Surrey Wallpapering

Wallpaper is a great option to add colour to a room and bring a room to life but before choosing this option there a number of facts that should be taken in to consideration.

Cost.

A roll of wallpaper can range from as little as £10 rising into the high hundreds, so available to all budgets, but the quality of the paper is related to the price. A cheaper option is likely to rip easily, pattern not matching particularly well or harder to keep clean. A good indication of the quality of the paper is the grammage. The higher the grammage the better the quality.

Room preparation can take longer than a room being painted, especially with the need to cross line first. This extra work and time will raise the cost. As most manufacturers recommend lining walls first (as do we), this extra cost must be considered.

For wallpaper options and design advice we highly recommend the services of Jilly at Front of House Interiors, based in Leatherhead.

www.frontofhouseinteriors.co.uk 

Hanging issues.

Unfortunately there are unavoidable issues with wallpaper that require consideration by the customer.

Pattern not matching across adjoining drops can be an issue, especially with the cheaper end of the market. In this instance it is standard to match pattern at eye level over top or bottom.

Small gaps appearing along joints can be due to a few reasons. Paper shrinking once dry is a common issue and is why cross lining is recommended as this helps prevent this. The wall or walls not being true is another common problem as the slightest imperfection can open the joints. These are again out of the paper hangers control. Painting the walls the colour of the paper first is often recommended by manufacturers, or at least where joints will be. There are also crayons and pencils that can be used to hide gaps. Because of this issue manufacturers often sell the matching paint .

When going around corners you will always loose a small amount of pattern. This would always be kept to the minimum but cannot be helped as again no wall is true. This would also be the case at the 'Kill Point'. This is when all walls are being papered so there will be a point both ends meet. This point would therefore be mapped out to be in a hidden corner, behind curtains or tall furniture etc. If the pattern allows this may be more easily disguised.

Measuring up.

When measuring walls please allow extra for trimming and walls not being true. Adding 10% is normally a safe bet. Also allowing extra for natural wastage which depends on the pattern match which is often over half a metre. The supplier should be able to tell you how many rolls required from square meterage. An average height room would normally be 3 drops per average size roll.

When measuring for Murals it is imperative that you once again allow for trimming top, bottom and edges.

Thermal liner & Insulating paper.

These are different products but can be used together and can reduce heat loss by up to 40% according to manufacturers and also reduce the time is takes to heat up a room. They can also help with soundproofing. 

These can be painted or wallpapered over but do require a specific paste and as the products themselves aren't cheap it can be an expensive project. However, as they will cut the cost of heating a room, do eventually pay for themselves. 

If there are any questions you may have please contact us as we would be happy to advise in anyway we can.