When it comes to interior design, wallpaper is a popular choice, it is considered as one of the fastest and easiest ways to infuse personality and dimension into a room, with limitless colors, patterns and textures, hangin it the right way can really bring your space to a whole new level.
Whether you're simply considering the idea of learning how to install wallpaper, or you're already planning to start the project, here's the best way to do it from start to finish.
Preparation is key
There are some tasks that you may need to do before hanging your wallpaper.
Start by removing any existing wallpaper in order to avoid air bubbles and creases appearing.
Applying wall sealer, also known as wall size, helps seal the porous surface of the wall and improves the adhesion of the wallpaper paste. It also aids the slide of the wallpaper, useful when you’re matching patterns or hanging it in awkward areas like window recesses.
Hanging lining paper prevents the new wallpaper from shrinking when it’s hung, which leads to gaps between the lengths of paper. You may also want to hang lining paper if your walls have any stains or small imperfections in the surface, as it will help to disguise this.
Make sure all the rolls have the same batch number printed on the label, as the colors and in some instances, the finish, can vary between batches.
We recommend hanging wallpaper vertically unless the pattern requires it to be hung horizontally. If hanging over lining paper, hanging it in the opposite direction to the lining paper means that the seams won’t fall in the same place and create ridges.
unscrew the fixings before papering, leaving the wall plugs in place. Mark the position of each one by pushing a matchstick into the plug. Leave it slightly proud so you can find the hole and reuse it later.
And last, always make sure you have enough wallpaper for your walls. When you measure the height and length of the walls you want to wallpaper, also measure the windows and door.
Tools and materials for the job
Wallpaper paste
Pasting brush
Wallpaper smoother
Snap off knife
Scissors
Ruler
Spirit level
Smoother/soft steamroller
Stepladder
Dust sheet
Install the wallpaper
The walls must be clean, dry, healthy, straight and smooth.
If you’re wallpapering on plaster, plasterboard or wood, apply a universal primer the day before so the wall can get a good grip of the wallpaper.
If your walls are covered with gloss or silk paint, sand them down and then apply a universal primer.
If instead they’re covered with matt paint, wash them with a cleaning product that contains baking soda and let the walls dry for 24 hours before wallpapering.
Prepare your paste (adhesive) and use a spirit level to trace a vertical line 50 cm from the corner of the wall (if your roll measures 53 cm in width). This makes sure that you start wallpapering from a perfectly straight hanging mark and the remaining 3 cm will allow you to avoid imperfect corner junctions (if the corner is not straight) which you can focus on once you’ve finished wallpapering the whole wall.
With a pasting brush or a roller, start applying the wallpaper paste on the wall in a thin, even layer, from the vertical line you’ve just traced onwards, starting at the top and working your way down across the width of a roll. Use a stepladder to reach the ceiling.
Place the wallpaper roll on the floor, align it to the vertical line and start unrolling it up to the top of the wall, keep 2-3 cm on the ceiling to allow a straight cut.
Carefully position the wallpaper against the wall and double check the strip’s alignment against the vertical mark. Once you’re happy this is straight, use a wallpaper smoother to smooth it from the center to the edges to smooth out any air bubbles and wrinkles.
Trim any excess paper on the top and bottom with a snap off knife and a ruler, flatten out the seams with a seam roller and then repeat for the rest of the wall, making sure the seams line up each time.
To wallpaper around any switches or sockets, cover these with the wallpaper strip and use the snap off knife to cut around them, for doors and windows, cover the openings with the wallpaper strip, mark the angle with your finger and use the scissors to cut the excess paper. Be mindful of leaving some extra centimeters on the window or door case. Cut the wallpaper at a 45 ° angle at the mark left by your finger.
Smooth it out with the wallpaper smoother and cut the excess paper with the snap off knife.
Any wallpaper you buy should come with instructions, don’t forget to read attentively the specific directive for application and make sure to follow our guide on how to perfectly apply your wallpaper to get a beautifully wallpapered space with little trouble.
And finally when you are done with the full process, relax, kick back and enjoy the view!
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