Friday, April 10, 2015

Holy wallpaper: Veni, vidi, vici.

So-- let's cut to the chase: This is the first time I've ever hung wallpaper. And according to "a source" I found online, basically I've just broken all of the cardinal rules of wallpapering. In one day. 

Apparently, you should consider the following: 

The wallpaper you install in 2015 may be around much longer than you’re expecting. It’s not at all unusual for a homeowner to keep the same wallpaper for 15 or 20 years. So when you’re in the early stages of planning your wallpaper project, consider the long term. Do you think you’ll like the pattern as much in a few years as you do today? In 20 years, is it possible that the room you’re covering with wallpaper will be serving a different purpose?

Which makes me wonder, will I really like this totally bonkers landscape wallpaper 15 years from now? I think I can actually say with a fair amount of confidence, "Absolutely not." However, I just totally overhauled my powder room for about $120.00 and a day's worth of work, so I guess if I hate it even five years from now, it still worked out to be a pretty good deal. It's roughly six cents a day if I can stick it out until then.

And the next rule of wallpapering that I unwittingly threw out the window: 

The wallpaper you like most may not be the best choice for your skill level. Try to select a pattern you feel confident you can hang properly.

Followed closely by: 
If you’re considering a patterned wallpaper, don’t forget that patterns repeat. While you might like a particular patterned sample, ask yourself whether you’d like to see that sample reproduced over and over across the breadth of the space you’re redecorating. Maybe, maybe not—in the end, it’s a matter of taste. 
Sweet jesus. I wonder if Bob Villa ever saw this wallpaper. It's crazy-time with the pattern and repeat. And lining up the pattern is like a country-style comedy skit. "Is it this barn or is that a covered bridge? Where is the other half of that cow?" "Wait a minute. Are there two different fields with horses in them? Muther-fu#45..." 
Generally speaking, patterns with a repeat of six inches or fewer tend to appear quite busy, particularly in humbly proportioned rooms. 
Do you think my 5' X 5' bathroom qualifies as "humbly proprtioned"? At one point, Jules, the dog, my mom, my dad, and I were all standing in there together. And of course I couldn't resist asking "Just how many Salways CAN you fit into a 5' X 5' bathroom?" Because seriously. I actually have no idea how we all fit. I guess it helped that I was on a ladder and my mom was standing on the toilet. 
Another fancy day upstate. 
So with all of that in mind-- the rule breaking, the zanny pattern, the total lack of experience on my part-- the results of our maiden wallpapering adventure are really quite tremendous if I may say so. The pattern lines up terrifically, it's quite straight, and the "humble proportions" of our bathroom are actually just perfect for a paper so action-packed. 
Make no mistake. We're not finished in there yet. I still need to find the perfect rug for the floor and replace my eyelet shower curtain with something a little less country-bumpkin-cute.  But for about $120.00, this was a pretty resounding overhaul. 
Now onto the attic, which we're starting to tackle this weekend! 

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