DIY TOP JOBS - INTERIOR: WALLPAPER

Wallpaper principles

Wallpapers have today become quite fashionable. There is even a magazine called Wallpaper, although it is about interior decoration, not only wallpaper.

Wallpaper designs range from traditional to contemporary, from sophisticated to children's wallpapers.

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Walls can now look more beautiful and it is the wallpapers which lend them that look of charm, grandeur or sparkle. This is a recent trend against modernism and minimalism.

Also called wall coverings as not all wallpapers are actually made of paper. Wallpapers are used for the decoration and covering of building interiors. Be it a home or an office, wallpapers are suitable for all types of rooms.

In their most commonly available forms, they can either be plain or patterned. Plain wallpapers can be used as they are, or painted to suit your style, using the wallpaper to smooth out any irregularity in the wall surface. This is common in low rent accomodation where rough surface wallpapers are used to mask wall defects, then painted white or magnolia. Ugh!

Above: Cool wallpapers or is that hot wallpapers? A huge range has appeared in recent years

Lining paper is often used first to surface off a wall before any further application.

Patterned wallpapers come in different designs. Modern wallpapers are extremely diverse.

Flock wallpaper has a raised fuzzy or furry surface and is often is complex patterns, beloved of old-fashioned restaurants. Even flock wallpaper is making a big comeback now.

Wallpaper borders

Wallpaper borders are generally available for purchase by linear foot or metre, with numerous sorts of widths, thereby making the method of square footage inapplicable. These are less fashionable. They are used to provide a sharp edge to cut wallpaper, where there is a join which used to be the case in domestic homes. The wallpaper would stop a foot or two from the ceiling. This edge would be neatly covered with a decorative border.

Vinyl wallpaper

For residential use, the cheapest and economical kind of wallpaper is the dreaded vinyl wallpaper. We do not recommend this as vinyl contains phthalate plasticisers which are bad for health.

Also referred to as being 'strippable' in nature, vinyl wallpapers are pretty durable. While light vinyls are easy to be used as hanging wallpaper, the paper-backed vinyls are comparatively difficult to hang.

Vinyl papers release harmful chemicals during its disposal. They might also cause health problems. By deciding not to choose vinyl wallpapers, one might lose out on the variety of range, but there are a number of other eco-friendly types of wallpaper available which are increasingly available. These eco green designs have become very fashionable.

Hanging wallpaper

The surface of the wall has to first be prepared for the wallpaper. Some rough surfaces can be masked with 'bumpy' rough surfaced wallpaper which evens out any defects.

It must be kept in mind that bathrooms are not considered suitable for pasting wallpapers because the excessive amount of damp and steam would cause rapid deterioration. Mould can easily grow behind wallpaper and is unhygenic and unsightly. Damp walls can also cause problems so make sure all is fine and dry before thinking about hanging wallpaper.

Further, the room must be accurately measured with the wall defects repaired. Wallpapers are put up by using wallpaper paste which may either be home-made or commercial.

Moreover, it is preferable to use natural and non-toxic pastes as they are less hazardous and easy to remove. Removing wallpaper pastes too is a task to be handled with care. Steam is in fact the most common method used to remove wallpaper paste. Numerous other techniques for wallpaper removal have now entered the scene, making the task easier and more feasible.

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