Wallpapering 101

Lesson 3: Hanging the Paper

This lesson consists of a comprehensive step by step tutorial on how to hang wallpaper, borders, and murals.

Hanging Wallpaper

Let’s get down to business and hang the wallpaper. Take your four foot level and start out in the least conspicuous corner of the room. Due to the fact that the standard roll of paper is 20.5 inches wide, we need to measure out from the corner 19 and ¾ inches and make a mark. Hold the level in a vertical position on that mark and draw a four foot level line in the middle of the wall from the top to the bottom. We will hang our first sheet of paper there, wrapping the ¾ of an inch around the corner with the other edge of the paper even with the level line. This procedure must be done on every wall to insure that the paper will be hung straight. Even in newly constructed buildings, there may be corners that are off plumb by up to ¾ of an inch. By wrapping the paper around the corner, we are taking steps to alleviate that problem, and are also insuring a straight run of paper. If you start from a corner and the paper is slanted by a mere ½ inch, by the time you get to the opposite corner, the paper will off by three or four inches, as the disparity will grow with every 20.5 inch width that you hang.

Now that we have a place to start, we have to consider the pattern of the paper and where we want it to be placed on the wall. I usually pick a flower or some other object in the pattern and figure on placing this object an inch or so below the ceiling line to start out with. This can always be used as a reference to go by when cutting your paper as you progress along the walls. After you have chosen a pattern mark, measure the wall from the ceiling down to the top of the baseboard. Add at least two inches to the top and bottom of this measurement. The two inches must be added to insure that there is sufficient cut off material at the top and bottom of the run. In most buildings, walls and ceilings vary, so leaving the two inches us a must.

Go ahead and open up a roll of paper and cut off a sheet according to the measurements that you took from the wall. Lay the sheet down on a table and take the roll of paper and match the pattern with that sheet, then cut the length required, making sure that you allow the extra two inches at the top and bottom. By using the object that you chose in the pattern, you should be able to always know where you need to start from when cutting a new sheet.

Now that we have a couple of sheets ready to hang, we need to read the instructions that came with the roll of paper. Some instructions tell you how to hang the paper, and may offer some tips that are synonymous with that particular brand of paper. These instructions should tell you how long to soak the pre-pasted paper, and the temperature of water to use for the soaking. Fill up your soaking reservoir leaving enough room at the top where the water won’t run over when you completely submerge your roll of paper. Place the reservoir on the floor at the end of the table.

Make sure that you observe the pattern of the paper and distinguish the top of the paper from the bottom so you will be sure to hang the paper right side up. Place the paper with the pattern facing up on the table and roll the paper up from the bottom from the top. Do this with both sheets of paper that you have cut. Take the first roll of paper and place it in the water reservoir for the required amount of time specified in the instructions that came with the paper. When the time is up, grasp the top edge of the roll and slowly pull the paper out of the reservoir and onto the table. The pattern should be face down on the table. When the majority of the water drips off of the paper, take the bottom of the paper above the reservoir and fold it onto the table, paste against paste, folding together 30 percent of the paper on the bottom. Then take the top section and fold it together paste against paste to the top of the bottom fold. Then fold this up loosely and let it set for the required time that it calls for “booking” in the instructions. It is imperative to read the instructions. All wallpaper products have different soaking and booking times. The soaking process wets the paste and the booking process allows it to activate before applying it to the wall.

After the paper has booked for the appropriate time, mount the step ladder facing the level line by the corner and peel the booking apart on the top section and carefully let the paper down, opening up the top book. Letting the paper down quickly with a fast jerking motion can cause the heavy weight of the wet paper to stretch the vinyl. When the vinyl stretches, the pattern won’t match up. Always treat wallpaper with care. Place the object on the pattern that you previously chose near the ceiling where you planned for it to go, making sure that two inches are left over the top of the ceiling line. Match the side of the paper to the level line. Making sure that the paper is level against the level line, and at the right position at the top, begin to smooth the paper out from the center of the paper outward. Always use extreme care when smoothing wallpaper. You must remember that it is wet and easily damaged. A hole or crease can easily be created when smoothing too hard or too quickly. Try to refrain from smoothing toward the direction of the level line because you will move the paper over the line, then you will have to start all over again by re-positioning the paper. Smooth the paper into the corner and down to the bottom book. When the top is smoothed out, open up the bottom book and do the same thing that you did at the top.

After smoothing out the hung sheet with the brush, use a flat plastic scraper and gently remove all of air bubbles. Make sure that a defined line is made into the crease of the corner and at the ceiling and baseboard line. Make sure that the paper is tucked into these areas tightly. After all of this has been accomplished, take your five or six inch metal spackling knife and place it in the crease at the ceiling at the opposite edge from the corner. Make sure the excess at the top of the paper is stuck to the ceiling out of your way. With the spackling knife in the crease at the outside edge of the paper, using the razor blade cutter, cut off the excess paper at the top by cutting against the top of the wide spackling knife blade that faces the ceiling. Always cut on the outside of the wide blade that is facing the piece that you are cutting off, never on the side that faces the paper that is remaining on the wall. When you have cut the length of the knife, gently move the knife to the next position in the crease and continue cutting until you reach the corner. When you reach the corner, make your cut on the ¾ inch side first, then gently pull the paper out of the corner and snip the crease edge with scissors, and replace the paper back in the corner. Repeat the same procedure at the bottom, over the top of the baseboard. When removing excess cuttings from the wall either on a vertical or horizontal cut, be sure to do it gently. I always hold the spackling blade on the hung sheet across from where I am removing paper to avoid possible tearing of the paper. Sometimes the razor blade doesn’t cut completely through the paper in a spot or two, and when you pull off the excess, you may tear the paper if it is still connected to the hung sheet. Do not cut the corner, leave the remaining ¾ inch wrapped, we’ll get back to it later after we go around the room. SPECIAL NOTE: After hanging a sheet of paper always change out your razor blade. The blade is now dull from cutting against surfaces and a dull blade can do more harm to a sheet of wallpaper than good. Always address each sheet of paper or each major long cut with a fresh razor blade! After the cuts are made, take a sponge soaked with clean warm water and wash down the hung sheet of paper to remove the excess paste from the area where it was smoothed out from under the paper. Paste will also get on the surface of the paper during the smoothing process.

Now we are ready to soak and book the second sheet of paper. When this is complete, open up the top section of the book and place the pattern object in its position while also watching that the pattern is matching up against the paper that was previously hung. When the proper positioning has been accomplished, smooth out the paper following the same steps used above, then crease and cut the ceiling and baseboard excess.

You must be very careful of the seams between the sheets of paper. Pattern matching is only part of the task of dealing with seams. You have to be really careful not to force the seam of the paper over the previously hung sheet when you are smoothing out air bubbles and paste pockets. It’s always best to use an up and down motion when smoothing out the paper.

You will find that in some places the paper will over lap the seam and in some places it won’t. Wallpaper gets stretched to some degree during its manufacturing process. The paper is run over rollers and conveyer belts when the vinyl is bonded to the paper backing, and a few other times when the colors are printed on. This creates places in the paper that may be just a 32nd of an inch narrower, creating the illusion that there is a wider area next to it that is overlapping at the seam. Use your smoothing brush or plastic blade and gently work the paper away from the seam where the overlapping occurs.

Most wallpaper kits that you purchase include seam rollers. Some papers require the seams too be rolled, and some don’t. Sometimes the directions that come with each roll of paper may tell you NOT to roll the seams. Always follow the manufacturer’s directions. If the directions don’t mention anything about the seams, then use your seam roller gently up and down the seams to insure that they are closed up and secured to the wall. Always let the seam roller rest gently on the paper, do not exert pressure against the paper or you will create a groove into the pasted backing of the paper that may remain when the paper dries. If a groove does occur while seam rolling, gently use your brush or plastic scraper to even out the groove.

Some of the banes of wallpaper hanging are doors and windows. Light switches and receptacles can also be a problem, but they are small and usually easily dealt with. Be sure to remove all switch plate and receptacle covers before beginning the wallpapering process. When the run of wallpaper that you are hanging reaches a window or door casing, smooth the paper up against the casing. Make sure that the sheet of wallpaper is hung and that the pattern is lined up from top to bottom before you attempt to do any cutting around the wooden casings. With all of this completed, fold the paper over the edge of the casing. You must remember that the wallpaper will be visible above and below the window casings. When you make a cut on the casings, do it diagonally toward the top and bottom edges of the casings. Stop your cut at the tip of the face of the casing where it reaches the point. Do not attempt to cut around the outside edge of the casing; just make your cuts with scissors diagonally on the face of the wood casing surface. If there is a lot of excess paper hanging over the window, cut off the excess even with the inside of the casings facing the window or door. When all of the diagonal cuts are made, fold the paper over the top and bottom of the casing onto the wall. Gently fit the paper over the top and bottoms of the casings, until they fold into a crease along the sides. Make sure at this point that the sheet of paper is still perfectly lined and that the pattern is still matched perfectly before doing any more cutting. After this has been assured, cut off the top and bottom excess of the paper along the ceiling and baseboard. Then, using the same cutting principal, cut along the edges of the wooden casings. First cut the top and then the bottom, leaving the side until last. When cutting along wooden casings, it may be necessary to change the blade. A dull blade can tear the paper, causing damage that may not be able to be fixed.

As you work your way to the opposite corner of the wall from where you started, you will notice that the remaining area to be papered at the corner won’t take a full sheet width. Measure from the last sheet hung into the corner, allowing ¾ of an inch extra to wrap around the corner. Always be sure to cut the opposite side of the paper from where you are matching up your pattern to the previously hung sheet. Just hold the paper up to the wall to be sure. Then make your cut, soak it, book it, and hang it.

Now you have to match the pattern as the paper makes its way around the corner. In order to do this you will have to find the area in the pattern where it matches up and measure ¾ of an inch past the match point in the paper and make a lengthways cut at that point. As the ¾ inch wraps around the corner it will match the pattern on the sheet that is already going into the corner from the wall. Before you can hang the cut sheet coming out of the corner, you have to take a measurement of the sheet from the point in the corner where the pattern will match to the outside edge that will be exposed to the open wall. Then use this measurement coming out of the corner and mark it on the wall. Take your level and make a level vertical line to use as a guide to be sure that the next run of paper hung on that wall will be hung evenly. You must start out with a level line at each wall as you round a corner. Matching the paper to the level line is more important than matching the pattern to the paper on the other wall. The corner may not be exactly level or plumb, that’s why we left the ¾ inch excess to wrap around over the paper on the other wall. If the pattern doesn’t exactly match up down the entire length of the paper, it’s no big deal; no one should notice it in the corner anyway.

After the paper has been fitted to the level line and smoothed out, be sure that you tuck the paper into the corner tightly. Make your ceiling and baseboard cuts first. Then you are ready to place your spackling blade into the corner and make your cut down the corner from top to bottom removing the excess ¾ inch that you wrapped. Take your time and cut gently into the corner making sure that you are cutting completely through the paper.

Now that you have rounded your first corner, continue on down the wall and when you reach the next corner just repeat the some process, until you make it back to the corner that you started from. It may not be entirely possible to make an exact match to the pattern at the last corner, but you should give it your best shot anyway. A lot of it will depend on how much paper you have left at this point to use in making vertical cuts. You have to use your own judgment with this. Remember this when starting out with wallpaper in a room. Always start and end up in a corner that will be the least noticeable, it makes no difference if you start hanging to the left or right. That will depend on the place where you want to start and the layout of the room. You may want to start out a corner where a large piece of furniture sits, or one that is partially hidden by a closet.

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