Advice from a Pro Paperhanger

By Gene and Katie Hamilton

Wesley Barras of Total Wallpaper in Richmond, Texas has some advice he’d like to share with homeowners about the fine art of paper hanging. Here’s what he suggests.

Ordering Wallpaper: Two sheets of the exact same wallpaper can look slightly off if they were run through the printing press at different times so order a little more than you think. If you run out before completing a job, you may have a difficult time finding your pattern with the specific run number to match what you have.

Buying Online? Order Samples: If you order wallpaper online order samples first because images become pixilated when they are compressed to fit in a website. This means a picture may be slightly different from the real thing and colors can look different.

Priming the Walls: Make sure your contractor or yourself primes the walls with primer or shellac before hanging the wallpaper because wallpaper glue needs a smooth surface to stick to. If you don’t prime the walls, the glue will stick to the drywall which makes removing it a very long and tedious process, and can damage the drywall.

Use this WALLPAPER CALCULATOR to know how much to order: totalwallcovering.com

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