Wallpaper has the ability to conjure memories and emotions like few other elements of home interiors. As a little girl, I remember running my hands down the aisles of B&Q or Homebase (my mother was an avid doer-upper) imagining what I would do with my own home when the time came. As a young design student, solemnly turning the giant pages at Osborne and Little, cringing as they knew I was only ever going to ask for as many samples as was polite for a student project. My first London flat - steaming, stripping and cursing stained, bobbly, anaglypta into the early hours of the morning. In recent summers, meandering around National Trust houses marvelling at hand-painted chinoiserie, barely allowing my children to breathe near the walls such was the intricacy and delicacy of the papers.
As maximalism hits its full stride it is proving essential to consider wallpaper no matter what your typical aesthetic may be. For me, there is always something so terribly adult about houses with wallpaper, and perhaps it's current increased use in homes is from a need to embrace the nostalgia and reassurance of a more stable time. I remember my mother installing a striking red and navy fleur de lis pattern in the 'dining room', formerly the garage, hence the need to even out walls and disguise the telltale boxy proportions of the room. The glow of candlelight and reflection of the gold highlights on the dark polished wood table will forever conjure a feeling of warmth, special mealtimes and feeling 'grown up'. For a detailed history, Andrea Watson's excellent article is well worth a read. https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20181106-the-surprising-story-of-wallpaper .
There is an opportunity for wallpaper in nearly every project, maybe just a glance in a corner or cupboard interior, whimsical elevation of mundane, practical spaces such as laundries or the much derided 'feature wall', which, done thoughtfully can actually be all the right kinds of dazzling, if wall to wall is potentially overwhelming. There are over 25,000 wallpapers available in the world, but there are some that I return to again and again, waiting for the right project to bring them to life or an opportunity to use them once more.
Below - from left to right.
Dark and moody beauty, Marrakesh Palm, by Barneby Gates.
Conjuring Coco Chanel-esque feminine spaces, Snowtree by Colefax and Fowler. https://designs.colefax.com/Design/F3332-01
Whimsical escapism, Mythical Land - Kit Kemp in collaboration with Andrew Martin. https://www.andrewmartin.co.uk/wallpaper/mythical-land-large-panel
Make and entrance, Topiary in China Blue by Cole and Son.
Channel your inner Thomas De Quincey with wild dreams of Tipu's Tiger, Kahna by Anna French for Thibaut.
One of the most versatile wallpapers ever created, subtle pattern variations from stars to pears are available too.
Classic stripes with Spalding by Ralph Lauren Home. https://www.designersguild.com/dk/wallpaper/ralph-lauren/spalding-stripe-navy/white-wallpaper/p5908
A clever combination of busy, subtle and very affordable, Nocturne by Borastapeter, perfect paper for an eaves room or small space.
A childhood dream, with colourways to suit all, Quentin Blake's menagerie by Osborne and Little.
Triumphs of texture and trompe l'oiel.
Graffito li Wallpaper by Kelly Wearstler beloved by art collectors and parents for being so forgiving.
Sanderson's swallows, a timeless, soothing paper that i have managed to repurpose again and again in projects for all ages. https://sanderson.sandersondesigngroup.com/product/wallpaper/sanderson-one-sixty-wallpapers/swallows/dviwsw102/
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