Wallpapering

Michael Holigan: You can change the looks of any room in your house with some wallpaper and it's not as hard to install as it used to be. We got an expert with us, Malloy Arnold with Wallpapers To Go. Good to have you here Malloy.

Malloy Arnold: Hi, nice to be here.

M.H.: Hey, it looks like it's going up fast. Robin's doing a good job and first off, how did you get it so straight?

M.A.: Well the first thing you do when you're hanging wallpaper is to make sure that you have straight lines. You want to do a plumb line from the corner about a half inch in from your...with your wallpaper.

M.H.: Okay, so is we have 27 inch wallpaper we measure 26 1/2 from the corner?

M.A.: Exactly, from the corner and then draw a straight line down your wall and that'll be where your first strip will hang.

M.H.: When you're cutting that first piece to hang on the wall, how do you know what length to make it?

M.A.: Generally what you do is make it about 2 inches longer on the top and at the bottom and those edges you will trim away after you've matched your pattern up.

M.H.: So when you order wallpaper, do you need to order extra for the house?

M.A.: It's going to depend on your pattern repeat. Some paper has more waste if it has a larger repeat. But it's a good idea to have extra paper in case you need it.

M.H.: Well, how much wallpaper do you need. How do you measure for wallpaper?

M.A.: Wallpaper is measured by square footage. Measure the height and the width of your room, for all the areas that you're going to wallpaper.

M.H.: And then what do you divide by to figure out how many rolls you need?

M.A.: There again, it depends on the repeat of your pattern, but it...on average you divide by 22 and that determines the number of single rolls that you would need.

M.H.: I notice when Robin's putting this up that there's no wallpaper paste.

M.A.: Most wallpaper today is prepasted. All you have to do is cut it, dip it in water and hang it on the wall.

M.H.: Okay, I noticed after they dipped they fold over both ends. Why is that?

M.A.: That's called booking. It allows your wallpaper paste to activate. What you do is you cut your piece, dip it in the water, usually for around 15 seconds or according to the manufacturers instructions. Then you fold it end to end in the center with the pasted edges together and roll it up into a roll, like a newspaper and let it book for a few minutes.

M.H.: What tools are necessary to hang wallpaper?

M.A.: The first thing you're going to need is a plumb line, or a level to make sure that you're getting your paper straight. Then you're going to need a water tray to dip your paper in. You'll need a straight edge and razor blades to trim your paper with. You'll need a sponge and water to wash down any excess paste off the outside of your paper.

M.H.: Once you hang up the wallpaper, then what do you do to it to get it flat and smooth?

M.A.: Well you need a smoothing tool to get out any of your air bubbles. There's several types that are made that are easy to use.

M.H.: On this wallpaper that Robin's hanging, I notice that she's holding up a few feet from the bottom. Are you going to put a different pattern there on the bottom of the paper?

M.A.: We're going to do a wainscoting and use a border as a trim to the metal.

M.H.: Well how do you decide what pattern to use in different rooms?

M.A.: A light background tends to make the room seem larger. If you want to make it smaller and cozier pick a darker background, something a little warm and cozier feeling to it.

M.H.: I noticed a lot of people try to overlap seams on wallpaper. Isn't that a no-no in the wallpaper business?

M.A.: You really don't want to overlap your seams. You just want to gently butt them together when you're hanging it, being careful not to stretch your paper.

M.H.: If you stretch it, when it dries out it could pull apart, couldn't it?

M.A.: Exactly. And then your seams will show.

M.H.: Why are we adding seam adhesive right here on the border?

M.A.: Because of the vinyl coating on the wallpaper, it won't adhere to the paper without using bordering seam adhesive.

M.H.: Down here on this lower border Robin came in and double cut the paper, the top and the bottom at the same time.

M.A.: Ah-huh.

M.H.: What was the purpose of that?

M.A.: That's so your seams won't show in your paper through your border, give a nice, clean appearance.

M.H.: It looks like now all we have to do is just level up the border and we're done.

M.A.: Yes, it turned out great didn't it?

M.H.: Yeah, it changed the looks of the whole room, and only took a couple of hours and wallpaper's not very expensive.

M.A.: No it doesn't. Nothing can change the look of your house quicker with more results than a little wallpaper.

Episode 020 1995 - 96 Season

| Wallpapering | Garage Door Problems | Buying New Appliances | Sweat Soldering | Closet Redo | Verifying Cash to Close | LIST |

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