Wallpaper dilemma

9 years ago

We have just bought a old beautiful Victorian house which needs renovating . There is a big area of wallpaper on landing and stairs all the way up to 3 rd floor. This wallpaper is in good condition all be it a few marks which need patching .... I prefer to have walls white as very dark hallway could we paint over this wallpaper ??

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laurz84

9 years ago

You could definitely paint over it but is that what you really want?

If you are renovating I wouldn't cut any corners now you will only regret you didn't strip it and wasted time painting it.

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Comments (23)

shelleyuk
9 years ago
You could certainly try. I don't think the patches would look that obvious since the wallpaper is textured anyway. It would be more likely to cover evenly with a darker paint but why not try and see what happens?
Liz Hennessey thanked shelleyuk
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Liz Hennessey
Original Author
9 years ago
I agree we need to make right choice .... The walls need paper I like the paper but not colour . If I can get away with painting white or off white to freshen up that would save a lot of hassle , I'll post photo of hall too as I'd like to blend them in . We have tiles under carpet . Hall is very dark and I'm not sure whether to paint the brown lincrusta in hallway.
pannacotta
9 years ago
You could paint over it but wont you need to re-wire anyway in which case they will be chasing out the walls and you will need to re-skim or re-line them. Looks like a great project.
Jonathan
9 years ago
Redecorating a hall stairs and landing is an expensive job.
There are two ways of looking at it-
You can spend the money in other rooms now as you use them more and just whitewash in top of the paper.
Alternatively if you are paying a professional it might not cost too much more to have the paper stripped and plain walls.
If budget is an issue I would decorate the hall and stairs, stopping at the first corner that can't be seen from the hall. Decorate the rest when your budget allows.
PRO
Karolina Barnes
9 years ago
I would advise to strip it and paint the walls. As other comments suggest you might compromise the finish of it if you paint over the wallpaper. It might work but it might not. Try it on a small area perhaps to see if it's worth carry on painting over it. Also bare in mind that having light walls may not resolve your issue with the darkness of your hallway. Lighting, mirrors and reflective materials all help you achieve the feeling of light. Best of luck with your project!
Liz Hennessey
Original Author
9 years ago
Thank you for your comments I will certainly take them on board
ruthholmstock
9 years ago
I would paint over the paper for now. If you strip the paper in a house this age you will almost certainly bring off big chunks of plaster which will be a nightmare to repair without skimming the whole wall. Be sure the paper is really well fixed though, if there are loose areas the paint will wet the paper and encourage it to part from the wall. I would use a simple brilliant white - cheap and cheerful and easy to touch up if you get hand marks on the wall or scuffs from furniture removing.
What happens in the porch outside your front door - is this an area you could paint white to help reflect light through your amazing door. Remeber the curtain is also cutting out light - can you lose it?
Liz Hennessey
Original Author
9 years ago
Thank you for your comment , I agree with the taking wallpaper off , it has happened already in other rooms !! We had no choice though the paper had to come off. With the front door we have ditched the curtain . I think we will paint the door white eventually .
hortonhearsawho2013
9 years ago
We've got an old house that we're also doing a complete refurb on a budget! I'd get quotes on doing the hallway so that you know what it would cost and can save for doing it at a later date. For now just get painting, I'd go for a colour that matches your banisters - try Dulux Jasmine White - so they don't stand out. Then get some mirrors and nice lighting in there and it will freshen it up for the next couple of years until you're ready to do it properly!
If the plaster has come off the walls in other rooms then you can be sure it will in the hallway!! Also, I would paint the panelling by the front door as it will widen the space no end. We've just pulled heavy blue painted anaglypta (sp?!) off our walls and it has made the room seem twice as big!
Good luck on the project and enjoy it!
Liz Hennessey
Original Author
9 years ago
Thankyou for comments ,how exciting for your project too !
mrsmcee74
9 years ago
We had hideous textured wallpaper in our hall, stairs and landing. There was no way I was getting a ladder on the stairs, so brought in a decorator and he stripped the walls, put thick lining paper up (some walls weren't in great condition) and painted the whole lot for £400, I usually do my own decorating but for this it was money well spent.
treverosoman
9 years ago
Firstly the embossed 'paper' is not very old, late 1960s early 70s probably. The giveaway is that the dado-rail must have been removed from both the walls of the hall and the stair-well. Such embossed papers, whether they were Anaglypta, Lincrusta or even Tyncastle papers were not used to cover the whole wall; they were used for that part below the dado where they could be easily wiped clean. These were coarse papers with a high whiting content to make the pattern stand out having been passed through steel rollers. I think that Crown still make a limited range of patterns.

They would have usually been painted with an oil-based paint, but not the modern high-gloss paints that are essentially a post WWII invention. Never the horrible brilliant white seen so often today. See the colour charts of Little Greene and the historic range from Dulux and there are only off-whites. Above the dado a plain flat patterned paper was used. The woodwork would all have been grained to imitate mahogany as I suspect that all the woodwork is softwood/pine. Unless the woodwork was very carefully prepared new paintwork will easily chip-off.

If you wish to repaper the stair-well you will need a substantial staging as whoever hangs the paper will have drops of 15ft or longer and is not to be undertaken lightly.

Lastly soft LED lighting set into the ceiling is the best way to cope with the dark space as you will be able to use a much wider range of colours - such halls look great in a dark picture-gallery red with lots of pictures, but that's just me.
Best Wishes with the project.
Treve Rosoman
Emma Page
9 years ago
We sell lots of Lincrusta and Anaglypta via our online shop. People doing a faithful Victorian restoration love it and it's certainly not cheap. If you want to do a faithful restoration, I suggest you keep it but paint it a colour you like (the Victorians didn't go for white but for greens, blues, reds and burgundys, as well as the browns you have in your house). This will make your house look in keeping with the period.
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Jane Fitch Interiors
9 years ago
Hi Liz, sounds like you've got an exciting project on your hands.

My two penneth, for what it's worth, is that hallways are often neglected or left til the end. Some people don't think they are worthy of spending too much money on. However, I disagree. When you first walk in the door, or you move from room to room, your hallway gets oodles of views and movement throughout the day. When people visit - their first impression to your house is in your hallway, so you should start as you mean to go on.

So rather than paint over the wallpaper and make do, if it was me, I would bite the bullet and take off the old wallpaper and repaint the walls. Whilst doing it, pay attention to the lighting in the hallway and make improvements to increase the light. I can't comment on what needs to be added from the pictures, but you could consider recessed lighting up the stairs, better quality pendant lights, placing mirrors opposite windows to reflect the light back in.

Or why not follow Abigail Aherne's lead and embrace the dark side. Make it cosy, comfortable and a little bit quirky!

There's lots to consider, but ditch the paper!! Most importantly, enjoy the process and don't think of it as a chore. It's exciting and the adventure is only just beginning.
Juliet Docherty
9 years ago
If on a budget, strip it all off yourselves. It is messy and boring but will save money. It will then almost certainly need skimming but this finish will pay dividends when you come to sell it on. Also, if it is dark don't paint it white, it will feel gloomy. Instead try some warm neutrals and downlighters.
Sally Maguire-Symonds
9 years ago
If you decide to paint over the wallpaper you may find that the darker lines show through if you paint it in white or off white. The solution to this is to paint it all over in a pale grey first and then take it up to the shade you want. Otherwise you may find yourself doing numerous coats. Good luck with it, it looks like a beautiful house from what can be seen in the pictures.
PRO
Female Decorator Warrington
9 years ago
I certainly think the paper coming off was a good idea, especially whilst you are motivated to do it! You should definitely re-paint the Lincrusta. It will last forever and ever and can be repainted as much as you like. I would steer clear of Brilliant White though and have a look at an off-white colour. I just adore Farrow & Ball's Strong White. If you visit a local trade paint centre such as Johnstone's or Crown, they can mix these colours in much better paint for less money if you are on a budget. Good luck!
Rachael Denniss
9 years ago
It is worth a look. We painted over textured but tacky wallpaper in the hall of our 1910 workers cottage as we didn't want to deal with the horsehair and plaster walls. It looks great and we are buying textured plain paper now for the bedroom - paper that is designed to be painted. Go for it.
standroid
8 years ago
I would man up and strip it off. Not the answer you wanted to hear. That textured medallion motif painted will make it look like a brothel.
Pam Hill
8 years ago
thirty-one years ago - i moved into a house like yours. we thought 'ten years will get it done'. no budget for renovations, 16% mortgage interest, small child, etc. etc.

it is STILL not done!

but whatever you do - do it right first time. strip the walls. skim the plaster. even strip it all off and start again if you have to [we had to rebuild lathe & plaster walls]. but don't fall into the trap of doing a quick, cheap job. it never works, and you'll have to do it again...
Jenny Smith
7 years ago
I personally would say if a jobs with doing its worth doing well. PreperatioN is 9 10th of the job. It shoukd come off easily be prepared for old plaster and the possibility of replastering after. Yes it might be costly but this is the fort thing you will see when you get home do you want it to be mediocre or fantastic? Good luck
irene_humber
6 years ago
A hallway takes wear and gives a first impression but you don't spend time there. Consequently no matter what you choose you won't have to spend more than minutes there , usually on the way to somewhere else! So, I'd recommend using some left over paint to sample how the paper will take it on a small well lit area. It will show what the pattern in relief will look.

Mid u then decide to paint use baldpate premium as it has fantastic coverage. Good luck!

Wallpaper dilemma

laurz84

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