Paper the Walls

I can vividly remember when my parents moved our family into the home that I grew up in most of my life. My parents tell the story that they were in our old house and they were discussing all of these home improvement projects and suddenly it clicked "Why don't we move?". I think my parents just went on a whim to an open house and my mother fell in love instantly with the house on the quiet street with the park at the end of the road, the perfect house to raise a family. The only "problem" the house was dated with it's interior decor but had a great layout and plenty of space for the four of us.

We used to joke about the "Where is Waldo" wallpaper that was in the dining room, foyer and ran all the way up the stairs into the hallway. It was hideous, I almost wish I had a picture of it to share but luckily it was taken down almost immediately and replaced with beautifully painted walls. The wallpaper was so dated because my parents had bought the house from the original owner who had been there since the 60s.

I think a lot of people have this negative connotation when it comes to wallpaper because they think of nightmares like the one that was in our house but not all wallpaper is like that. In fact, today in design there are so many fun options for all kinds of spaces. 

For example, this Thibaut wallpaper below is such a fun trendy animal print but because this zebra print is so neutral it would make a lovely addition to a space and can be updated with different pieces added to the room throughout time.

One of my other favorite ways to use wallpaper is a fun pattern in a kid's room. There are so many great wallpapers out there that fit this bill but some of my favorite collections for kids come from Harlequin. The main reason I love this company so much is because Europeans are not afraid of color and neither am I. These kid friendly patterns can add that extra special something to any little prince or princess' room. 

There is nothing like a beautiful natural material that envelops a room quite like grasscloth. It instantly adds comfort to a room that wasn't there before. Back in May of this year, the design firm that I work for, Creative Wallcoverings & Interiors, was part of the Mansion in May Designer Showhouse in New Jersey. We got assigned Space 10, it was a real lemon of a room with no architectural details or any character. Below is the before picture.

Our design team decided to take this lemon and make lemonade by adding a silk lemon colored grasscloth on the walls. My favorite application of the grasscloth though was the unexpected application of the metallic one on the ceiling. It was such a nice touch. Below is the after picture so you can see the real transformation of this space.

So don't be afraid to paper some walls in your own home.

Until next time, make sure everyday you do something kreative!

Kristina