The ‘wow’ factor of wallpaper

OK, here’s my first question: How many of you were raised in a house decorated with wallpaper? Now for the second: How many pledged you would never have it in your own home when you grew up?

Well, I sure did.

I remember both of my childhood homes having walls covered with what I thought to be old-fashioned, fussy wallpaper. My second childhood home, a Colonial Revival which, incidentally, I loved from an architectural point of view, had wallpaper that I found especially offensive when I was young.

The kitchen, the dining room, and all of the bathrooms had some form of dressy damask or fluffy floral patterns emblazoned on the walls. In fact, the kitchen had a dizzyingly vertical stripe made up of tiny flowers and fruit in lurid hues of avocado green, harvest gold, and cerulean blue.

I still have nightmares about it.

When I finally got to art school in the mid-1980s and began an academic study of interior design at SCAD, I envisioned living one day in a modern loft space with nary a cabbage rose or flame-stitch pattern in sight. That was almost 35 years ago and I am happy to say I finally wised up and discovered an appreciation of all types of wall coverings.

I don’t have any flowery patterned walls in my home. However, as I sit here and type this column, I look up at the end wall of my dining room and see a gorgeous, subtly textured, faux-linen commercial-grade wallpaper which looks like fabric and wears like iron (this ain’t your grandmother’s Waverly).

Wallpaper resurgence

Wallpaper has been trending in home decor for the past few seasons and it’s not showing any signs of letting up. Why the resurgence? Perhaps after the interior design pendulum swung away from color and pattern people grew tired of their “plain neutral days” and craved something more, something with depth, texture, and nuance. Something more than boring beige. Or gray.

Endless options

The options for wall fashion are almost endless and there is a look and style for every taste and budget. Lush botanicals and tropical patterns are particularly on point these days offering an opulent backdrop to any small space.

Contemporary geometric patterns can provide interest even within a monochromatic palette (I love specifying a textural grasscloth for my color-adverse clients.). Of course, you can still find traditional florals and some trompe l’oeil patterns out there, but even these have been updated and modernized. They’re now much less stuffy and much more fun.

Scenic mural wallpapers are all the rage, their atmospheric panoramas taking center stage and providing a dramatic backdrop for a dining room or foyer.

Technological advancements in the printing process allow for bolder definition of pattern. And printing on plain old paper for the background? Forget it — why not choose grasscloth, silk, cork or vinyl instead? Do you want some sparkle and sheen? The complex metallic prints and glittery mica composites of today put to shame those disco-era foils of yesteryear. Today papers are more sophisticated and defined, and less glitzy and gauche.

Not just for walls anymore

Remember, too, that wallpaper is not just for vertical walls. Ceilings can be dressed up, too. I love when my clients choose an unusual texture or geometric print to help define a coffered or barrel vaulted ceiling.

Selecting a wallpaper can be a risk, but if done properly it can really pay off and make a statement. What once was thought of as a liability for Realtors or a punchline for grandma jokes, wallpaper is now considered a sophisticated accent for unique and personalized decor. I can’t imagine a project where wallpaper would not be considered somewhere in the mix of things. It has become an integral part of my design process.

Now for question 3: Are you ready to spice up your walls and have a little fun?

This story was originally published July 14, 2020 at 1:19 PM with the headline "The ‘wow’ factor of wallpaper."