Whimsical Wallpaper

Now before you start envisioning the faded wallpaper that lined the walls of in Gran’s house back in yesteryear, hear me out: Just like rosettes, doilies, vintage cars, bunting and all the bric-‘n-brac from the good old days, wallpaper is making a comeback, so go on and give it a chance.

While the classic curls and timeless damask pattern will always remain a charming old favourite, the number of wallpaper designs on the market these days is absolutely mind-blowing. Floral designs, vintage patterns, stripes and lines, curls, animal print, animal figures, kiddie scribbles, you name it! But the question is: How and where do you stick it in a way that doesn’t spark creative nightmares of old faded and peeling wallpaper? The answer is simple – like this:

• Some wallpaper designs might be a little too bold for comfort, so instead of covering the entire room, only cover one wall and paint the rest of the room in a single complementing colour.
• Use wallpaper in your children’s rooms – the intriguing patterns are just so much more appealing than a plain painted wall.
• Cover a strip of wall with wallpaper for instance: behind a mirror, around a door or above a decorative table to turn that element into a focus piece.
• Have your own custom designed wallpaper made; it can be anything from an enlarged photograph to your children’s art work.
• Wallpaper is not such a good idea for the bathroom as the dampness from the shower or bath will make it peel. If however you have a separate bathroom stall or powder room, you can most definitely stick wallpaper to your heart’s delight.
• While wallpaper provides the perfect backdrop for family photos or paintings, a detailed and bold piece of wallpaper can also be used instead of photos or paintings, simply to fill a space.
• Textured wallpaper is perfect for a toddler’s room as it stimulates their sense of touch.

Then again, wallpaper isn’t only reserved for the walls. With a scoop of creativity, those leftover bits can come in handy:

• Revamp an old chest of drawers by painting the frame and covering the face of each drawer in wallpaper of a complementing pattern and colour.
• Give your staircase a makeover by applying wallpaper to the front facing panel of each stair.
• Cover the scratched and stained surface of an old coffee table with a sheet of wallpaper.
• Apply the paper to the back panel of a bookcase or china cabinet to really liven it up.
• Whoever said you can’t put wallpaper on the ceiling? Use printed wallpaper to create a starry night sky or cotton cloud heaven in your little angel’s room.

For more ideas on Wallpapers or to check out the original photos displayed above and their credits, make sure to check out our Wonderful Wallpaper Pinterest Board!