Expert tips for hanging wallpaper

Wallpaper is an easy way to bring art and pattern into your home

From creating a feature wall with impact in the living room to sprucing up a small bathroom, wallpaper can inject an instant lift. And if you follow our tips for hanging wallpaper yourself, you can save a fortune.

‘As with most DIY jobs, good preparation is everything,’ says Wayne Perrey, DIY expert and presenter on shows such as Interior Design Masters, Love Your Garden and Spring into Summer. ‘Lightly sand the walls first to ensure they are smooth, especially if the wallpaper has a slight sheen, as this really shows up all the imperfections underneath.’

You will need

• Wallpaper stripper (if required)
• Filler
• Sander/sandpaper
• Sugar soap
• Primer or wall sealer (if required)
• Wallpaper
• Wallpaper paste
• Clean cloth

1 Prep the walls

Remove any old wallpaper, fill and sand cracks and imperfections on the walls, then clean the surfaces with water and sugar soap to remove any dust or grease. If your walls are covered with gloss or silk paint, sand them down and then apply a universal primer.

If you’re applying wallpaper on to fresh plaster, you’ll need to ‘size’ the wall first by liberally applying a wall sealer and letting it dry. This prevents the adhesive paste being absorbed by the porous plaster.

2 Decide what type of wallpaper to use

Some people hang lining paper first, which may improve the end result if your walls have a lot of imperfections. ‘If you’re new to using wallpaper I recommend choosing paste-the-wall wallpaper,’ says Wayne. ‘Unlike traditional wallpaper – where the paste is applied to the paper and can get very messy – you simply roller the adhesive paste on to the walls, then apply the paper and smooth it down with a clean cloth.

3 Start from the centre of your wall

‘I always start in the centre of the wall and measure a straight vertical line to start from – especially if working on a feature wall or chimney breast,’ says Wayne. ‘Then I work left or right to ensure the pattern looks its best in the middle.

Wayne’s top tip

• Use decorator’s caulk along skirting board and ceiling edges; it helps you get really crisp lines for a neat finish.

Sourcebook

• Check out brands such as Mind the Gap, Graham & Brown and Milton & King for vintage-look wallpaper.
• A paste-the-wall mural wallpaper made to your wall dimensions, from suppliers such as Wall Sauce, removes the stress of matching prints and cutting to size.

WORDS: LINDSEY HARRAD