Arrrgh. Another boring all-white room. So much warmth and character – with a modern edge – added by wallpaper on just this one wall . I do think that this pattern on all four walls would have been a bit ‘enclosed’ feeling. So a single accent wall – which is visible from the entry – is the perfect choice.There is a definite Art Deco / 1930’s vibe to this pattern .The room has other gold features (plant stands, mirrors), so the metallic look of this pattern pulls all that together . The metallic areas are shiny , so it’s important that I spent the first day here smoothing the textured walls , because that texture would show under the new paper and look bad. This paper arrives nicely rolled up , with no creases in the inner part of the roll / bolt , and every inch was useable . Compare this to the problems and wasted material I’ve had with Rifle Paper recently – do a Search to read previous posts . The pattern is called Beau Gatsby and is by Graham & Brown , a company I like a lot. This is a non-woven material and is designed to strip off the wall easily and with no damage when you redecorate. Many of their NW papers are soft and flexible , but this one was rather crisp and stiff , which is a little more difficult to work with. I usually prefer to paste the paper , which makes it more supple . But today I decided to paste the wall , which is a fast and clean way to install wallpaper. The home is in the Timbergrove area of the Heights neighborhood in Houston .
After wallpaper gets pasted , it needs to be booked (see following post) and then rolled loosely and left to sit a few minutes before it goes to the wall . During this booking time, sometimes the edges can start to dry out. To prevent drying out , I dip the edges in a bucket of clean water . Note that’s a shadow in the photo … only dip about 1/8″ of paper into the water , as seen on the left. Then it goes into a plastic trash bag to wait and relax , before install ing. Note this works for paper ONLY – do NOT try this with non-woven / paste-the-wall material. Also, it’s not suited for every type of wallpaper , so don’t use on grasscloth or other natural fibers, nor vinyl . So use caution if you try this. Also be aware that the water will wick into the edges of the wallpaper , and the seams can look dark on the wall until that water evaporates and the strips dry . I have found that this trick also works nicely with some brands that like to pouch up at the seams a bit, like Farrow & Ball , or lower-end pre-pasted vinyls. Dip the edges, book, run a light roller of paste under where the seams will fall, install , and the edges will want to stay down much better. The pattern is called Garden Party Trellis , by Rifle Paper . installer houston
Most wallpapers have to be booked after pasting and before hanging . Booking means that the paper is folded pasted-side-to-pasted-side , about 1/3 from the top and 2/3 from the bottom. Then loosely folded or rolled up like a newspaper. Then set aside for a few minutes, to give the paper time to absorb moisture from the paste, expand, relax, and become supple. Thing is, during this booking time, the paper can start to dry out, and can even stick to itself, and might tear when you try to unbook it. And easy solution is to place the rolled up material into a black plastic trash bag. Some folks sprinkle a little water in there, or place a damp rag. Now the paper can rest without fear of drying out. This also works if, for some reason, you don’t hang a piece right away, or maybe remove a strip from the wall, but want to save it for later. The plastic bag will keep it nice and workable for a long time. But do take care that the material doesn’t overbook – stretch too much, and then it might shrink as it dries and leave little gaps at the seams. This pattern is called Garden Party Trellis and is by Rifle Paper , a very popular brand right now. installer houston
Very disappointed to find these creases on the inner portion of all bolts of this wallpaper. I had to throw away at least 3′ from each double roll bolt . This is a non-woven material . Different manufacturers make different types of NW. This one is what I call thick and spongy , and it creases easily , and you have to be careful when installing . But, really, you wouldn’t expect it to come from the factory this way!Nope, you don’t want that on your wall !Here’s the back side. It’s severe enough that the paper is unusable and I had to discard many square feet – a good reason to always purchase extra !Straight from the factory , you can see that the paper won’t conform to the tight inner area of the bolt, and this is where the creases start. The brand is Rifle Paper , made by York . I’ve had this problem a couple of times before, and some of my colleagues have posted the same on our Wallcovering Installers Association Facebook page.
Please see yesterday’s post for the “before” photo. Here’s the master bedroom suite all finished. There’s a dramatic feature / accent wall behind the headboard with Rifle Paper ‘s beloved Peacock pattern . On the remaining three walls is Rifle Paper ‘s Garden Party Trellis . RiRight side of the room. The homeowner is a single gal , and she wanted her master bedroom to be a relaxing retreat , but with a distinct feminine edge . Well – here you’ve got it!! Left side of the room. Look here, and at the photo above, and you’ll see how nice this uniformity looks. It was tricky! See subsequent blog post for info on how I did this. Window wall – which took me five hours, BTW! She’s going to add window treatments that will be feminine – but the exact choice remains to be unveiled.I pulled some tricks to get the flowers centered down the middle of the window columns. See a following post to see how I did this. Pattern nicely centered on closet wall.
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Another nicely centered section of wall. Close-up. This pattern is just fun. I like to say that it looks like the flowers are smiling . Closer-up. The homeowner loved the ” column ” look of the vertical pattern . The pattern is called Garden Party Trellis , and is a companion to the very popular original Garden Party made by this company Rifle Paper . Which is made by York. Many Rifle Papers are printed on the non-woven / paste the wall material, which has many advantages – stain-resistant, dimensionally-stable , strong, strips off the wall easily and in one piece when you redecorate later. But this turned out to be a traditional paper type wallpaper – still good stuff, but a different material that calls for different installation techniques and time frame. I will note that the website stated that this was a nonwoven substrate . I encountered this conflicting information several times lately, so, despite what the on-line specs say, be prepared for any type of install scenario. This is a new home in the Rice Military area of Houston.
The entire bedroom is to be wallpapered . Originally, all the walls were a soft sage green . The homeowner wants the room to be a sort of retreat . Here the walls are primed and ready for wallpaper . Done! What a fun pattern . Peacock is very popular. At first the homeowner wanted this on all four walls. But I mentioned that the circular movement of the design could be overwhelming all the way around the room. So she opted to put the bold pattern on just this feature wall, and chose something quieter for the remaing three walls. IPositioning the first strip . I plotted to have the peacock fall down the center of the wall, so it will be balanced nicely behind the headboard . Note that the center of the peacock isn’t perfectly in the center of the wallpaper, so I had to position the strip a little off-center on the wall, so the peacock’s body would hit the center point . Because this is a dark paper and sometimes the wall peeks out from between the seams , I’ve striped black paint under where the seams will fall. Not too heavy, though, because you want the wallpaper primer to still be able to do its job, part of which is to be grabbing and holding the seams down. I use a heat gun to get the paint to dry quickly. I just use acrylic craft paint from the hobby store ( Texas Art Supply , which is close to me). I daub some paint on a scrap of sponge , dip it in a small amount of water (in the Gatorade bottlecap) to dilute it a bit, and then run it down the wall, using the light beam from my laser level as a guide. I also use pastel chalk to color the white edges of the wallpaper, so they are not visible . Be sure that what you use is chalk and has no oil … oil will stain wallpaper and other surfaces (think potato chips on a paper napkin). This Rembrandt brand is oil-free. Apply from the back, getting color on the edges only, and not on the surface. This is a non-woven / paste the wall material. It’s strong and durable and stain-resistant . In addition, it will strip off the wall easily and in one piece when you redecorate, leaving no damage to the wall. installer Houston
Powder room before. The original paper dates to the ‘90’s , and was a popular theme at that time. Fast-forward 30 years and add a young family with active kiddies = time for an update . For various reasons, the existing wallpaper could not be removed . So I’m prepping and will hang the new paper over it. Here I’ve skim-floated over the seams, so there will be no ridges showing under the new paper . Next I’ll seal with a stain blocker (see previous post) and follow that with Roman Pro 977 Ultra Prime wallpaper primer .Primed and ready to for wallpaper .Such a pretty pattern , full of movement and cheer . The homeowner wanted something dramatic , hence the dark color . Dark works quite nicely in a small room like a powder room . The homeowner also wanted the ceiling papered . Close up .From a distance . A large , sculpted mirror with a heavy white frame will be hung over the sink. This will contrast against the dark paper , and really stand out . I like to think that the wallpaper is the star attraction , but I really think the mirror will take center stageThe pattern is Cornflower and is by Rifle Paper , made by York , one of my favorite brands . This is a non-woven / paste the wall material . It’s relatively easy to work with , and is designed to strip off the wall easily and in one piece without damage to your walls when it’s time to redecorate . This was purchased from Dorota at the Sherwin-Williams on University in the Rice Village . Excellent help in tracking down your perfect paper , and discounted prices , too. Wed – Sat . Call before heading over (713) 529-6515 . The home of this install is in the West University / West U area of Houston .
Pedestal sinks (and toilets ) are tricky to hang wallpaper around and behind . Over-working or manipulating the paper to fit and then trim around curves like this can cause tears , creases , or burnishing , among other issues . Also, if there’s a cut edge along the top of the sink / vanity , if water splashes , it can be wicked up by that cut edge , sucked up into the wallpaper, which can cause curling at the seams and / or delaminating of the paper . So , instead of being trimmed / cut along the top, best if the wallpaper can go behind the sink / backsplash.Here’s the 1/4″ or so gap that I’m going to work the wallpaper into. Rather than trying to wrestle a 9′ strip of 27″ wide wallpaper down the wall and around this sink , it made sense to cut the strip horizontally at a point just below the top of the sink . I’ll piece the bottom section in shortly.Sometimes, pedestal sinks are adhered to the wall with caulk , and cannot be moved. But today I got lucky. I was able to go under the sink and loosen the bolts , one on either side, ( see photo ) holding it to the wall . This is not easy – you’ve got to have small hands , good eyes , good light , a plumber’s wrench , a box wrench , or a pliers – whatever works! And not undo too much, because you don’t want to dislodge the system ( toggle bolt ) that’s holding the bolt in place. After all that, loosening this bolt gave me about a whole ¼” area of play . Still, I was able to carefully and slowly work the wallpaper behind and around the sink , without significant creasing or damage . See second photo .
The pattern is called Cornflower and is by Rifle Paper , a brand by York , one of my favorite manufacturers. Rifle Paper is usually a user-friendly non-woven material , also called paste-the-wall …. although can sometimes surprise you with traditional paper wallpaper instead of N-W .
It’s been a few years since I’ve visited this place, but today I was working right around the corner, and finished early enough to stop in. And I wanted to check up on my friend Ron Dillon , who’s been selling wallpaper for about 30 years – and I’ve known him just about that long, too!Calico (formerly Calico Corners ) sells mostly fabrics , drapes , and upholstery . But they do have wallpaper , too. OK, only a couple of books right now, but all good brands . York and A Street Prints (which is under the Brewster umbrella.) And the corporate office has plans to issue more books. Please note that if you find something you like, even if Calico doesn’t have the selection book in-house, if it’s a brand they sell (like York ), they can most surely order it for you. Calico has many vignettes displaying furniture with their upholstery . And racks and racks of fabrics .There is a current trend toward grey and/or white rooms. So I was thrilled to see that Calico offers plenty of options with color , too.As well as grey , of course. (Decorated up for Valentine’s Day in this photo.)Area where you can sit and work with a designer for your fabric decorating. Oh – and don’t forget about wallpaper!Faux suede fabric samples .Photoboard display.I love this Check List. Especially “Make an Appointment.” This ensures you’ll have the designer’s full attention. And especially “Wallpaper Guest Bedroom.” 🙂 In fact, I think you should paper every room! 🙂Lorena Sosa is the store manager , and a skilled designer. Ron has a degree in Interior Design , as well as decades of experience selling (and installing !) wallpaper. He also has a knack for “seeing” the client’s room in his ” mind’s eye ” and knowing intuitively and immediately what fabrics and papers and paint colors will work to pull everything together. Also a kind and upbeat person. My clients who work with him always rave about their experience.
Just about every wall and surface in this home is white . This super fun , super colorful pattern really energizes the little girl’s room / nursery . Before, with my tinted- blue wallpaper primer Roman Pro 977 Ultra Prime applied.I love contrasting the colorful wallpaper to the plain “before” look. Red flowers centered under the window , so it will look nice falling around the crib . Close-up .The manufacturer is the popular Rifle Paper , made by York . I love this brand – but beware of printing defects , which have been popping up more and more these last few years. Also, Rifle Paper is usually a DIY-friendly non-woven or paste the wall material . So I was surprised today to find this is a traditional paste the paper product . Actually, I’ve had a good handful of RPs lately that were paste the paper . These two materials call for completely different installation methods. The PTP takes more time and equipment , too. The home is in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston .
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