How to Make Wallpaper Art

By
Millicent Wong
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How to Make Wallpaper Art

I keep a mental list of things I want to do: Laze on the beach. Enjoy live music. Go to the cinema. Attach wallpaper.

None of this will ever happen (and yes, I’ve tried concerts and movies). But I love wallpaper, so this month I mounted some on a large store-bought canvas and hung them as art. It turns out it’s a great way to bring the effect of wallpaper into the room without the expense and time of wallpapering four walls. You can do it even without experience or special equipment.

The idea of ​​wallpapering a large canvas came to me when a friend asked if I could help wallpaper his daughter’s bedroom. It seemed like an easier way to give her the look she wanted while also making future renovations easier. (My wife and I steamed old wallpaper from the walls, doors, and closet bottoms of our first apartment. Save yourself the fun.)

For similar reasons, canvas wallpaper works well in rental apartments and dormitories where permanent renovations may be prohibited. If you own a home, this is a way to freshen up a space when a full renovation isn’t in the budget. Wonderful paper, both in appearance and quality, is available for less than $100 per roll, and remnants, remnants, and generous samples can put luxurious antique and contemporary papers within reach.

Aside from the time I spent waiting for the paste to dry, the canvas here took me less than an hour to complete – a nice reminder that DIY doesn’t have to take all day, nor does it have to serve a greater purpose than your own enjoyment. Let’s get down to business.

  • I purchased a 36″ x 48″ model Canvas primed with gesso. When choosing the right size for your space, consider factors such as ceiling height and furniture placement. For large canvases, it may be easiest to work the base on cardboard or scrap plywood.

  • Use A tape measure to lay out your paper strips, Scissors to cut the paper to approximately the correct size, and a scalpel or craft knife to cut it to the final size after gluing.

  • I used commercial painter’s tape to hold the wallpaper strips in line for gluing, but I recommend using less sticky tape Painter’s tape for sensitive surfaces instead. The standard tape worked well on my practice pieces, but did peel off a bit of the wallpaper when I removed it from the piece you see in the photos.

  • The wallpaper I chose is the stick-on variety, so I bought it Wallpaper paste and used a large one bristle brush to spread it. (Your wallpaper supplier can recommend the right paste.) Peel-and-stick wallpaper would also work; You would simply place it on the canvas piece by piece, lining up the pattern and seams. The third option, sticking on paper, doesn’t work with the techniques I use.

If you want, you can paint the sides of your canvas to match or complement your wall color (like I did here). Do this first and allow the paint to dry completely before continuing with wallpapering.

Many wallpaper patterns, including the one I used, are of the “offset match” type, meaning you have to move adjacent strips of paper up or down to get the pattern to line up. The exact length of this offset is usually indicated on the packaging, but for canvas mounting it’s wisest – and much easier – to simply allow yourself enough excess.

For my 48″ canvas, I cut the first piece of paper to 60″, placed it on the canvas and moved it around until I had the pattern where I liked it, with one of the black cockatoos near the center. I lined up the second piece with the first so the patterns roughly matched, and cut it long enough to give me several extra inches on all sides.

Carefully align your sheets of paper so that the edges are snug along the entire length and the patterns are precisely aligned. I found that it helped to work from the center and rotate and shift the leaves until everything clicked into place.

Holding the paper flat and steady with one hand, apply strips of tape from one side of the seam to the other as if you were ironing the tape on. Be careful not to bend or twist the tape as this could cause the seam to open while gluing. Be sure to overdo it; I used nine strips in total.

Carefully turn the paper over so that the printed side is facing down. Place the canvas on top and use a pencil to lightly mark the spot on the paper where you want to stick it. I suggest drawing a line around the corners of the canvas. Use the outside edges of the paper as a reference to keep the canvas straight up and down.

Prepare your paste according to the package instructions, then spread a generous, even layer of it over the entire front of the canvas. Pay particular attention to the corners, edges and seam area.

Flip the canvas over, align it with your pencil marks, and place it on the paper. Press the two together firmly with your palms, then place books on the back of the canvas to keep everything flat while the paste cures. You can remove the books after about an hour, but allow the paste to dry for a full day before continuing.

Run your scalpel or craft knife along the edges of the canvas to trim away the excess paper. Turn the canvas right side up and carefully peel off the painter’s tape. Pull the tape horizontally rather than up and away to reduce the risk of the paper separating at the seam.

If you loosen the paper here and there, it won’t be a disaster. Dilute some white craft glue with water, spread a thin layer of it onto the exposed canvas, and re-glue the paper in place.