Cole & Son Monkeys Liven Up Laundry Day

Look close – there are monkeys stealing fruit !

Window wall before. Here I’ve applied my wallpaper primer to the upper portion of the wall, and am working my way down.

Closer view of sink area.

The dryer and washer will be placed against this wall, and into this corner .

If there’s any words to describe this family , it’s lively and fun-loving . No wonder the mom chose this pattern !

The interior designer loved it, too. Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design .

The wallpaper pattern is by Cole & Son , a long-established British company , in their Fornasetti (” edgy ” ) line. Like most British papers these days, this is a non-woven material and a paste the wall installation method . Although I usually prefer to paste the paper .

The pattern is called Frutto Proibito – Forbidden Fruit . This is in a townhome in the Montrose area of central Houston .

Home Office Goes From Studious to Beachy

I admit, I really like the dark chocolate paint again the beautiful moldings in this home office.

But the homeowner is embarking on a new chapter in life, and wanted to freshen things up. She likes the beach and ocean, so this soft aqua look was just the ticket. I love the way it looks with the deep brown doors.

Railroaded (run sideways) over the cabinets. The wall to the right has not been papered yet.

Textured embossed commercial grade vinyl that mimics woven cloth. This stuff will wear like iron.

Manufacturer is Thibaut, in their Texture Resources collection.

This textured vinyl wallpaper is a beautiful and beachy update to this home office. But – man – it sure beat my butt! This should have been a one-long-day job, but it took me two days.

The material is very thick and hard to manipulate into place. And it is extremely difficult to cut through – even with a brand new razor blade. Add to that the many (10 – count ’em -10!) points of decorative door and window molding to cut around. And several other tricky spaces.

The end result, though, is beautiful and calming, and the homeowner loves it.

The home is in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston. The interior designer is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design, who does mainly new-builds and whole-house remodels in the greater Heights area.

Dining Room Is Brightened and Warmed at the Same Time

Before. Walls are primed and ready for paper.

After

The homeowner raved about how the wallpaper made the room look so much brighter. And it coordinates so nicely with the color of the woodwork and wainscoting.

Detail. There is a slight raised-ink feel.

Using my laser level to get the first strip plumb, and the motifs centered vertically between the windows.

The pattern name “Kashmira” reflects the slight ethnic feel of this pattern. The manufacturer is Baker Lifestyle, in their Echo Collection.

Here’s a dining room in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston that feels both cheerful and snug at the same time.

The material was “non-woven” and could be hung using the paste-the-wall method. However, I prefer the flexibility and accuracy that comes with pasting the paper.

The interior designer is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design, who works mostly in the Heights area of Houston.

Bright and Warm at the Same Time

Before

Finished

Close-up

Cheery but not overwhelmingly bright, this “Parada” wallpaper pattern lightens this breakfast room while still keeping the feel warm and inviting.

I think the motifs look like those gummy “orange slices” candy with the sugar crystal sprinkles. 🙂

The manufacturer is Thibaut. While I usually love their products, this one was difficult to work with. It is a screen print, and is printed on a thick, stiff backing that sucked up all the paste before I could get strips to the wall. I experimented with several pasting techniques, and found that lightly sponging the back with water before pasting, and then booking the paper (folding pasted side to pasted side) and then placing in a plastic trash bag for few minutes, helped to both soften the material and prevent the paste from drying out.

I also rolled on a light coat of paste under where the seams would fall. This held the seams tighter to the wall. The material was still stiff and somewhat difficult to work into corners or trim around the detailed moldings.

The home is in the Heights neighborhood of Houston, and the interior designer is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design.

Whimsey and Color for Heights Downstairs Bathroom

“Before pic.” The grey paint does warm the room up a bit, and it definitely shows off the decorative moldings. Yet the room feels flat.

Here we are “After,” with the room energized by color and with all sorts of clever images to look at.

Under-the-stairs angles complicate hanging paper in and around the shower.

Super close-up shows an almost hand-painted look.

This family in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston is all about their two young daughters. The wallpaper pattern they chose for their powder room could be called “fantasy personified” – perfect for kids! And adults using the room will be wowed by the visual impact of the bold black background and bright pops of color.

It may look like “just a bathroom” to you – but this took me more than nine hours to hang (I had done the prep yesterday). Intricate moldings to trim around, small spaces, tight angles, dimensions that didn’t mesh, high ceilings that made reaching areas such as over the sink difficult (i.e. risky), and more.

The wallpaper is by Borastapeter, a Scandinavian company. It’s a non-woven material, which has a lot of advantages over traditional paper or vinyl. Although one could use the paste-the-wall installation method, in this chopped up bathroom with intricate detailed areas, I chose to paste the paper. This helped ensure adhesion in even the tightest spaces, and also made the material more flexible and easier to manipulate.

The interior designer is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design.

Don’t you just love the pig wearing a sweater?!

Warmth With An Ethnic Feel For Heights Hallway

Boring

Warm and engaging, without overpowering

“Appleton” by Sister Parish

One doesn’t spend much time in this tiny hallway separating the living / dining rooms from the family room / kitchen. But the homeowner – an interior designer – felt the small space merited more attention.

This medium-scale, tight, two-color design called “Appleton” by Sister Parish fills and warms the space nicely, without overwhelming.

Further, it’s a wonderful backdrop to two hand-carved sculptures that will hang on the wall – both are sort of figureheads (like on the front of a pirate ship). They exhibit both a feminine and Asian look.

The wallpaper sets these works of art off way better than the previous plain painted wall.

The interior designer is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design.

Soft, Sweet, and Wistful for Children’s Bathroom

Before my baby blue primer hit the walls, this hall bathroom was all white – white walls, white tile, white vanity and mirrors and sink. Just a little bit of light grey color, and a simple white line drawing on this wallpaper do wonders to give this room warmth and personality. The design reminds me of a fairy tale. The family is bowled over by the change!

The paper is by Borastapeter, a Scandinavian company. It is a superb product – washable, easy to strip off when it’s time to redecorate, soft and supple enough to make hanging it in tight areas easier, seams are virtually invisible, non-woven material so can be hung via the paste-the-wall method (I pasted the paper instead).

The interior designer for this job is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design. The home is in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston.

Art Deco Heights Powder Room Revisited

I hung this gold-on-grey Art Deco inspired wallpaper in a powder room in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston a few months ago. I was back to paper another room, and couldn’t resist taking a shot of the completed room. The house is from the late 1800’s, and – cool fun fact – the mirror was found under the house and is believed to be original to the home.

The interior decorator is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design.

Black & White Trees in New Remodel Pantry

This 1910 home in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston has been renovated and updated beautifully.

I love the way this active and cheery black-on-white tree pattern compliments the view of trees and greenery outside the window.

This wallpaper pattern is by Anderson Prints. It is a traditional paper material.

The interior designer is Stacie Cokinos of Cokinos Design. She works mainly in the Heights area, and mostly on new builds or whole-house renovations.

Railroading a Trellis, Heights Powder Room

Railroading means the wallpaper strips were run horizontally, instead of veritcally. See top photo.

That treatment gave the room a little more visual height. AND it coordinates with the paneled glass windows in the front of the house – which dates back to 1895.

This pattern is by Candice Olsen, for York wallcoverings. The interior designer is Stacie Cokinos, of Cokinos Designs.

The home is in the Woodland Heights neighborhood of Houston.