbling, and instead of pasting the back of the paper, which turns it into a gummy mess, I tried something new. I used a spray bottle to lightly spritz fresh water onto the back; this activated the paste, but was not so much water that it would cause bubbling or seam curling or over-expansion of the material. I booked the paper and put it in a black trash bag to sit a few minutes.
Next I rolled paste onto the wall. I started out using a very faint coat, but found that a tad more worked better. I used a brush to cut the paste into the edges and around the floor and ceiling.
When I took the very slightly dampened paper to the wall and smoothed it against the lightly pasted surface, it adhered very nicely. It was pretty easy to smooth into position, although there was some twisting of some strips, which could have been a problem in a room that required more strips next to one another.
Usually these inexpensive vinyl papers grow bubbles, because, as they dry, there is nowhere for the moisture to go (because it can’t pass through the vinyl surface), so blisters form. But today was very little bubbling.
Best of all, the seams looked good. I didn’t get any of the raised edges that are so unattractive, and that allow moisture / humidity to penetrate and cause the backing to swell and pull away from the wall.
I am not saying that I was happy with this paper. But it was a lot better than I expected. And I hope that it will continue to look good for years to come.
The Wallpaper Lady's Blog 