Decking the Walls

 

Our foyer

Took me over 50 years to try my hand at wallpapering and I can cross that off the list. I fell in love with this wallpaper by Erin & Ben Co. called Linen & Charcoal Sparrow & Oak.

Unfortunately, it is only available as a peel-and-stick, so this was my opportunity to try installing wallpaper. I would have been more than happy to turn that job over to a professional, but the installer who did my bedroom doesn't work with peel-and-stick and I think the good installers stay away from it. From what I've learned, peel-and-stick at best will last 5-7 years. Perfect for me since I tend to change things up every 5 years. I can confirm that the first piece that went up may be tear-stained because our walls are not plumb and it was frustrating getting the edge to be perfectly aligned. To me, peel-and-stick is pretty, glorified contact paper. If you've worked with contact paper, it's fussy. This was a weekend project, but experienced installers could have finished this in a day. This wallpaper is a good quality, but it is definitely not the quality of unpasted paper. The cost of 4 rolls of this paper is what I paid for one in my bedroom. You get what you pay for and I am happy with the final result.

Shout out to my son Cole for installing the board-and-batten several years ago. I saw this same look at a restaurant in San Francisco and thought I needed it in my home. He also did the crown molding and is a quick study in all things related to home improvement.