And then I stenciled another. I still am asked frequently about the source for our "wallpaper", which I love.
To create a smooth wall again I would need to sand everything down. Wanting to prevent the entire house from becoming one big dusty disaster, I taped poly along the ceiling to create a barrier between the stenciled wall and the rest of the home.
I then used a drywall sanding pole paired with some medium grit sandpaper to smooth the entire wall.
Shortly after I began, I realized I needed to add a dust mask to the mix. After I used a medium grit paper, I went back over the wall one more time with a fine grit, using a lot of muscle to get the wall as smooth as possible.
Once the wall was to a smoothness I was happy with, I took a damp rag to wipe it down and remove any additional dust that was left on the surface.
Finally, I rolled and brushed on a coat of white primer to prep the walls for a fresh coat of paint!
I think we know that some sort of pattern will be inevitable again in this space, but I am not sure a stencil will be my first choice this time. I never say never, but I am now thinking about wallpapers again.
Wallpapers bring an instant statement to a room, and are a fun way to add visual interest with color and pattern. Applying wallpaper isn't the easiest method either, and removing it may even be more challenging than covering a stencil. But what about removable wallpaper? Now that is what I am talking about. This stuff is becoming prettier and prettier all of the time, not to mention, there is a major appeal in that it can be applied easily with very little work to remove it. Removable wallpaper is a perfect solution for those who rent, for lining cabinets, bookcases and drawers, and for creating dramatic transformations in a non-committal way.
Just to show how beautiful many of these removable wallpapers are, I have rounded up a few of my favorites.
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I recently read a post over at 'Merrick's Art' (http://www.merricksart.com/2016/07/powder-room-transformation.html) about her guest bathroom and a wallpaper you can just stick to the wall and remove it later very easily. I think it's not as cheap as one would wish but I think it's a great solution and you don't have to do all the hard work with a real wallpaper:o)
ReplyDeletexx, Kirsten
http://www.thedressbakery.blogspot.de
I love the idea of removable walllpaper. My office is the same blue we painted it years ago when it was for our boys' playroom, and while I do love the color, I think I need something different. Maybe some wallpaper over one of the walls will help. (I will say I am a little sad to see the tree stencil go as that was the post that first brought me to your site years ago. *Sigh* But, I have found so much other inspiration that I think I will survive ;-) Can't wait to check out some of those papers you posted above. :-)
ReplyDeleteI used removable wall stickers in my last place for my daughter's nursery. It was a giant floor to ceiling tree that filled the entire wall and had falling leaves and butterflies scattered around. It looked great and when we moved, it took less than 5 minutes to remove it and left no marks or residue behind. Word of warning, get the placement right first time or it will slowly unstick later on, there is little room for reapplication as the sticky stuff is quite weak, quite like post-it notes.
ReplyDeleteI so want to try removable wallpaper in our new house. The downstairs coat closet is just begging for it!
ReplyDeleteYes yes yes to paper in a closet! I would love to see how that turns out!
DeleteHI,
ReplyDeleteWhere is the white desk from in the first photo? I love it. I've been looking for a perfect little white desk, and that one is gorgous! I didn't see it linked anywhere. Thanks!
Hi Sandy!
DeleteI found it at Home Depot a few years ago: http://m.homedepot.com/p/Home-Decorators-Collection-Crisp-2-Drawer-Writing-Desk-in-White-HO8800/202671597. It's a great piece, I just swapped the knobs with some from Hobby Lobby. :)
Love this I'm thinking of the something for my little girl's room just on her focal wall ps I would like to know where is the picture frame that is above your vanity from is beautiful thanks you xox alina
ReplyDeleteThanks Alina! The picture frame shown on the vanity is from HomeGoods. :)
DeleteYour stenciled walls are beautiful ♥
ReplyDeletesummerdaisy.net
That's great you knew how to remove the stencil from your wall. I didn't realize you need to sand it down first, I just knew about the primer. Thanks for the info. We've only stenciled on my daughter's wall. We haven't tried wall paper. It's good to know it's easy to remove now.
ReplyDeleteThese are gorgeous! I want them all!
ReplyDeleteHer Heartland Soul
herheartlandsoul.com
Despite the sanding required to prep the walls for fresh paint, if the stencil is to be removed, I still come down on the side of the stencil. When we bought our house, every room looked like the wall paper fairy exploded in it with cutesy flower patterns everywhere. It took me FOREVER to remove them. A couple of them had to be painted over, because there was no budging it. Even the "removable" wall paper left a thick layer of gunky glue on the walls that was quite challenging to remove. I love the look and the fact that they are now much easier to remove, but the price tag will keep me reaching for stencils!
ReplyDeleteWhile I haven't tried removeable wallpaper yet I do love fabric treatments on walls for the same reasons. Super easy to hang and super easy to remove. And depending on where/when you buy the fabric it can even be cheaper. I make my own liquid starch (only because no one here sells it and I'm never patient enough for Amazon to deliver it in two days). I use a staple gun to set the fabric on the top and pull out when dry but my favorite part of fabric over wallpaper is that you can smoosh, stretch and pull it in place to get the patterns to match in case your walls aren't square.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking the same thing ; ) There are great fabrics out there, and much less expensive than temporary wall paper....
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