Geometric designs, colorful prints and lively patterns aren’t just for Easter eggs!
Geometric designs, colorful prints and lively patterns aren’t just for Easter eggs!
by Sweiskloss Staff
March 28, 2024
by Sweiskloss Staff
March 28, 2024
With the growing popularity of thrifting and everything vintage, it is no surprise that retro wallpaper is on the rise too. From iconic seventies mod colors to English heritage designs to kitschy patterns, retro is back and right now.
“We're seeing a resurgence of one of the oldest decorative treatments, the mural,” says Melanie Adams, Global Manager of WallpaperDirect.com. Murals allow you to introduce large-sale patterns, but if complete immersion is too overwhelming, consider a wall mural for limited scale. For the more adventurous homeowner, a ceiling mural makes an impressive visual statement.
Less ruler-straight, less solid, and more colorful, stripes “are back but maybe not in the way you think,” according to Los Angeles-based interior designer Peter Dunham. (LivingEtc.com). This new take on stripes is eye-catching and playful.
The trend for bringing the outside in continues with flora and fauna motif wallpaper. Add a touch of nature with tropical jungle themes, charming woodland creatures or deep green lush tones. Today’s floral and faunas aren’t your grandparent’s prints (well, some of these retro prints may be!) – they are bold, abstract and colorful.
Opulent, dark, and dramatic, rich and deep colored wallpaper can create a moody ambience and a luxurious vibe. Consider using this striking wallpaper in a more closed-off space such as a private office or a powder room.
Straw, wood, linen and other natural materials provide tactile texture and visual stimulation to wallpaper. Grasscloth wallcovering combines texture with a Bohemian vibe. Faux textured wallpaper, which creates the illusion of the tangible surface, is also gaining in popularity.
Another creative and unconventional use of wallpaper is in paneling, shelving, and joinery according to LivingEtc.com. In between wall paneling, inside cupboards and built-in joinery, using wallpaper in this nontraditional way is surprising and refreshing.
- Consider the room: For example, if wallpapering a bathroom, “you should protect it against moisture by sealing it with a coat of clear decorator’s varnish,” suggests Kerry McKenzie, Co-founder, Brand McKenzie (IdealHome.co.uk).
- Think outside the box: For example, a child’s bedroom can sport a playful design, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be childish --- use a nontraditional wallpaper that is bold in color and patterns but won’t be “outgrown”.
- Make sure it compliments existing décor, furniture and fixtures.
- Think how the colors will make you feel and affect the mood of the space, i.e. cozy versus bright and light.
- Order samples.