Even if you can’t commit to a whole room, indulge your love of wallpaper in a small way. Pretty papers bring style into even the most hardworking spaces.
An attractive and cheery home office can hide in plain sight in any room of your home. Make it unique with removable wallpaper on furniture and accents. You can add patterned punch with a roll of paper or just a scrap.
Line the inside of a bookcase with a graphic design, and enhance office must-haves like folders and storage boxes with lively motifs.
What You’ll Need
- Bookcase
- Removable wallpaper (we used Sumi-E #RY2713 from York Wallcoverings)
- Scissors
- Water in a spray bottle
- Smoothing tool
- Sponge
- Craft knife and cutting mat
Remove the back of the bookcase and lay on the floor over a drop cloth. Cut a piece of wallpaper roughly the same size as the back. If the bookcase is wider than the wallpaper, roll out a second piece and match the motifs on the sides of both pieces of paper. Cut the second piece, keeping the matched motifs in position.
Turn the first piece of paper over and spray with a fine mist of water. After two to three minutes, turn the paper over and apply to one edge of the backing board. With the smoothing tool, remove any air bubbles and wrinkles.
Wet the back side of the second piece of paper if using and apply it to the board matching the pattern to the edge of the first strip of paper. Smooth and wipe down both pieces of paper with a damp sponge.
When dry, turn the board over onto the cutting mat and trim excess paper with the cutting knife.
Reattach the board to the back of the bookcase.
This sturdy chair is in great shape and offers stable seating but little in the way of style and finish.
A coat of paint and a bold print centered on the chair back transforms it from plain to chic.
What You’ll Need
- Chair
- Primer
- Paint in coordinating color
- Paintbrush
- Removable wallpaper (we used Batik Damask #NN7305 from York Wallcoverings)
- Scissors
- Craft knife and cutting mat
- Unpainted chair
For best results, choose a smooth piece of furniture like this one. Select a paint color in the same tonal family as the wallpaper. Sand, clean, then prime and paint your piece of furniture, letting it dry between coats.
Center a piece of wallpaper on the back of the chair. Mark the outer edges of the paper all around and cut broadly to fit the back. Then, following the manufacturer’s instructions included with your wallpaper, adhere it to the piece of furniture.
Using the craft knife, trim any paper at the sides of the chair back. Tip the chair on its side over the cutting mat and trim paper at top and bottom of the chair back.
Forget the tired old cork bulletin board: Sub in a rectangle of cork or foam board covered in a subtle pattern that will be a great background for your fave pix and memos.
What You’ll Need
- Piece of cork (ours is 24 x 36 inches)
- Wallpaper (we used Utopia #NN7263 from York Wallcoverings)
- Scissors
- Spray adhesive
- Craft knife and cutting mat
- Small nails
- Hammer
Cut a piece of wallpaper slightly larger than the cork.
Spray the back of the wallpaper and the surface of the cork with spray adhesive. Apply the paper to the cork, smoothing out any wrinkles or air bubbles.
Turn the cork over onto the cutting mat and trim any excess paper with the craft knife. Using small headed nails and a hammer, nail the four corners of the cork to the wall over a desk or on a door.
Clipboards are handy for tracking everything from work and leisure schedules to pending bills to menus, recipes and grocery lists.
Apply a different wallpaper pattern on each and you’ll never think twice about which one to grab.
What You’ll Need
- Clipboards
- Zip tie
- Card stock
- Pencil
- Removable wallpaper samples or scraps (we used Sumi-E #RY2713, Utopia #NN7263, Batik Damask #NN7305 and Woven Mat #AT7098 from York Wallcoverings, the others are linked above)
- Mod Podge or water for prepasted wallpapers
- Craft knife
- Craft scraper
Make a template: Trace the shape of a clipboard onto card stock, making a notch for the clamp (use a zip tie to hold clamp open while working).
Place the template on the back of a piece of wallpaper; cut out with a craft knife. Brush a thin, even layer of Mod Podge onto the clipboard with a craft brush or, for prepasted papers, spray the back of the paper lightly with water.
Apply paper to the clipboard and smooth out air bubbles with a craft scraper. Let dry.
Photography by Chris Hennessey
Thanks to our sponsor: York Wallcoverings
© Caruth Studio