Decorating with Wallpaper

Wallpapering your home is not as difficult as many people would like to say that it is. While it may take a little bit of work on your part, you too can have professional results, but without the professional cost. All that you need to do is follow these simple steps and your home is going to be perfectly decorated in no time.

To save money on wallpaper, you should repeat a pattern every 6 to 8 inches. An example of a good type of pattern to use for first-time decorators is one that has flowers or berries. A good vineyard pattern enables the budding interior decorator to hide any wrinkles or other imperfections. This also prevents waste when trying to match up where one roll ends and the next begins.

You should also buy one more roll of paper than you think you'll need, since most people underestimate what they think they need. Not to mention that there will be mistakes in measuring and cutting, which uses up more wallpaper than one would think. This also prevents the chance of not being able to find an exact match for the paper when you try to go back and get some more.

Since wallpaper looks different, just as paint does, under different kinds of light you are going to want to take home some samples. Be sure to remember that incandescent light and florescent light affect things differently so with the samples at home you are going to be able to make the proper judgment under the correct conditions.

There are also some tips that you are going to want to follow for easier wallpaper hanging. To take the curl out of wallpaper, a few days before you use it unroll the paper and reroll it opposite from how you got it. This will make the paper straighter and easier to hang. If the "paper" is made from vinyl use a hair dryer on warm from about six to eight inches away.

Be sure that wallpapering day is done during a sunny day. The more light that you have, the easier it is to spot any and all mistakes that are made, and fix them right away instead of having to deal with more problems later on. When you actually start to hang the wallpaper, use a large cooler to soak the pre-glued wallpaper, since it is portable and the handles make it easier to move without sloshing water all over the carpet.

One of the more frustrating things about hanging wallpaper is when some emergency calls you away after you have already dampened the paper. If this happens, all that you have to do is fold the wet paper neatly with the sticky sides touching. After folding, slide the paper into a plastic bag and close it with a twist tie. The paper will then still be moist and ready for you to hang when you get back.

Bulges and bubbles are another annoyingly recurring problem with wallpaper. As before, there is a simple solution to this as well. Simply slit it with a razor blade, lifting up the wallpaper using a knife to let the air out, and then smoothing back down using a wet sponge.