Wall coverings add sparkling elegance to plain, boring spaces

Wall coverings have made a comeback with embellished patterns and some studded, adding sparkling elegance and luxury to rooms.

From dinning rooms, bedrooms to the staircase area, interior designers are dressing up walls in different colours and styles to befit everyone’s taste; but with wallpapers and wall fabrics instead of paint.

They can be fixed wall to wall while others use them to create an artistic border in a room, matching it with the colour of the floor, curtains, beddings or furniture. Vinyl wallpaper that last up to 20 years is finding more space in many homes, giving walls a new glossy look over a long time. The vinyl wallpapers come in variety of colours and designs.

“Wallpaper is used on walls to give character to a room, making them elegant, cozy, fun or formal,” said David Njenga, an interior designer at Stardom Interiors. “What is mounted on the wall is usually an extension of a person’s sense of style,” he said.

The vinyl wallpapers have a plastic glossy coating that make them easy to clean without removing the shine while blown vinyl wallpapers have elaborate imprints that give them a rough texture. Because of the plastic coating, both types can be mounted in any room including kitchens that are steamy.

“Wipeable wallpapers come in handy in houses that have children who draw on the walls. It only needs water and a detergent to keep it clean,” said Dickson Kirimi of The Amazing Wallpaper People.

Wallpaper designs include geometric patterns which are suitable for small spaces, metallic designs that add sparkling elegance and luxury to any room, and cartoon character sketches that are colourful and can bring Disney world into your child’s room.

Relief wallpaper, another type of wallpaper, is imprinted with designs and you can draw on it or paint it once it has been fixed hung. It gives a room some texture while making it possible to add one’s favourite paint colour.

Wallpapers are gaining popularity because they are easy to clean, don’t need hours to dry up, the textured or those with patterns don’t show dirt, and they don’t chip like paint. A five-metre roll of vinyl wallpaper costs Sh3,500.

Wall materials

Homeowners are also using wall covering materials, that breath new life in plain, boring spaces by adding colour and texture.

Classic Mouldings Interior Design and Construction Services on Nairobi’s Mombasa Road stocks a variety of wall covering materials that include stripes, floral, damask, plain and motif designs from Belgium-based Arte International and Omexco companies.

Damask is a thick fabric that has patterns, while motif is a material with a recurring subject. Unlike the regular wallpaper, wall coverings are made of non-woven clothing and other natural materials such as bamboo or glass.

“Our wall coverings are thick with a texture; when put on the wall its lasts for long and does not suffer from air bubble like the wallpaper,” said Metreen Wamalwa of Classic Mouldings.

Like wallpaper, they can be cleaned with damp cloth when stained and still remain intact. They can also be repaired when damaged.
Depending on the type, the wall covering range from Sh2,000 to Sh7,000 per metre.

Accessories on wall

To dress up wallpaper, border linings and stickers can be used. The borders flow in a line while the stickers consist of image cutouts which are stuck onto the wallpaper. Stickers have a mural finish and resemble painted designs on the wall.

Using the right kind of tools is necessary to ensure that the wallpaper is mounted perfectly. Wallpaper paste, plastic smoother, trimming knife, stripping knife, brush and a heat gun are some of the basic tools and material needed for a good job.

Before sticking the wallpaper, smoothen the wall using sandpaper, followed by an oil-based primer coat, which makes the wall uniform. A smooth wall ensures that the wallpaper does not have lines, folds or bubbles.

Using the measurements of the wall, cut vertical strips of the paper and then apply pre-mixed wallpaper glue at the back and stick them on the wall. You can also dampen the paper strips using water if they were pre-pasted by the manufacturer. Even out each strip on the wall using a plastic smoother and ensure that the strips do not overlap. They should sit perfectly next to each other.

Once all strips are stuck on the wall, remove any trapped bubbles using a plastic smoother to leave a neat finish.

“Unless one gets bored with the design, a wallpaper especially vinyl can last up to 20 years without replacement,” said Mr Kirimi.

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