Hang Wallpaper

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Although once out of style, wallpaper is making a significant comeback. Whether you go with a unique vintage print, a modern minimalist pattern, or a classic color, wallpaper makes a great accent wall or total room makeover. Don't let a lack of knowledge of wallpapering hold you back from using this classic material to re-do your home though. Learn how to hang wallpaper yourself, and save money and frustration! Soon enough, you'll have a beautiful new room you can show off to all your friends and family.

Steps

Readying Your Room

  1. Measure your space. Wall covering retailers can help you calculate how much wallpaper you need, but here's a quick guide to a good calculation. Get a notepad and measure the room's height and width by wall section. For example, two walls 12' wide x 8' high, and two walls 11' wide x 8' high. The math is:
    • 12x8=96, 12x8=96, 11x8=88, 11x8=88. 96+96+88+88 = 368 sq. ft.
    • Now you are thinking to yourself, "what about doors and windows? I must subtract for that, right?" Wrong. A certain amount of "waste" paper is necessary for calculated mistakes, so don't worry about counting out empty spaces.
  2. Disassemble your room. Get your tools and remove all wall switch plates, metal air vents, towel rods, toilet paper holders, etc. Take down any wall mounted light fixtures (turn power off a breaker first). To avoid losing the screws or having to keep track of them, screw them back in their respective locations after the plates and covers are removed.
  3. Prepare the walls. Wallpaper has a difficult time sticking to dirty or greasy walls, so wipe down yours with a damp cloth. Patch any holes in the walls, and give time for both your patches and water on the walls to dry.
    • If you are wallpapering over pre-painted walls, add a coat of primer first.
    • If your walls have wallpaper already on them, take the time to remove it before adding your new layer of paper. This will guarantee a longer lasting application.
  4. Determine your starting point in the room. Common advice is to start in the most inconspicuous corner of a room. For example, in a bedroom, this is usually in the corner behind the door. In general, don't start your wallpaper on a central wall, unless you're doing an accent wall. Choose an area to the side that won't be viewed first.
    • If you are hanging wallpaper in a bathroom, doing so behind an existing toilet can be difficult and tedious, so you may want to consider hanging those pieces first (most toilets will impact two strips of wall covering in one way or another) while you have the most energy and patience.
    • Put yourself in a good position to have a full length or two of wall covering to hang before you have to start addressing corners and obstacles if at all possible.
  5. Make your measurements. Measure your first piece from ceiling to floor. Typically, in a house with {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} ceilings, your measurement will be about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} since most everyone will have a base board at the floor. Roll out your wall covering on a table or floor, pattern side up. Double-check all your measurements so that you don't make a mistake in cutting your paper. The goal is to keep your paper in as big of sections as you can to create a more seamless look.
  6. Create a plumb line. Take a measuring tape, {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. level, and pencil and go to the starting point in the room. You want to establish a plumb line to ensure the first piece is hung perfectly straight up and down. Measure horizontally the width of the wallpaper strips from your starting point. Subtract 1/2 an inch from this, and draw a vertical line at this point.
    • Work your way around the room and create a similar plumb line at corners or new walls. This will ensure that your wallpaper is always hung in line.
    • Don’t use ink pens to create the plumb line as the adhesive will cause the ink to run and bleed and ruin the wallpaper.[1]

Preparing Your Wallpaper

  1. Look at the run numbers. Check all bolts to insure that they are all of the same "Run #". Sometimes the term is "Lot #" or "Batch #". This is important as the same pattern will be printed in production runs. It is very common for separate runs to have slightly different colors and backgrounds.
  2. Check for defects. Inspect the entire bolt for defects in the printing process. These are usually streaks of color, blobs of ink, or color voids. One small defect in an entire roll can usually be cut out and worked around. If there is enough defect in the paper that you may lose an {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} strip then you should return the wall covering for a refund.
  3. Find the pattern repeat. Find an object near the edge of the paper, measure down the paper until you get to the exact same object. This distance is called the pattern repeat. Keep this measurement in mind, as you will use it later to line up strips of the paper.
  4. Identify the pattern match. This is either a straight across match or a drop match. A straight across match is when two pieces of paper placed next to each other have the same pattern in grids horizontally. A drop match is when the pattern moves up or down a bit horizontally in each strip.
    • For example, you would have a straight across match if you see a butterfly on the left edge of the paper when you line up and pattern match the next piece beside the first and the butterfly is in the same spot on the left edge again.
    • A drop match means that the same object on the left edge (the butterfly in this example) will drop halfway down the length of the pattern repeat when the second piece is pattern matched to the first.
  5. Find the top of your paper. Study the pattern of your wall covering and decide what you want your “top” to be. This is what will be hung directly at the ceiling. Some patterns will have a natural break in the pattern and in between this break usually makes a good “top”.
    • Try to avoid having a visually significant item in the pattern exactly at the top of the wall. Ceiling lines tend to rise and fall and if you have a visually significant item at the ceiling you will begin to lose the pattern if the ceiling dips.
    • Try to choose a “top” about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} above any significant pattern items. This will allow for the ceiling to rise and fall without affecting the visibility of this item.
    • If you can, choose a “top” that has a small item in the pattern on the left or right edge of the paper that is easy to identify. This will make measuring and cutting much easier.
    • Drop match patterns will have two “tops”. You will alternate between “top A” and “top B” as you progress around the room. Most of the time with a drop match, you choose the “top A” and take what you get with the “top B”.
  6. Cut your wallpaper. On the table, cut your wall covering about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} above your designated “top” ensuring you do not cut a crooked line or wavy line that extends down into the pattern where your “top” is. This will give you excess while hanging and this will be trimmed away on the wall. Take a razor blade and cut the roll about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} beyond the total length measurement. This excess will be cut off on the wall.
    • There is a little more leeway with the bottom excess. When in doubt, add a bit more to the bottom than to the top.
    • Use a yardstick to help make your cuts smooth and even, and to prevent cutting at an angle.

Hanging Your Wallpaper

  1. Add your adhesive to the top. Using a paint roller, apply adhesive to the back of the wallpaper. The idea is to wet the paper, not drench it. It will take a few attempts to get a good feel for the right amount. Make sure you roll past the edges to get adhesive at the seams. Only apply your adhesive to the top half of the paper for now. This step may be skipped for wallpaper that is pre-pasted.
  2. Finish adding your adhesive. Take your top and fold it down the table about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}, so that you have “glue on glue” for about {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. Align the paper’s edges so you do not have exposed edges. DO NOT crease the paper at the point of the fold. Gently rub or press the edges to seal against each other. Now, lift and pull the rest of the unpasted portion onto the table - the pasted/folded portion may hang off the edge - and paste the rest of the sheet.
    • Pick up the wallpaper and let it hang in your hands. If watery adhesive pours out of it, then you have definitely used too much adhesive or the paste is too thin. A few drops is OK, but you should not have a significant amount of dripping glue.
  3. Book the paper. Most wall coverings will expand due to the moisture in the adhesive; 20 and ½ inch wallpaper will expand and become 20 and ¾ inch wallpaper. If you were to try to hang this right away, you would discover that vertical bubbles would appear and will not smooth out. Let the paper sit in the folded position for around 10 minutes, to give the adhesive time to expand the paper completely.[2]
  4. Align the first strip. Get your ladder in place, smoothing brush in pocket, and booked piece of paper. You can quickly identify which is the top as it will be the shorter of the two folds. Unfold only the short fold and align only the right edge of the paper to the penciled plumb line taking care to ensure your “top” is at the ceiling where you want it.
    • Before you rub this section out with your smoothing brush, notice if you are able to move or “slip” the paper on the wall slightly. The slip indicates that you have an adequate amount of adhesive on the back of the paper.
    • If you have no slip, then you need to add a bit more adhesive at the pasting table. Slip is your friend as long as you don’t have too much.
  5. Stick the paper to the wall. Once you have good alignment with the plumb line at the right edge. Take your smoother and gently rub the paper to the wall in a left and up direction. You want to apply the paper by smoothing, not before smoothing. Ensure that you have not slipped or rubbed the paper’s right edge away from the plumb line.
    • Never use significant force to smooth bubbles out or force alignment to plumb lines and seams with the smoother.
    • Get the top edge as close to the wall as possible, and don't worry about cutting off excess. Cutting the extra off too soon may cause a misalignment.
  6. Stick the bottom half of the strip. Now you should have the top {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} of wallpaper applied to the wall with the rest of the paper still folded up. Carefully find the bottom edge of the paper, lift away from the wall slightly so the paper you are pulling down will not stick to the wall and gently pull it down the wall until it is completely unfolded. You may undo an inch or two of the initial work above but that’s no big deal.
    • Starting at the top right of this section, use your {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} level as a guide to stay plumb at the right edge and smooth out the rest of the paper starting from right to left.
    • Don’t force the paper over to the corner, let gravity help place the paper onto the wall.
  7. Cut off the top excess.Get your {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} joint knife and a new razor blade and go back to the ceiling. Work the edge of the joint knife blade into the ceiling joint. This should give you a nice little crease all the way across the width of the paper. Starting at the right edge of the paper, place the joint knife in the crease holding the handle down. Take the razor blade and press it into the crease on top of the blade – cut on the ceiling side of the joint knife - right to left.
    • Once you run out of joint knife blade, move the joint knife to the left and cut another {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. One more cut should get you very close to the corner.
    • If you can, go ahead and cut all the way to the corner. You may not be able to get the razor blade into the corner. If so, you can peel back the corner of the wallpaper and by using the already cut portion as a guide, cut the remaining excess wallpaper “off the wall” and then place the corner section of the wallpaper back into place.
  8. Cut off the bottom excess. Cutting the excess at the base board works the same as the ceiling, except the joint knife handle will face up the wall. Remember to cut on the baseboard side of the joint knife, not the wall side. If you try to make these cuts on the wall side your razor blade can wander and give you an uneven cut. Again, if you cannot get all the way to the corner, pull the corner back, make your cut and then place the finished corner back into place.
  9. Wipe off messy adhesive. It’s guaranteed that you have some adhesive on the surface of your freshly hung paper. Using clean water and sponge, wipe down the wall covering – top to bottom. Take your time, wallpaper adhesive can be hard to see. Don’t forget to clean the glue off the ceiling joint and baseboard.
    • Avoid using terry cloth rags or towels. They can be too abrasive and can ruin the finish of your wall covering.
    • Smooth out any bubbles that might have formed in the wallpaper with your sponge. The strip of paper should be completely smooth when you're finished.
  10. Continue adding strips. Use the aforementioned steps to continue adding more strips of wallpaper. As you add each strip, take time to line up the pattern and overlap when necessary. Well hung wallpaper will lack any visible seams and discrepancies in the pattern.

Hanging Wallpaper Around a Window or Door

  1. Hang your paper above a window or door. Continue adding your paper towards the right until you hit the frame. Rub your finger against the wall covering and through the paper feel and locate the top left corner of the window or door trim. Once you locate the exact corner, take your razor blade place it at the exact location of the corner and cut at a downward at a 45 degree angle towards the center of the door or window.
    • Once you are about three inches down and away from the starting corner, level out your cut and cut toward the right until you have cut all the way across the paper.
    • Cut the excess paper just inside the frame all the way down the edge of the window. You will go back later and make exact cuts along the frame.
  2. Work around the window. Continue adding strips of wallpaper around the window, making sure to keep a plumb line so that your strips are perfectly vertical. At the areas that hit the window, cut downwards at a 45 degree angle and then around the inside of the frame. You should eventually get to a point at which your window or door has a rough cutout of wallpaper around it.
  3. Cut off the excess. Use a straight edge and a new blade on your knife to get a smooth cut around the frame. Press the wallpaper completely flat and smooth out any bubbles, and then use the straight edge to hold the paper to the frame. Use the knife to cut along the straight edge and create a perfect shape around the window.[3]

Adding Wallpaper to Corners

  1. Make your measurements. Take your ruler or tape measure and measure the exact distance from your right edge of the last piece on the wall to the corner. Measure three times: at the top, middle and bottom. Take note of the longest measurement. If the three numbers are the same or very close, your corner is relatively plumb and you have done a good job keeping your wallpaper plumb as well.
    • Take the longest of the three corner measures and add about 3/8 of an inch. This will be the length you measure your wallpaper to.
    • Once you get good, you can consider using 1/4 of an inch in the cutting process instead of 3/8 of an inch.
  2. Make your first cut. Place a previously pasted and booked sheet of wallpaper onto your cutting table with your "top" and "bottom" edges facing up. Place the ruler across the wallpaper just at one of the folded ends on the table and carefully measure from the left seam (if you are approaching the corner from the left) over to your "length + 3/8" distance. Take a razor blade and make about a {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} cut parallel to the edge (seam) of the paper at this mark.
  3. Finish cutting. Repeat your {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} cut at the other end of the folded paper using the same "length + 3/8" distance. Now you should have a small cut at both ends. Hold the ruler down reasonably firmly so that it does not slip as you cut. Take a new razor blade and make a lengthwise cut in order to cut the wallpaper into two sections. You now have a "to the corner" section and an "after the corner" section.
  4. Hang the "to the corner" section. This piece should overlap the corner at least {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}, and if your walls are crooked it may overlap the corner by more at the top middle or bottom. The key is to have overlap "top to bottom" at the corner, but too much overlap can be noticeable.
    • If the overlap is greater than about 3/8 of an inch, take a fresh razor blade and making a freehand vertical cut, carefully cut away any overlap that is greater than 3/8 of an inch.
  5. Measure the width of your "after the corner" section. Take your level and draw a plumb 36" pencil line onto the new wall at this distance. Using the plumb line as a guide, hang this piece and get as good of a pattern match in the corner as possible. Again, it is most critical that this piece be plumb as it will set the stage for hanging the next wall nice and straight.
    • You want to avoid overlapping back onto the prior wall if you can. It's better for this piece to not quite make it back to the corner than overlapping.
    • The 3/8" overlap from the first piece will ensure you have wallpaper in the corner. If by chance, there is a "gap" where the second section does not get to the first section's "overlap", then remove the full second section, lightly re paste, and rehang.[4]

Tips

  • When you hang solid colored wallpaper, there is a greater likelihood of visible seams appearing. For example, the left edge may be just very slightly lighter than the right edge. This will become more apparent when two strips are hung as you will end up with a light edge butted against a dark edge. The solution is to "reverse" every other strip as you hang. This way, you will be aligning the light edge to light edge, and vice versa.
  • Glues can give you the impression that your wallpaper is not going to be smooth. Do not try to rub excess glue out from behind the paper. These imperfections – that sometimes look like air bubbles – will dry out and go away as the adhesive loses its moisture. If you rub and rub the wallpaper to get these glue ridges out then you are essentially removing the adhesive from where it needs to be and your paper will likely peel once its dry.
  • Air bubbles are bad and indicate a poor smoothing action. You must pull the wall covering up and away from the wall and smooth to get these air bubbles out. Resist trying to rub hard to force the bubbles to an edge. If gently rubbing gets it out, great.
  • Sometimes - especially with wall papers with smaller patterns - you will discover that the paper tends to "stretch" vertically.If this happens, adjust your wall covering so that you get a perfect match at eye level. Then you will have a very slight mismatch at the ceiling and floor but will not be distracting to the eye.

Things You'll Need

  • Pasting and cutting table - a very good and inexpensive option is a lauan door that can be purchased at home improvement centers. They are usually 24"-30" wide and 80" long. Get the 30" version if you can find it as it provides a little room for placing tools and you will need a 30" board if your wall covering is 27" wide. Avoid using counter tops or furniture as either the moisture or razor blades will ruin the surface.
  • 12" Smoothing brush Usually with {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} bristles. Avoid the smoothing brushes with 1" bristles or longer if you come across them. This will be used to smooth out the paper and remove bubbles.
  • 6" Joint knife This will be used primarily to cut your wallpaper against ceilings and trim. Also, to apply spackle for wall repairs. Avoid the plastic DIY versions; they cut easily and lose a good straight cutting edge.
  • 100 ct. box of single edge razor blades - absolutely the best to cut your wall covering on the table and on the wall as you hang. Get more than 5-10, you are going to use a bunch - about 2 per single roll is about right.
  • Tape measure - a {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. tape measure works well because of the slightly wider rule helps keep it stiff as you extend it out to measure long distances.
  • Plastic tarp for a work area, get one big enough for your table, room to stand on while cutting and pasting, and room for putting pasted paper until it is hung.
  • Adhesive appropriate for your type of wall covering.
  • {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} bucket - new or used. This is what we will mix our adhesive in that we will apply to the back of the paper.
  • Paint roller and frame 3/8 " nap on the roller is best, budget roller is OK. A roller with a plastic core instead of cardboard is a bonus. This will be used for applying paste to the wall covering. If you need to prime (you better), get a second higher quality roller for priming. Extension poles are highly recommended. They will keep you on the ground instead of climbing a ladder every few feet along the wall.
  • Primer - any brand of primer will work. This will set up a good foundation for your wallpaper to stick to if your walls are painted prior to adding the paper.
  • Large non-abrasive sponges and small terry cloth towels. Sponges will be used to clean and wipe down freshly hung wallpaper and towels will be used to clean the pasting table. Don't use towels on most wall coverings as they are too abrasive and may damage the new wallpaper surface. Adhesives are water soluble so the towels will not be ruined.
  • Ladder - For eight ft. ceilings a six ft. ladder is recommended. It is possible to hang paper with a smaller stepladder with {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. ceilings, but you want to reach and cut above your head as little as possible. For ten ft ceilings an eight foot ladder is recommended.
  • {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. metal ruler found at most home improvement centers. This will be used to measure and to make lengthwise cuts on the table.
  • {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. level (a 4 ft. level can be used also). Use this to check for "plumb" while hanging.
  • Pencil - You will need to mark the walls you wallpaper with plumb lines, and using a pen will bleed through the paper. Use a regular HB pencil or H pencil for the best results.
  • Screwdrivers and Pliers - for removing and replacing all face plates and hardware mounted on the wall.
  • Spackle is great for small holes and rough spots. It is not strong enough to repair large holes though (bigger than a golf ball). For large holes, use a hole repair technique that will call for joint compound which dries more slowly but is stronger.
  • Sanding sponge - very handy for smoothing spackle and small bumps in painted walls.
  • Portable work light, especially for small bathrooms with little or no windows. Remember, all wall mounted light fixtures will be removed.
  • Trash bag clean up as you go.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.brewsterwallcovering.com/how-to-hang-wallpaper.aspx
  2. ↑ http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/how-to/step/0,,214188_146574,00.html
  3. ↑ http://www.brewsterwallcovering.com/hang-wallpaper-around-doors-windows.aspx
  4. ↑ http://home.howstuffworks.com/how-to-hang-wallcoverings2.htm

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