@ninigret

What made you choose wallpaper? Rather than painting the rooms the same color? And yes. I wouldn't trust myself to put it up either ! :)

@acm

Can you still access the meters? Or is it covered entirely? If there was no access panel, would you still have thought of wallpaper?

Yes, you can open the (wallpapered) access panel with a little screwdriver knob and it swings right open. I probably would not have gone wallpaper if I had not had this logistical issue, but I liked the look of the room enough that I'm using the same combination of paint and wallpaper in a small powder room on another project.

FYI acm that panel has to ce accessible without the use of a tool so would not pass code where I live anyway.

@acm interesting. I like when one circumstance makes you look at things differently! How did you find working with the wallpaper?

@JL Why do you use a company? Why do you love using it?

@Patricia -- I may not be remembering correctly; it might have been a small finger ring. easy to work though.

i would never in a million years paint different rooms the same color, is why! ha!

I've wallpapered a number of rooms. It's labor-intensive, messy, requires climbing up a down a ladder a hundred times and the paper, depending on the pattern, can be a pain to match. Even worse is removing it when you tire of it or when it's seen better days.

The best thing you could do is to try a small wallpapering project yourself. That would answer most of your questions. Experience is the best teacher. :o)

I use wallpaper to line my dresser drawers. :)

Almost 20 years ago, I purchased a house that had wallpaper in every room - and none of it was to my taste. I removed every scrap, and after wrestling with it for weeks, I swore I would never use wallpaper again! So far, so good...

Over the years, I have wallpapered lots of rooms and although it is not difficult, it is time consuming, cumbersome and tedious to get perfect. Having help is priceless. Some were easy to remove and others came off in tiny slivers..not fun, so I decided not to paper again and also felt it was old fashioned. It came back into fashion...but was still not tempted. Then we moved to an old home and one of the walls was rough and rather than having it repaired professionally, I papered it which did the trick. Due to cat scratches, I have had to replace for the 3rd time....but this time, discovered blank wallpaper that has a grass cloth feel/pattern and it's paintable. It is amazing..and yes, cats are scratching, but I keep the paint can handy and touch it up. With the texture being rough, the marks blend into the raised lines and I would highly recommend not only for cat issues, but young children can also play havoc with paper. It also has a lovely feel to it and the paint seems to highly the layering/rough look and creates depth.

Last weekend I wallpapered two sliding doors of a storage cupboard. The doors were plain white and I have hated them ever since we moved in 23 years ago. Used a paper with birds sitting in trees on a white background, and absolutely love the result. Since installation II have caught our cats staring at the doors - I don't know whether they can distinguish the birds for what they are or are just admiring my handiwork. Should have done it years ago.

I've used wallpaper for years, both in my own home and in houses where I have worked as an interior designer. I use if far less today than before. Why? COST! Good wallpaper is VERY expensive and hanging it is also expensive. Paint is far cheaper. Also, today's client is not interested in what I call "investment decorating", i.e. buying things one will have for decades to come. They like change and they want it often! Changing paint is pretty cheap; wallpaper, not at all cheap.

I like wallpaper as I prefer some form of broken color. It is impossible to find anyone other than in NYC, who knows how to do decorative painting techniques well - most do something coarse and vulgar. Art and antiques look best against some form of broken color - a small tone-on-tone pattern is timeless. Very few companies even make these anymore. When Jane Churchill started her line of wallpaper 34-35 years ago, they were all tone-on-tone small patterns with multiple choices of borders to go with them. I used them in many rooms in my house. All that are now left (33 years later!), are my bedroom, my daughter's old room (she's now 45!), and her bath. I still love these papers as much as the day they were hung. They're the same pattern - just a different color way. Her bath was done in JC's famous "Bows" paper with matching bow border. Still love it!

Today, when one sees wallpaper being used, it is usually something ENORMOUS and on one "feature wall" only. I detest "feature walls" and for me, using something enormous is for people who own no art. But then, to judge by GW today, everyone is looking for "wall decor". Huh? What the heck is that? How about just looking for art. SO many pretentious, empty terms out there today. And yes, I'm a grumpy old lady who hates what has happened to good design today.

Sorry, my only experience with wall paper was last year helping my daughter with her new home and removing 40 year old wall paper and tossing the matching couch out. (I thought that was an old joke, I didn't know people really did that)

But I have been tempted to wall paper as a highlight wall with the new modern papers. Seems very nice.

I hate removing wallpaper, and although I've seen some great wallpaper since, I've never been tempted to use it, based on that experience where some had to go. Paint, I find, works wonderfully.

Removing wallpaper is a PIA, I have done a lot of since moving in to current home, so I stick to painting the walls instead.

You're right removing it is a bother. That why I've told my children to remove all my gorgeous wallpaper when I'm carted off and the are selling the house. The house will sell far more easily with no wallpaper and no antiques - just a blank slate. That's what the young want today.

To me wallpaper is a pia in both ways. Putting it together making sure the patterns is matching, making sure there’s no air bubbles and taking it off well for the older homes you have to find a solution to spray on the wallpaper so it come off and if its not you end up spraying and scraping it till it’s all gone but at the end it’s always worth it.

Hanging wallpaper is far easier than painting and it's instant gratification! When I finished one wall, I rehung the pictures and put the furniture in place, and after the last strip went up, I could do the last wall and it was done! Cleanup also far easier than paint.

I've found that hot water gets paper off the quickest and easiest. Just put a plastic tarp on the floor, put old newspaper on top if that, and soak it and peel/gently scrape it off.

@saypoint you are very right. I will go and try this for myself!!

@party_music50 How did you come up with that idea! So unique!

@pedalva would you think about using wallpaper if you knew it would come off better?

@Maureen very interesting. I have heard of grasscloth, and I'm glad to hear your recommendation. Where did you find out about grasscloth? And how thick was your previous paper that it was able to cover up a rough wall? Did you ever have a problem with the wall showing through the paper?

@janelle What made you bite the bullet and finally do it?

@anglophilia I totally understand your point of view and I am loving your strong opinions :) Can I ask you a question as an interior designer? What is the trigger that makes you say "yes" to a specific product? How do you find out about these products? Have you ever worked on commercial projects?

@woodteam5 What is stopping you from doing that??

@artemis_ma Is there something that wallpaper could provide that would make you choose it over paint?

Who else agrees with @anglophilia that wallpaper is far easier than paint! I think I've detected some conflicting opinions already.

I would love to see pictures of your work! Also, has anyone done custom wallpaper? Or have you all chosen pre-made patterns.

We have removed and installed wallpaper for years. A proper installation makes the paper easier to remove.

We have hung many custom papers over the years DE Geoury, Gracie, and zuber.

Honestly the reason we have moved our company away from wallpaper is the poor customer service provided by many of the wallpaper manufacturers.

Any problem is the result of a poor installation as we all know that is not always the case.

I just put wallpaper on my entry way wall. It's a tiny wall and I just wanted something different.

In the 90's wallpaper could be purchased at the local DIY box stores, lots of patterns, lots of prices (I remember papering my whole house when I was 26...and I was broke! So I know it was as cheap, if not cheaper, than a good paint back then), and quality was pretty darn good!

NOW it is SO hard to find wallpaper. I was reduced to purchasing online and it is MUCH more expensive!

I did the papering myself. There were some colorful words said in the process but I don't think it was any harder than cutting in while painting lol. I think anyone can paper. Pick a busy pattern and it hides a multitude of sins!

Without being able to actually touch the paper I couldn't judge the quality. The paper I ended up with was pretty hard to work with because it was cheaper. I would imagine the more expensive papers would be easier to work with...though that's an assumption that doesn't always hold true now-a-days.

I loved the pattern so much I ended up papering 1 wall in my office.

Entry way isn't finished. Still waiting for hubs to make a table for under the mirror (yep I love having a mirror in my entry way...even if it doesn't reflect anything).

Most just want a cell phone picture to render their decisions. For instance we hung a room of grasscloth that had it natural shading. We do shade natural products for the best installation however perfect shading does not exist. We agreed to pay for and rehang the paper if the designer would come and shade the paper. It looked worst than the first time. Instead of an honest answer we got he did not shade the paper from the manufacturer.

I have wall papered. I have removed wall paper. I would not attempt to paper with out another set of hands and eyes. If you or your helper are perfectionists or detail people--all the better. For the amateur this DIY is not impossible, but its success cannot always be measured the day you finish. How it holds up, how many seams pop and how long it takes, air bubbles that appear as it dries, seams that were butted nicely, as it all dries can show gaps, etc. all make what you thought was a successful endeavor, not so much. I assume the people who pay an "expert" do not run into these issues. Paper adds a WOW factor paint just does not. My experience purchasing a home with most walls papered with choices I would not make has me pretty set AGAINST wall paper. I have tried many many techniques and have found HOW you go at taking it down is not the variable that matters. It was how the paper was put up that decides how the taking down will go. Again professionally hung paper comes down in large panels, easily after soaking. Paper put up by homeowners who may or may not have sized, used who knows what paste, used pre-pasted. Avoiding ruining the drywall under the paper is always a possibility. The strength and persistence removing the old paste/glue is arduous and just when you think it is all good--as you paint you discover, nope still there. I wonder how much MORE a professional charges to remove old paper and put up new--particularly when the old paper was homeowner hung? I could not afford to pay by the hour for anyone to do that. It is just soooo labor/hours intensive. Paper in a bathroom--a very popular place for at least one wall,to me is INSANE. Paper is loosened/removed by adding water and or steam. Unless of course you plan to redo yearly. If you have paper that STAYS PUT there..I am guessing you will have to paint over it, or gut the cement board to swap it out.

anglophilia, i agree about removing the paper before sale, and it's what i plan to do with my "well *i* think its lovely" thibault paper before i ever put my house on the market. the odds of finding a buyer who the tipping point of the sale is the dining room wallpaper, in the GOOD direction, vs a buyer who doesnt want the paper or the hassle of removing it, seems pretty low.

seems opening: paint your walls the color of the background of the paper first, then it wont show through the paper or a popped seam.

The only paper I ever had trouble hanging was some that was made from Tyvek. Yes, the stuff used on houses. A wallpaper company (can't remember which one), thought this would be the perfect paper - scrubbable, stain resistant, matte finish. They were right about all these things, but it wouldn't stick to the wall! Yes, I DID prime the wall - it still wouldn't stick. This was in the day of wheat paste or heavy pre-mixed vinyl adhesive that was for canvas-backed vinyl wallpaper (the Stone Age!). Finally, a local wallpaper/paint store told me about powdered cellulose wallpaper paste. Worked perfectly!

If the paper is not awful and is hung properly, there should be no popped seams, bubbles etc. If a seam pops due to winter dryness in the house, a bit of seam sealer is a quick fix. But them that should tell you that you need a humidified on your furnace before all your wood furniture and floors are ruined!

The only paper I ever had trouble with was a Cole's paper. I had bought it in the UK, and the instructions were daunting, to say the least. Of course, I decided to paper the DR the morning of the day I was having a dinner party! I quickly discovered that this paper shrank as it dried - a carefully butted paper, came apart as it dried. I found this out quickly and was able to rehang the strips and I learned to just slightly overlap the strips so they dried butted. Several years later, I bought the same paper in a different color way to use in the DR. This time, I hired a paper hanger - a carefully vetted pro. Ha! Pro my arse! I explained that I had hung this paper before and what should be done. He totally ignored me and I've had to use colored chalk to hid places where the seams didn't butt. I had this same paper hung under the chair rail a year ago. Again, carefully explained how it needed to be done. This time I watched the guy - he disregarded what I told him. I told him to remove the strip and do it my way - it IS my DR! With much grumbling about his years of experience, he gave in and did it properly - no problems.

I have never hung deGourney, Gracie or Zubur wallpaper - WAY out of my price range and that of my clients. But I know a lot about how they must be hung. Lining paper is always used, and someone who has hung such before must be used - it's not like hanging Schumacher or Waverly wallpaper. Manufacturers are quite specific in their hanging instructions and if those are followed, there will be no problems. They are correct when complaints are made that it's the error of the person hanging the paper! They know their papers! And all paper is not hung the same way, or using the same paste. If one is paying that price (think thousands of dollars here!) one expects that a pro who has hung such before will be hired.

Grass cloth has been around since Homer was a pup. It has again become popular. It's the devil to hang properly due to shading. And it will never be "perfect". I've had very few clients I would allow to use this - I knew they would not be happy and I didn't want the hassle.

All papers used to have to be trimmed before hanging. That pretty much stopped in the 1970's except with some very expensive hand-blocked papers. I've trimmed and hung these. And I've attempted to supervise others doing this. The key is to change ones blade often. This is true with top and bottom trimming as well. And paper hangers just don't want to stop what they're doing and change the blade - even the snap-off blades. With my last paper in my DR, I gathered up every single blade in my house, and had a nice supply ready for my hanger. I asked him to change blades every 5 strips of paper, and when he used up one, I grabbed it and re-loaded. Yes, he DID hate me! I could care less! It was my DR, I was paying him a hefty fee, I wanted it done right, and having wallpapered every room in 2-3 houses, I knew what I was doing.

The wallpaper I have used the most in recent years is from Farrow & Ball. They make lovely papers, and they hang well if the instructions are followed.

One thing that many don't know (even designers) is that one is NOT limited to vinyl paper for kitchens and baths. If one falls in love with a paper/paper, just have it drop-shipped to ResistFlame in Cincinnati OH. They will put a vinyl coating on the paper. They can do matte or shinny. They can do single/double/triple coating. When a matte coating is used, the customer will never realize there is now vinyl on that paper - it looks that good. And it can be scrubbed (no, do NOT use SOS pads, but a Dobie is good). And it won't cause trouble in a bath. If it gets a lot of condensation on it, just wipe it down. I've used this company now for over 30 years and they're a delight to work with - very responsive and considerate. Can't remember the cost per yard, but it is not much and one gets the paper one wants. Most vinyl papers look like they came from a Big Box store! Awful!

Maggie, you asked if I'd ever done any commercial work. Well, when I worked at Laura Ashley for 5 years, I chose and hung all the paper for the store when they decided to change the paper. The ceilings were high, they had to rent TALL ladders for me, and I'm not sure I was properly compensated for the work involved - the previous paper had been hung without priming and it was the devil to get off. That is the extent of my commercial experience!

This post has all the markings of being authored by Houzz and your answers and pictures will show up on an article later with no permission from you.

Cole papers are not our favorites to install.

Hey guys! Do not worry, I am not from Houzz, and will not use your pictures for anything! I just wanted to see what patterns people lean toward, and if anyone is doing wall murals. :) I appreciate all of your feedback! I especially find your post interesting @anglophilia! Interesting that wallpaper hangers do not all seem to know what they are doing. That is what I am finding out as well. It takes experience and skill, and above all knowledge about each material you are working with! If anyone else is reading this, I am very interested in learning about commercial projects, and who is the decision maker in choosing materials! :)

@MS Colours Inc are you talking about Cole and Sons?

Yes

There are many good paper hangers who indeed know what they are doing.

Many of the problems encountered are with the more exotic type papers that require special prep at glue.

We recently hung a material that called for perfectly smooth wall. Most paper hangers can not prepare walls to that level of perfection. Most clients would not pay for the prep required.

Results can you believe how bad this job looks.

How many papers out there are "exotic"? In your experience do people listen to the directions on how to apply the wallpaper?

There are so many specialty Wallpaper manufacturers I would not even try to figure out how many exotic papers are in existence.

We do all our prep and priming.

We follow the specs exactly because this reduces our liability in case of failure.

Cole & Son has been in business since 1875, and owned by the present owners since 1941. They make gorgeous papers! Any paper in their archives can be made again, even if it is not part of their current collection - this is a huge plus for people who don't change their wallpaper when they change their socks! Many of their papers are hand-blocked paper, and some make use of a very specialized ink process. They are not papers for the "slap some vinyl adhesive on it, wash it off, and be done" kind of paper hanger. But if the instructions are followed, they hang beautifully and cause no trouble.

Any truly fine wallpaper is going to have some specific instructions for hanging. Farrow & Ball papers are printed with paint, not ink. But they're wonderful papers. And of course, Gracie, deGournay, and Zubar are in a class of their own. I'd fly in an experienced paper hanger if no one locally had successfully done one of these papers. They cost the sun and the moon, so what's a plane ticket and a few meals and a hotel room!

Commercial work usually means wallpaper made especially for such. Such wallpaper may be wider and it will usually involve at least a vinyl coating, and perhaps a canvas back. It's not the same thing at all as residential wallpaper. But then no one is installing deGournay in a Red Roof Inn!

Very sadly removed this beautiful Thibault paper for house staging.

a smart move.... we have our personal favorites but rarely will anyone love it as deeply as we do. and in the back of their head the potential buyer is wondering, will i be able to remove this without a mess?

A small guest cottage / Granny Pod I just completed . I used wallpaper for the kitchen wall and had a piece of tempered glass cut to protect the back splash. I loved the pattern and texture and felt it added dimension to the room and defined the separate spaces. In this space I wanted the kitchen area to feel warm and cozy and part of the living room, the wallpaper helped with that. Tile would have been cold. I continued the wallpaper around the wall to the sleeping nook.
I hired a wallpaper installer. One afternoon of work and so worth paying a professional for!

I find hanging wallpaper to be rather relaxing. Although it's been a while. This house has textured walls and wouldn't look good. In my dining room I purchased a blue and white wallpaper and papered over 3 large acoustic ceiling tiles and framed them out with molding. Made for a nice lightweight mural-ish thing...

@Be You Home Design I find it super interesting that you put glass on top of the wallpaper! I had not thought of that.

I am currently updating a log cabin so wallpaper isn’t really an option. I am going to put wallpaper on the back wall of some glass fronted cabinets I’m putting in my dining area and bar.

@anette Holbrook That sounds very interesting. What kind of pattern are you going for? How do you get it to stick to glass? I'm a bit confused.

I have turquoise Phillip Jeffries grasscloth above the chair rail in my dining room. It glows and subtly gleams in a way that paint,except lacquered walls,can't match. (& lacquered walls are crazy expensive) It is also a great backdrop for the art we used in that room. Installation was a snap for me,since I always get sent to the movies when hubs,aka Mr.Perfectionist,is papering.

@anglophilla The Company that printed on tyvex was Louie bowman. You seem to know a lot of history so why do you not post any projects?

hollybar-- and anyone else with grasscloth wallpaper-- do you have any pictures you'd be willing to share? I'm considering installing grasscloth wallpaper either above or below the chair rail in our dining room but am intimidated as I've never worked with wallpaper before. I need some encouragement! Originally I was thinking of adding it below the chair rail, but we have 3 cats so that could really be a disaster.

The first house I bought as an adult had wallpapered bedrooms where the wallpaper had been painted over. The house was built in 1900 and I guess at some point a previous owner decided to paint over the wallpaper rather than remove it. I actually didn't mind the textured look... It was kind of interesting. Which was good because I sure wasn't about to try and strip off layers of paint and wallpaper.

MS Colours, I am pretty much retired these days and only do very limited work for old clients or my own family. I never photographed any clients homes as they did not want any pictures taken. Pointless to photograph them if I could not show them to anyone! My clients were very private people.

I have homes we can not photograph however we do have some clients who like to have their work published.