Wallpapering

2013/14 FORECAST

Feature walls/murals are a great way to inject some added colour and personality into a room. Paper a single wall with an oversize botanical, flower print or op art design as above. They can also be used to help break up open plan living spaces or to highlight a particular aspect of a room.

Bold feature walls in the latest colours

Tone on tone – The subdued look is the latest trend and as a result, tone on tone wallpapers would be the correct choice. Tone on tone wallpapers features double tone designs and colors. Creating a dramatic statement with these wallpapers is definitely going to be very easy. In addition, they can also be installed in areas such as guest rooms, entryways, corridors, closed balcony and staircase.

Metallic – It is doubtless that metallic designs are highly attention grabbing. From rich bronzes and sharp silvers to soft gold, metallic wallpapers are a fantastic way to add decadence and instant glamour to a space.

Paintable papers, metallic prints, faux finishes and more trends coming to a wall near you.

We all know that wallpaper can add instant glamour and warmth to any room, People are finally moving away from just a feature wall and are once again wallpapering two, three and four walls in a room," says David Klaus at Graham & Brown wallpaper company.

Fewer accent walls and more fully papered rooms are cropping up in homes and magazine spreads as of late, along with a handful of "mini trends" in wallpaper designs. Lets take a look at wallpaper trends to inspire you.

Stone, wood, steel and tile... faux finishes will serve to inspire your imagination when planning your decor. Let your imagination run will and use combinations to produce stunning results in both residential and commercial interiors.

Retro walls: 50s and 60s looks fabulous!

Turn back time in style!

Paintable Papers

It's the perfect hybrid between painting a wall and wallpapering it, and for the non-commital decorators among us, more brands are turning out the totally customizable, textured designs. Graham & Brown, for instance, recently launched a collection called " Jana", right, a geometric print that can be both painted and washed. Grandin Road's "Beadboard Paintable Wallpaper," left, gives the illusion of beadboard trim, minus the costly woodworking.

Photos: Graham & Brown

Fabric and Wallpaper Combos

This is a new trend starting to show in the interior design magazines. Match your wallpaper to your fabric as shown above.

Photos: House Beautiful Magazine UK

Wallpapered ceilings as an increasingly popular option for creating visual impact in a room.. It is most effective if you have a cornice since it will separate the wallpaper from the painted walls. Wallpapered ceilings create a feeling of intimacy and coziness, which is a special benefit during winter.Its also great for covering up less than perfect ceilings.

A wallpapered ceiling adds interest to a square room.

Add wallpaper to door panels

Spruce up a door by adding decorative wallpaper. Can also be used for sliding wardrobe doors.

Paisley is making a huge comeback in wallpaper and fabrics

How to use wallpaper in your home

Large scale prints are fashionable but can be overpowering in a small room, so use them sparingly. Try papering the wall behind the bed in a bedroom or as a feature wall in a family or dining room.

Smaller walls are generally better than larger ones. Larger walls, if made into a feature, can tend to dominate a space rather than accentuate it. Walk into the room to see which wall immediately grabs your attention – this is generally a great way to see where a feature wall would have the most effect.

Limit the number of colours in a scheme for a coordinated look. A good trick is to pick two or three colours from your wallpaper, and repeat them elsewhere in the room. Matching plain wallpapers are also available to compliment the image.

If you are papering just one wall, match the paint on the other walls to the wallpaper’s background only for a seamless finish.

In gloomy bedrooms, use wallpaper with a metallic or pearlised finish to reflect light.

Flocked and textured wall coverings are an ideal disguise if walls or ceilings aren’t smooth.
Dark colours tend to make the room look smaller, whereas lighter colours make it look larger.
Stripes on a wall can help to make the ceiling look higher.
Vinyl wallpapers are also very durable and washable, and can be removed easily as they are dry strippable.

An Interior Decorator Can Help

As there are so many different types of wallpaper, as well as a plethora of patterns, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the amount of choices available. It is best to get a professional in to install your wallpaper as they will not only be able to prepare the walls correctly, they will be able to match up the patterns for a seamless look. Prices for wallpaper vary from approximately $65 to $600+ a roll, an average price would be around $140 per roll. Specialist painter and decorator, Stephen Brophy will be able to help you choose a wallpaper that is right for the area in which it will be hung and also choose paper that will complement your existing décor or form the basis for entirely new décor.

History of Wallpaper

Wallpaper began in ancient China when they glued rice paper onto their walls as early as 200 B.C.

The earliest know fragment of European wallpaper that still exists today was found on the beams of the Lodge of Christ's College in Cambridge, England and dates from 1509. Jean-Michel Papillon, a French engraver and considered the inventor of wallpaper, started making block designs in matching, continuous patterns in 1675, and wallpaper as we know it today was on its way. Flocked wallpaper was created in approximately 1680.

The manufacturing methods developed by the English are significant, and the products from 18th century London workshops became all the rage. At first, fashion conscious Londoners ordered expensive hand painted papers that imitated architectural details or materials like marble and stucco, but eventually wallpapers won favor on their own merits. Borders resembling a tasselled braid or swag of fabric were often added and flocked papers that looked like cut velvet were immensely popular.

In the Victorian era, rooms paraded print upon print, mostly in garish colors, and the advent of machine-made wallpaper put the cabbage rose and arabesque patterns within the budget range of practically every home. Artisans such as Louis Comfort Tiffany and William Morris and their lyrical interpretations of nature, hand-printed by the wood block method, came to symbolize Art Nouveau. The Victorian Era, as one would expect, was a grand time for wallpaper featuring over embellished designs in sombre colors, but it was in the roaring '20s that wallpaper really took the spotlight for the first time. Known as the Golden Age of Wallpaper, some 400 million rolls were sold during that period. After World War II, the entire industry was revolutionized with the appearance of plastic resins which offered stain resistance, washability, durability and strength.

Although wallpaper fell out of favour during the 80’s and 90’s, people in the 21st century have rediscovered the romance, design and beauty of patterned walls and some of the old designs are being reproduced for the modern market.