Hanging Wallpaper
Wallpaper is back in fashion and hanging it is more satisfying than you'd think. The key: a perfectly plumb first drop, proper paste application, and smooth but firm brushing to eliminate bubbles. Feature walls are the perfect first project.
Paste-the-wall method. Step-by-step, including corners and sockets.
Start with a paste-the-wall wallpaper for your first attempt. No soaking, no paste table, no soggy paper. Dramatically easier.
Your first drop MUST be plumb. Use a spirit level or plumb line — don't trust the corner of the room (rooms are never square). If the first drop is off, every subsequent drop gets worse.
Always start next to the most prominent feature (fireplace, window) and work AWAY from it. The join at the end of the room (usually in a corner) is where any pattern mismatch will be least visible.
Buy 10-15% more wallpaper than the room measurement suggests. Pattern matching eats up more paper than you'd expect.
Prepare walls: fill, sand, sugar soap. Remove old wallpaper if present (steam stripper or soak + scrape)
Measure and mark a perfectly plumb vertical line where your first drop will go
Measure the wall height, add 50mm top and bottom for trimming
PASTE-THE-WALL: Apply paste directly to the wall with a roller in the marked section
Hang the first drop: align to your plumb line, smooth from centre outward with a wallpaper brush
Trim excess at ceiling and skirting with a sharp blade against a straight edge
Subsequent drops: butt-join edges tightly. Match patterns before smoothing down
Use a seam roller on the joins (gently — don't squeeze out all the paste)
Around sockets: hang paper over the socket, make an X-cut from corner to corner, fold back triangles, trim. Refit the faceplate over the paper
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