Wallpaper – Is it in or Out?

Well as they say with fatty foods…it’s alright in moderation. Used to accent a wall, and if it’s unique, wallpaper can be stunning. Back in the 70’s everyone wallpapered everything. I’ve even seen it on ceilings. Yikes! Then designers were very anti-wallpaper for a while and you rarely saw it used. Now the trend is to use it to add a pop of color and pattern. With some styles of wallpaper, you can use it on more than one wall but it’s rarely good to put it on all the walls in one room. Too much of it may not be esthetically pleasing to everyone and, if you decide to sell your home, you may wind up removing a lot of it because it may not be appealing to the masses.

Borders and Bold Patterns

In our Yorkshire model I used a border in the office in a brownish mauve color with antlers on it that went with the theme of the home. I ran the extra wide border along the top of the wall to create a little contrast above the wainscoting. It turned out to be the focal point of the room and gave it a little pizzaz if you ask me. In the loft of this homes, I created a large accent wall of plaid but rather than make it too bold with color, I chose a blue and grey plaid so and it softened the room while still creating an accent. Both choices were a little different yet still appealed to different tastes. Some buyers liked it and didn’t even know those designs would appeal to them.

Don’t Forget the Basement

Basements are typically not decorated like the main parts of the house in that they are often left utilitarian and plain. In our Prairie Zen model, which is overall a modern home, I decided to soften the basement by accenting the main focal wall. The brown birch trees in on a cream background in this paper added some dimension to the room and little color without overpowering the modern, simple lines of the bar area and the rest of the space, essentially breaking up the one large open space.

Boho is Back!

In our Organic Modern model, I used a muted weaved boho pattern wall paper on each side of the fireplace above the built in cabinets. It created a great pop of color without going too terribly bold and the pattern was interesting enough to contrast the rest of those rooms. As you can see, the fireplace has a tile with pattern but it’s mainly two colors, so the wallpaper didn’t conflict with it but rather complimented it and, again, bringing in some color. In the basement I added paper to a small wall with built in shelving to it’s left. It makes the wall look off centered and provides dimension to a space that might otherwise look too cramped.

Geometric and 3D Effect

Most of what we’ve seen so far has been wallpaper you’re use to seeing used in interesting ways. Geometric shapes are making a come back in furniture and, surprise, surprise, geometric shapes are coming back in wallpaper as well. Here you can see that there’s not only interest created in the shapes on this wallpaper, but it also has a metallic flare to it which gives it even more dimension and pop. Another neat new paper is the 3D effect paper which gives the illusion that you have something 3 dimensional on the wall when it’s really flat surface wallpaper. A less expensive way than using actual 3-dimensional tile for instance on a wall. What will they come up with next?