Cole & Son “Summer Lily” in Heights Powder Room

Flower nicely centered over the sink and light fixture.

Close-up shows “etched” effect.

I have long wanted to hang this classic “Summer Lily” design by Cole & Son. C&S may be a British company, but to me, this pattern evokes deep in the Louisiana bayou.

The pattern has a strong vertical lift, and a lot of visual “movement.” In this powder room with 10′ ceilings, it makes a dramatic impact!

It’s printed on a non-woven substrate, and can be hung with the paste-the-wall method. But I opted to paste the paper, because that makes the material more malleable. And, also, in rooms like a bathroom – how can you “paste the wall” when there is a toilet in front of it? ! 🙂 🙂

The home is in the Heights neighborhood of Houston. It’s a busy young family with three school-aged kids and a number of furry pets. And – yes – the three girls helped pick out this paper!

Washable, Kick-Proof Wallpaper

The builder of this contemporary styled home in the Montrose neighborhood of Houston included two large islands with seating areas – but neglected to address the issue of people scuffing the flat white paint with their shoes, or the pets splashing water and food onto the wall.

The homeowners needed something durable that would stand up to dings and that would be washable, too.

To the rescue is this heavy, solid-vinyl wallcovering in a sort of faux grasscloth design in a silver metallic color. It has a slight horizontal texture to it. The substrate is non-woven (not the cheapie paper backing that can be problematic in humid areas).

The paper went up beautifully on the flat backs of the island kick-area, and on the inside corners (required some vertical cuts to allow the paper to bend in the corner). But wrapping the thick, stiff material around the outside corners (see top photo) was not going well. The material simply was too thick to lie down tightly to the corners.

So I called in the Great Persuader – my trusty heat gun. With a little heat applied to both sides of the corners, and working it with my plastic smoothing tool, the vinyl conformed quickly and laid down neatly and tightly.

This is one of the few papers that is actually durable, resistant to dings, and washable. It will hold up well against human kicks and sloppy pets.

This vinyl wallpaper is by York Wall, and was bought from my favorite source for good quality, product knowledge, expert service, and competitive price – 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.

Faux Grasscloth Made of Vinyl – A Super Alternative to the Real Stuff

Digital Image

Digital Image

Because natural grasscloth frequently has disappointingly visible seams, and jarringly noticeable paneling and shading (color variations between strips and even within strips, even if they came off the same bolt), as well as staining and color running and pets clawing it up, I try to steer clients away from real grasscloth. I much prefer the faux products, which are much more predictable as far as color and pattern.

This is vinyl product made by Thibaut called Bankin Rafia. It offers the texture that people are wanting these days, buy has a much more uniform color pattern, and virtually invisible seams. Further, it is very durable, washable, water-resistant, and less attractive to claw-happy pets.