Stories Collected While Living in France

French la Vie

Creative Wall Papering, or Just Another Wild Hair Idea

Wallpaper samples
Photos and text by Corey Amaro

When I was back home, my friend Ellen took me to this fantastic recycyling shop called, "The Scrap Exchange".  The Scrap Exchange is a non profit creative reuse center located in Durham, North Carolina. The shop had a variety of things that would have made their way to a land fill, but instead find home in someone's creative projects. Paper, boxes, springs, plastic containers, wire, rope…. a slew of perfectly good items that stand wait for re-purposing.

 

Wallpaper samples

 

At the Scrap Exchange I found stacks of old wallpaper. If the plane would have let me free of charge, I would have taken every single wallpaper sample home. Instead French Husband and I spent a couple of hours collecting the 'pretty ones'… Or I should say, French Husband held and carried the wallpaper, while I drooled over which ones to buy. (French Husband was the human scale, telling me, "We can take 15 lbs worth…not one ounce more." Which was our hand luggage allowance.

  Wallpaper samples floral

   

 

We (he) carried the wall paper in our hand luggage for six weeks! Through North and South Carolina, Lousianna, Texas, California, then back to France. Crazy. But I could not pass them up. I think it was in Texas that French Husband asked, "You do have a plan for these other than just keeping my arms loaded right?"

 

French stamps                       

(Creative project #3,493, 473, 899: Wall papering with stamps… that was more licking than I imaged. The idea came to a halt after several inches…. creative yes, dumb as well.)

At that point I wasn't sure…. but I couldn't tell him that. I knew I would sell some on my online shop, and keep some for some for a creative outburst that might come my way.

Do you ever buy something because it inspires you, yet you do not know what the final project will be? Do you ever have wild hair ideas that haunt you when you see them sitting in the closet…waiting?

 

 

Bench on wall

(My friend decorated her wall with a bench. Creative ease without licking a single stamp!)

Once home I knew what I would do with the wall paper. French Husband realized his work as transporter was not done, that my wheels never stopped turning, and that his strong arms were going to be used yet again.
I am thinking to do a collage on one of our kitchen walls.
In the background I heard French Husband questioning my idea,
"Have you ever wall-papered before?"
"No. Have you?"
"No."
I guess you could say we are in for another adventure.
Wallpaper collage idea

Do you know how to do wall paper? Want to come over and help us? I'll cook, serve wine, take photos and offer a comfortable bed, for the exchange. Doesn't that sound like a wild hair idea to jump into!

Comments

44 responses to “Creative Wall Papering, or Just Another Wild Hair Idea”

  1. Paulita

    Putting wall paper up, not so hard. Getting it down, very difficult. I’ll wait for the offer to come stay when you want to remove the wallpaper. Take pictures!!

    Reply
  2. Debbie Lilly

    I will – I will. I have around #75 etchings I bought at the auction house in Connecticut and some might also add interest. Possibly do an artistic collage on a board the size of the wall, and then it could be “removed” easily…

    Reply
  3. deb

    Oh, dear, I have LOTS of things I bought , knowing that I’ll eventually do something with them ( and I usually do). These items are generally of the sort that make normal people roll their eyes….
    Here’s on of my transformations:
    http://ofsageandsepia.blogspot.com/2010/02/rescued-at-last.html
    Good luck with the wallpaper – and perhaps even wallpapering! Hard to pass up pretty paper of any kind! I recently papered the bottom half of my studio walls – not sure I’m qualified to do whole walls!

    Reply
  4. Marie- Noelle

    I have wall papered a lot … – nearly all our house – … by myself !
    I wall papered at my friends’ and at my relatives’ !!!
    All you need is GOOD TOOLS, actually !
    I can help…
    Now 2 problems to deal with:
    – 1) finding a date … a hard job !!!
    – 2) explaining my husband why I should go wall papering at your house when
    all our whole house walls need new papering DESPARATELY !!!
    _______________________
    Hi Buddy,
    Oh!! You can come over anytime! Then I’ll go help you.
    C

    Reply
  5. Irina

    yes, i did. my apartment in Ukraine has wall paper throughout and i have changed it a few times. the rule is always start from the window, so you do not see over laps. hope it helps a bit. and of course i would LOVE to help you if you wait till the end of next April that is when I’ll be visiting Provence 🙂

    Reply
  6. Jackie

    I’ll be there in a trice! Date and time?:)
    jackie
    blissfarmantiques

    Reply
  7. Lisa

    Ooooh! I want to come. I’ve wall-papered before… once… and my husband and I almost ended up in divorce court 😉 Now I wall-border… when he’s not home… he’s a perfectionist… me? not so much =D
    Lisa in Texas

    Reply
  8. Hillary

    OMG, I didn’t need to know about this place Corey!!! Durham is not far from me. I see a road trip in the very near future. What an awesome place. I have a whole box of stuff to donate and then I’m sure I will come home with at least 2 boxes.
    I don’t think I have hung wallpaper, but I do have some that needs to come down. Three rooms of the stuff.

    Reply
  9. Irina

    someone already suggested here to do a board with wall paper. I have an idea of using an antique large size frame, as large as it can be just standing on the floor and framing the pretty wall paper patchwork 🙂

    Reply
  10. Sandy

    Throw in a plane ticket and I am so there, hee hee! Actually wallpaper is pretty easy and I bet yours will turn out wonderfully. Happy creating!

    Reply
  11. Hasmin C.

    Can’t wait to see the outcome!

    Reply
  12. Everton Terrace

    Yep, have wallpapered many many times – every place I’ve lived actually. Oh, if I the moola for a ticket, I’d be there doing your walls in a heartbeat, that sounded strange… Cannot WAIT to see how this comes out – great I’m sure.

    Reply
  13. Cheryl ~ Casual Cottage Chic

    We {okay…Mr CCC} wallpapered four bathrooms the first year we were in our new home {that was 9 years ago}. My part…pick out the wallpaper. Which wasn’t really THAT easy 😉 The wallpaper already had the paste on the back, but it was recommended that we apply a special paste to the walls since they were bathrooms {moisture}. Now the real trick was the pattern matching….again, Mr CCC who is very precise pulled this off to a T. Years later the wallpaper is still on the walls; seams are still holding down and I still admire Mr CCC’s handy work, especially because this is a man who is not all that handy! The key is in the paste after you have the design in mind 😉 Have you thought about purchasing some antique wooden frames in various sizes and shapes at the brocante; design the collages on a board and frame them? A variety of frame sizes and carved designs would make a plain wall interesting AND it wouldn’t be as permanent as wallpapering the wall. Just a suggestion…{hair brain idea}….lol! Whatever you do, it will be FABULOUS 😉

    Reply
  14. Shannon at Duchess & Bird

    Oh you made me laugh Corey. Yes I can wallpaper and will be there in April if you can wait that long which I doubt! I once covered our half bath in national geographic magazine covers. They had to have a face human or otherwise and it was easy to find them at thrift stores. I have used copies of black and white photos to make a border around a bedroom too. Love using different things too. Can’t wait for the photos of your finished wall.
    p.s.- Sasha’s overlook is where we take all out of towners for their photo of the bridge and city!
    xxoo-Shannon

    Reply
  15. Brenda L from TN

    Sadly, I do not know how to wallpaper…I had to hire someone to do mine…but I love your selections of paper…they really are pretty…
    Wallpaper a door or inset in a door or a framed glass window. I had the wallpaper lady do the inset of my dinning room swinging door and she was reluctant but the finished product was really nice and I got LOTS of compliments…Have fun…

    Reply
  16. Stubblejumpin’ Gal (Kate in Saskatchewan)

    I collage-wallpapered an entire hallway in our old house, and still need to take “it” down and bring it over to the new place, and find a spot for it. Because I used all the graphics I’d been saving for 30 years, and can’t bear to part with them — the cards, the pictures torn from magazines, the letters, you name it. It was so wonderful to see them all there in front of me instead of tucked into books and diaries where they never saw the light of day.
    I used a decoupage glue sort of stuff so that the wall would be wipe-able, but it still has a stickiness sometimes and also with high humidity it swells a little, so the wall does not appear perfectly flat. I don’t care! But it’s not perfect and there must be a better way to do it.
    Also I applied bristol board to the wall with tacks, before gluing on all my beloved pictures, so that it will all come down to be moved.
    Be sure to “show and tell” us what you do!

    Reply
  17. ChicagoSheila

    Twenty years ago my husband and I put up a wallpaper border in a small room. Our first and only major fight. But I learned. After that, we picked out wallpaper, and I left home for the day. When I came back, it was done beautifully, and life went on. Good luck and God bless those couples who can do this job together! I will pass on the offer, but will definitely admire the finished work!

    Reply
  18. Rhonda P.

    I threw my head back and laughed, I have never done wallpapering in my life but I would help you if I could get there! Great invitation – sounds very tempting.
    This sounds like an episode of Trading Spaces, for sure…..Hildi.

    Reply
  19. Amy Kortuem

    I’ve never wallpapered. When I bought my old house, I removed so much wallpaper that I swore I’d never put up wallpaper anywhere, ever. But I LOVE your idea! I would come over and help you cook for the helpers…

    Reply
  20. Debra

    I actually paid a professional $300. about 4 years ago to paper my powder room because I had this wild idea that I would mess it up . . .how stupid was that? Can’t wait to see the kitchen wall!

    Reply
  21. martina

    Yes, been there/done that.I went on a wallpapering bender when I first got this place. Hallways and the bathroom were papered. Striped wallpaper-never again! Five years later it was all removed.

    Reply
  22. Sharon, Morrison Mercantile

    Paste and stick…pretty simple. Think crazy quilt and start in the center and work out to the edges. My friend papered one focal wall with brown grocery sack paper and left it kind of rough. Looks great with all the texture. Brown mailing paper would do the same.
    If I were close, I would come help just for the wine!!
    enjoy the adventure.
    hugs.

    Reply
  23. Diane

    I have put up one wallpaper border in our first child’s nursery. Not my skill set…at all. But it was lovely.
    I’ll look forward to what beauty you create.
    Diane

    Reply
  24. Marilyn

    Wish I could do just that. Creative and fun for sure. Now my husband can wallpaper, can I come along?

    Reply
  25. Denise Moulun-Pasek

    Vlad is a near expert at wallpapering. He uses a scalpel!
    I think a wall quilt would be gorgeous, and your kitchen could take it very well, it is large and airy. Which wall are you thinking of doing?
    Would you do a “quilt pattern” or just cut squares?
    Sounds like fun!

    Reply
  26. Isabel ~ Maison Douce

    Just make sure to use a wallpaper scraper to remove excess glue, so you don’t get bubbles… I am getting ready to wallpaper a screen, and then I am going to use Ralph Lauren’s Sunfade antiquing glaze on top, which is supposed to make it look faded… I am very intrigued by it!!
    Isabel

    Reply
  27. airelle

    You should ask Valérie Domidot, non? 😉

    Reply
  28. sue

    Well, I can’t believe you were in Durham, NC! I live in Cary, which is just a few miles away, and I work at Duke, in Durham. I know exactly where the Scrap Exchange is. Wrap pretty gifts in it, cover books with it, make picture frames with it (and incorporate those pretty stamps) and cut out small gift tags with it, or decoupage bits onto pretty little vintage market bottles with stamps on them, too,a nd pretty calligraphy…endless possibilities.
    Delightful. I am picturing you lugging that all over. You’ll come up with good ideas for it all; you’re very creative.

    Reply
  29. Victoria Ramos

    I love to wallpaper. My tip – use strip-able really good paste even if the paper is pre-pasted. And like Marie-Noelle said – good tools – especially nice sharp razors for cutting.
    Pretty easy stuff really, plus if you are doing a collage there is no need to match a pattern or worry about corners.
    Also thanks to Isabel-Maison Douce’s post about the Ralph Lauren Sunfade Antiquing glaze…very interesting!
    Can’t wait to see the finished product!!!

    Reply
  30. Jann

    I have a very creative friend who once
    wallpapered her husband’s small
    bathroom with maps from National
    Geographic (only the top half of the
    walls). It really looked great
    (and you can get a geography lesson
    while doing your business….)
    😉
    jann

    Reply
  31. Annie v.

    Have wallpapered my whole house!!! now, age catching up I have turned myself to wallpapering miniature houses!! something I have not read in the emails, you have to make sure that the paper you use is able to be wet as it seems that you are going to use old wallpaper, for mini wallpapering I usually spray the paper with some kind of varnish (mat)as I have had a few surprises with the color which had run. Use a brayer when pasting the paper it will smooth it out.
    Good luck, wish I could give you a hand, but Ct too far!!!

    Reply
  32. Rebecca from the pacific northwest

    I was thinking of something a little more removable when you get your next wild hair idea. I like Cheryl/CCC’s idea with a variety of antique frames, a veritable montage. That also gives you something new to look for at brocantes: frames!
    This is probably too practical an idea though.

    Reply
  33. Jenna

    You don’t want me to help with the wall paper, I’d end up glued to the wall. I’m a champ at eating and drinking wine though.

    Reply
  34. Franca Bollo

    I read “Wild Hair” and thought this was going to be a post about Don King.

    Reply
  35. ellen cassilly

    Sounds great. I’m sure that it will be beautiful.
    I made lovely tarts with your creme de marron. Delicious. Merci. E

    Reply
  36. momof5

    I gave up wallpapering after living in old houses that do not have 90 degree angles.. not so easy with patterns that need to meet. When I was a child my mother papered the downstairs bathroom in old National Geographic maps. I loved to use that bathroom and look at the walls. (I see someone else had the same idea). I’ve decided if I ever wallpaper again it will be to do a quilt pattern like the log cabin pattern as a “collage” on one wall using old wallpaper. How sweet of FH to carry all that paper for you. What a guy!

    Reply
  37. Jane Ann

    I’m so jealous! I haven’t been able to find paper I like. What fun you will have! I’ve wallpapered a few times with good results. In my opinion, random patterns are easiest and plaids the hardest. Measure and cut carefully and all will be well. Wish I could join in on the fun.

    Reply
  38. jend’isère

    Like a wild hare, I could hop over for such a creative challenge.
    PS.Leaving behind my husband with kids, who does happen to be two meters high.

    Reply
  39. Elaine L.

    I get creative ideas all the time and collect wonderful found objects. However, how much gets done and how much stays in my head is another matter. Unfortunately, I’m the type that seems to like day dreaming about it or enjoys staring at my treasures more than actually getting anything done.
    Wouldn’t it be fun to have a group of friends who got together and got something done at one person’s house each month?!
    ~elaine~

    Reply
  40. Barbara

    Reading this post made me smile. I could almost see the both of you shopping.
    I had “future” projects and ideas galore as well. Fruition is another word…like yes or no.
    I’m sure when your wall is finished we’ll be seeing lovely photos of the end result. 🙂

    Reply
  41. Lisa A.

    Hi Corey,
    I recently saw something on the design station on French television (I think it was on Question Maison) where they were using old wallpaper and tearing them into odd shape, but vertical strips, then applying them almost like patchwork. The effect was really interesting and left you with impression of a room which had lived 100 lives. Happy holidays to you. See you in January

    Reply
  42. Linda

    You could paste the paper to the inside of an armoire-that way you wouldn’t see mistakes like on a wall. I’ve found it isn’t hard to wall paper, it’s just hard to get it all straight but with many pieces maybe it will be easy. It’s long strips that are the killers.

    Reply
  43. Brenda

    Wallpaper! Beautiful! What a find! I’d sell it in my shop….but remember it’s almost permanent, and a lot of work…I would opt for papering boxes, chests, wood or board. Instead of locks use matching ribbon to close…makes wonderful file boxes for more stuff!!!

    Reply
  44. Amanda

    Those wallpapering design were absolutely fabulous especially the floral one. It is so feminine. That would be perfect in my daughter’s room.

    Reply

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