Give your walls new life with wallpaper

HOMES| WALLPAPER

You don't have to conform to what everyone is doing to have a lovely home. Rather than painting all your walls, you can try using wallpaper for a more adventurous look.

See, unlike paint that is usually one colour—with the exception of textured paint—wallpaper can make your walls come alive with different themes, ranging from nature to cartoons and even surreal themes to tickle your fancy.

As wallpaper is fun, Rose Sanyu, a resident of Kisaasi in Kampala, chose to have wallpaper in her home. She says, "It is easy to stick it to a wall. You just have to buy adhesive to stick the wallpaper to the wall, even a lady can do it. And it saves you from hiring someone as it is with painting, where you need a painter."

Theme
For open spaces, such as the living room, lounge and dining room, Sanyu suggests soft colours such as white, light grey and generally pastels.

"People who fear colours can go for soft hues because they are not imposing," says Sanyu.

On the other hand, if the people in a home are all about making a statement, then bold coloured wallpaper is a viable option.

"Those who don't fear colours would go for strong colours like paprika red, say on a smaller wall, because they don't have to be too much. Strong colours are to be used sparingly," she says.

Children's rooms are also easier to decorate or pick a theme for with wallpaper. Sanyu says if it is a girl's room, parents can easily identify what she likes and get the fitting wallpaper.

"If she enjoys a particular cartoon, flowers or colour, parents can get them befitting wallpaper with characters such as Cinderella and Sofia the First. For boys, they can get wallpaper with cars and boyish cartoon characters," she says.

In addition, to further make the wallpaper interesting, Sanyu says parents can add stickers on the wall with attractive images of: stars, flowers, the moon, and animals.

For adults, she says the wallpaper would depend on the character of the person in that room. "I am a nature person, so I love flowery wallpaper. There are masculine colours too that men prefer, and they are usually brown and greys," she says.

Hilary Kyomuhendo, an interior designer with Elite Stones and Designs in Kampala, says the basics behind using wallpaper to create themes in a home are: the mood in a home, character of the home and beauty. With those three in mind, creating a theme becomes easier to achieve he says.

"Consider something that matches your mood and your family because after work and the traffic jam, your home should relax you," he says. He however cautions that you should choose a theme that suits all the family members. For example, if the family loves animals, the wallpaper in the different rooms can comprise different animals that the individuals in a family love.

"While the boys' room can have lions, crocodiles or zebra; the girls' room can have birds, antelopes or whatever animals they like. Open spaces can have wallpaper with meadows that have wild flowers to complete the nature feel in a home," he explains.

Wallpaper pros
Kyomuhendo says wallpaper is cheaper than paint in the long run.

"They measure the area in square metres and wallpaper costs range from sh30,000 to as high as sh 100,000 per square metre, depending on the quality," he says.

He explains that it is cheaper than paint because it can last for 15 years if it is done well. "In that time someone who used paint will have done some renovations, which makes paint more expensive," he says.

However, Kyomuhendo says that for longevity to be achieved, the walls have to have been well prepped. "Layers of chalk are put on the wall, which are sandpapered. The walls must be straight and well sandpapered for the wallpaper to stick well," he says.

Another advantage that comes with having wallpaper, according to Kyomuhendo, is the fact that it is beautiful and trending these days. 

More, he says that if you are not so keen on art or love art but are not sure of what art pieces to hang, wallpaper can help you have fun or lovely arty walls.

In the event of changing a theme or replacing worn wallpaper, Sanyu says it is easy to remove.

"It does not destroy the wall, but it takes time to remove it. To remove it, pour water over the wallpaper for about ten minutes to let it sink. Then you scrape it off," she says.

Wallpaper cons
Much as wallpaper looks good, it is also easy to damage, especially if a home has pesky children. "If children (or other people) scratch it, then the damage is done. You may need to replace it with new wallpaper," he says.

Wallpaper is also not very suitable for the bathroom because it can peel off in different parts of the bathroom wall. Kyomuhendo says at this point, paint is better because you can repaint the damaged area unlike wallpaper. "You can't cut away the damage and replace it because the pattern will be destroyed," he says.

In case time is of the essence, wallpaper is not a viable option. "If you are in a hurry, don't use it because it takes some time to prepare the wall, depending on which wall wallpaper will be placed. Yet with paint, even one day can be enough," says Kyomuhendo.