Opinions tend to be divided regarding the use of wallpaper to decorate a child’s room. Some parents prefer the overall effect that a good wallpaper design can create while others prefer the simple maintenance which painted walls can provide. There are, of course, alternatives and compromises to both options, but more of this later.
The History of Children’s Wallpaper
The luxury of having sufficient space to have dedicated rooms for children is a fairly recent phenomenon with most except the very privileged, so the history of children’s wallpaper is, consequently, rather short.
Early examples of children’s wallpapers have been discovered and thought to originate from the late 19th Century and it is believed that the use of wallpaper in children’s rooms and nurseries didn’t become commonplace until much later.
The first known designs of wallpaper for children were generally based upon the illustrations of the popular literature of the time. The theme of such examples tended to lean towards having a positive influence upon a child’s sensitivity to their environment.
As the use of wallpaper became more widespread then so this idea pervaded with most designs tending to be illustrative and featuring characters from children’s books, nursery rhymes and fairytales. Although the designs of wallpapers today have become more modern they tend to follow similar influences and themes.
Types of Wallpaper
Although the number of designs seems endless there are 3 basic kinds of wallpaper:
- Bespoke Children’s Wallpaper – notonthehighstreet.com
Patterned Wallpaper
In other words the wallpaper is made from one single layer of paper, in various weights and thicknesses. Although the most traditional form of wall covering, paper is not particularly durable and finger marks and crayoning are often impossible to remove.
Vinyl or Washable Wallpaper
Often a paper backing which is laminated with a second vinyl patterned layer. The advantage here is that these kind of wall coverings offer the benefits of traditional wallpaper with the advantage of a durable surface which can be wiped clean and is more resistant to everyday damage.
Textured Wallpaper
Sometimes referred to as ‘relief wall coverings’ these textured papers are popular with parents who want to cover existing walls but who also want the advantage of being able to paint the surface too. The textured surface serves to break-up the way light reflects from a plain wall surface and provides a softer and more complex visual effect.
Children’s Designer Wallpaper
The choice of wallpaper for your child’s room is no longer limited to simple character based designs. There is now a wide selection of designer papers available in bold and colourful designs, traditional vintage themes and an eclectic mix of floral prints to choose from which will transform a plain bedroom into a colourful and imaginative illustration of your child’s unique personality.
- B&Q – Children’s Wallpaper
- John Lewis – Children’s Wallpaper
- Primrose Hill Kids Wallpaper at Designers Guild
Estimating Wallpaper
There are many on-line tools available to calculate how many rolls of wallpaper you will need. Generally, a standard roll of wallpaper will cover an area of 5m² and an average sized room will need between 8 and 12 rolls to cover each wall. When measuring for wallpaper it is best to over-estimate and to ignore doors and windows. You should also allow a certain amount for wastage and matching – depending upon the pattern. As a rule of thumb say 10% for plain or simple patterns and 20% for more complex designs.
Alternatives to Wallpaper
Paint
The simplest alternative, obviously, is just to paint the existing walls. If these are in fair condition then you can achieve good results by painting the walls directly with suitable matt emulsion paint.
Where the walls are uneven or ‘the worse for wear’ you may be better lining the walls first with plain lining-paper. This is relatively quick and simple to do and you could also consider employing a professional to do this for you, which shouldn’t be too costly, and just doing the painting yourself?
Borders
A simple and effective way to add a theme to a child’s room when decorating is to paint the walls and apply a border around the centre. Not only is this quick and effective but will often be much less costly than wallpapering the whole room.
Wall Stickers
A modern alternative to borders and stencils, wall stickers are simple to apply, reasonably economical and can be very effective.
- Butterfly & Numbers Wall Stickers – notonthehighstreet.com
- Undersea Adventure Wall Stickers – pricerighthome.com
Murals
Using one wall as a focal point you could apply a themed mural or even have one specially created. There are several designs available nowadays especially for girls and boys which are quite effective.
