But no more granny wallpaper! From graphic patterns to tropical atmospheres, from color to black and white, from smooth to relief, from the living room to the bathroom: wallpaper is getting a makeover and is invading our interiors. How to choose it? In which rooms to use it? What atmosphere to create? It is this little overview that I am offering you today. Ready for the trip to wallpaper country? So follow me!
Why decorate with wallpaper?
Who doesn’t have a childhood memory of a visit to a great aunt that you don’t even know where the only thing you remember is a flowery and ugly wallpaper? ( Nobody? Am I the only one over 40???). How many times does my dear friend Stéphane not know how horrified, and so are we, in front of the old-fashioned decor of certain retirement homes where wallpaper from the 70s still decorated the walls of the house (I’m talking about Stéphane Plaza for those who are not following…)?
Wallpaper a few years ago was synonymous with ugly, old-fashioned, outdated decoration, frozen in time ( this time that those under 20 cannot know… er, those under 40, ok!). So how to understand that he is making his big comeback? I’m no expert on this, but I still have some thoughts on this.
First of all, you are aware that the “vintage” decor is trendy. No, not the dated decoration of Grandma Germaine but an updated vintage. So everything that is a little “old-fashioned” is regularly brought up to date ( not only in decoration, by the way, but also in fashion. This is the case, for example, of “bum bags” which are making a comeback …but where are you going? …You will have understood, I was traumatized by his “bum bags” in my distant youth and I am horrified to find them 150 years later in stores ).
Back to our topic. Technological advances are no stranger to the return of wallpaper. No more classic wallpapers that almost only a professional could lay perfectly. No more wallpaper that is resistant neither to humidity nor to the sun. The introduction, among other things, of vinyl to change the situation (No!!! I’m not talking about vinyl records… but matter, don’t worry!). As for the patterns, there is now something for all tastes, all styles. It is therefore now easier to install and can be used anywhere in your home. So why deprive yourself of it?
As I told you before, now there are various types of wallpapers. Before throwing yourself on the first roll whose pattern will have made you flash, it is advisable to know a little more about what exists on the market. Because, you will have understood it, we do not ask anything, anywhere! Be careful, what follows may seem a bit off-putting. I will keep it simple. But as you will have understood, it is a necessary step. No one will go to the cheesemonger and ask for 200gr of cheese without specifying whether it is Gruyère, Camembert, Reblochon or mozzarella, right? Well for the wallpaper, it’s the same… (well, ok, the image is a bit far-fetched but it’s to be sure that everyone understands…) .
The big family of wallpapers
In the large family of “tapestry wallpaper”, there are three main groups: “paintable” wallpaper , “primer” wallpaper and “ready to hang” wallpaper . Paintable wallpaper is used for damaged surfaces and ceilings. The “primer” wallpaper is for the “before” ( did you see the pun? Primer/after ..before? Uh…ok, that’s not great, I know, but I didn’t Couldn’t help it lol). Therefore, the primer wallpaper can hide the imperfections of a wall and ensure a good hold of the final wallpaper. It’s actually a kind of undercoat. Finally, the wallpaper that interests us more particularly is the ready-to-hang wallpaper, which is intended for walls in good condition.
Things would be too simple if there wasn’t another sub-family in this class of the wallpaper family! (I warned you that it would be a bit off-putting. But courage, we are getting to the end and it is above all the reading stage that should not be neglected! “Bòd-lanmè pa lwen” as we say in Creole – translation: “We’ve come to the end of the tunnel”).
In the ready-to-install family, we find:
Classic wallpaper made up of one or two layers of sheets of printed paper: although it is financially advantageous, it has the disadvantage of being very fragile, of not being resistant to UV and humidity and of being difficult to ‘interview. It should be placed on smooth, clean and dry walls. Unless you have a very tight budget and don’t want to invest in the medium or long term, this type of paper should be forgotten. Icing on the cake, this type of wallpaper is not very easy to install.
Adhesive and repositionable wallpaper : it works like a giant sticker and can be repositioned 2 to 3 times. Icing on the cake, it is easily removed. This type of wallpaper is therefore to be preferred if you are not the owner of your home.
Magnetic wallpaper : like the previous one, it can be repositioned and is placed on a magnetic sheet. If you change decoration like socks, adopt it! Only drawback, this type of wallpaper remains quite expensive.
