I love wallpaper! I love the way it transforms the personality of a room in an instant. Wallpaper can be such a quick and cost effective way to makeover a room. Instead of buying artwork to put on the wall, a whole wall can become the artwork. Or a more subtle wallpaper design can finish and bring life to a room without overpowering it. Any room, large or small, can be suitable for wallpaper; from living rooms, to bedrooms, even bathrooms and kitchens can benefit from wallpaper.
Of course, standard colour and home decorating principles apply when it comes to selecting the right wallpaper. Lighter colours will reflect light and dark colours will absorb light. The colour of the wallpaper will affect the mood of the room, so think about what mood you want to create…for example, blues and greens can provide a restful bedroom, red will provide a stimulating dining or living room, and orange will spark creativity in the office or kitchen.
Wallpaper should also reflect your personality and the mood you want to create. Different patterns, textures and designs will appeal to different styles. Natural fibre wallpapers such as woven grasses will provide a very different feel to shiny or velvet wallpapers. Traditional stripes and dainty florals provide a very different feel to striking Florence Broadhurst designs.
Here are my top 5 interior decorating tips for wallpaper:
Have fun! Wallpaper doesn't just have to go on walls. It can add a lot of impact on ceilings and on the back of bookcases as well.
You can choose a traditional wallpaper and hang it in an unusual way. For example, to decorate a boy’s bedroom I chose traditional blue and white stripes, but hung the stripes vertically on one wall and horizontally on the opposite wall.
Make sure you choose an experienced and professional wallpaper hanger for a great finish. Badly hung wallpaper is not a good look!
If the walls are less than perfect, look for a wallpaper with an embossed or expanded surface texture to hide the defects.
For areas that will have a lot of use, a patterned or textured wallpaper will be more forgiving to bumps and marks.
Of course, just like paint, there are thousands of wallpapers to choose from and the choice can be overwhelming! So engaging an interior designer or interior decorator will make the experience of choosing wallpaper a happier one. You don’t need to renovate your whole house to engage Meredith Lee Interior Design, we’re happy to help with small projects such as wallpaper selection. We can also often purchase the wallpaper on a cost-plus basis, providing you a discount to retail prices.
If you would like some help with wallpaper selection or paint colours, then we can help! Contact Meredith Lee on 0400 775 724 or email us.
We also have lots of design inspiration on our social media sites:
For more ideas on how to interior decorate with wallpaper, check out these links:
Follow our wallpaper board on Pinterest
Willie Weston has fabulous contemporary indigenous wallpaper designs
The Papered Room by Kate Swinson features Australian flora and fauna
Florence Broadhurst wallpaper
Jane Churchill, contemporary and traditional English wallpaper and fabrics
For something unique and eye-catching, check out Trove wallpaper
