Should We Remove(able) Wallpaper?

Love it or loathe it, wallpaper is a topic that we cannot ignore when staging a house to sell.  At the same time, wallpaper has been making a comeback in a BIG way for the past several years which is super exciting to me.  I literally don't have enough walls in my house to add all of the gorgeous wallpapers I want to have in my little world.

I want to cover two topics today.  First, how do we advise our home staging clients about changing (or not) their wallpaper during a Styling Evaluation appointment.

Second, I want to talk about the fabulous new removable wallpapers that are on the market.  They seriously make my heart smile just thinking about them!  And, of course, because I like you, I'll share with you some great resources and styles!

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Wallpaper When Selling

I get asked all the time do you have to automatically remove wallpaper when staging your house to sell.  And, my answer is always an evasive “It depends”.  Haha!  Ok, so why do I say that it depends?

Because as a Real Estate Stylist, I am in the business of return on investment and what looks amazing in listing photos. Plain and simple.

 These are the kinds of questions that we need to ask:

1. where is the wallpaper
2. what is the condition
3. what is the style
4. what will the financial investment and overall impact to the client's living situation to remove
5. will investing in removing yield a return on the investment of time, energy and financial resources in the form of a faster sale.

The first three on that list are HUGE, by the way, because they directly affect the last two!

I was just recently in a client's home and she had a very pretty but very busy wallpaper that was in great condition in her kitchen.  Her gourmet kitchen.  Her gourmet kitchen with gorgeous counters, a large island, and oodles of cabinetry.

Guess what I didn't see at all when I first walked into that kitchen.  The gorgeous counters, the large island, and the oodles of cabinetry!

Sometimes what I don't see when I first walk into a room is more important than what I do see.

Here is a great example of an updated kitchen but in an online listing photo, this wallcovering could be very distracting, especially if it were on all walls:

When I took out my camera to see how her wallpaper would translate into a photo, we instantly knew that the wallcovering would have to be addressed.  It was so bossy that would overshadow all of the beauty that this kitchen had to offer in the listing photos too.

So her wallpaper was:

1. in a Super Important Room which is high on the Return on Investment list
2. in good condition (I talk about Super Important Rooms in my FREE e-book Sell Your House in 72 Hours which you can download here)
3. traditional, bold floral in reds and golds that distracted from the true assets in the kitchen both in person and through the lens of a camera

Based on that, I recommend not removing the wallpaper. 

Wait, Lori, I'm confused.  You just gave me all of the reasons that I should remove this wallpaper!

I promise I have great reasons for recommending we not remove the wallpaper.

Removing wallpaper, especially paper that has been on the wall for years, can very easily damage walls and become an expensive fix, fast.  Not to mention, it's a messy, pain in the a– to live through that process, especially in your kitchen.

But, good news!  Most wallpaper can be painted over!  Even those with a texture on them.  Here is a great explanation from Benjamin Moore about how to paint over wallpaper.  So, this is our plan of action for this client.  We will remove the presence of the wallpaper without actually removing it.  Pretty sneaky, sis!

Speaking of removing…..

Removable Wallpaper!!

I recently had one of our readers–the fabulous Kerry B ; )–shout out to me on Facebook asking me to give my blessing to her trying out removable wallpaper in her house.  I gave her a hearty “Amen!”.

Based on all that I have been learning about removable wallpapers, I am super excited to use it in my own house!

These papers were originally designed with renters in mind but the technology is so good that they are being used in more permanent applications.  And, the best part is that if you are handy or crafty you can hang this paper yourself which saves a lot in your labor cost (which is great because the cost of removable wallpaper is not cheap!).

Because of the price, and possibly saving your sanity, I would limit using removable wallpaper to smaller areas (pantry or laundry room walls, back of bookshelves, powder rooms, etc) or accent walls.

So here is what you need to know…

1. Your walls need to be as smooth as possible
2. Your walls should be clean, primed or painted in a satin or semi-gloss for best application and removal
3. Wait at least 30 days before applying removable wallpaper over newly primed or painted walls
4. You can place this paper in bathrooms that are ventilated
5. These papers are washable/wipeable with a dry cloth
6. Use a good quality company as your source (I can help with that ; )

Here are some of the best sources to go to for both quality and style (click images for information):

chasing paper

tempaper

(I am obsessed with their chinoiserie papers!)

hygge and west

walls need love

Happy Shopping!

xo,

Lori