Interior Ideas

For our first instalment we are looking at murals, and how to hang them…

Be Prepared…

Grab your tools (paste, brush, table, trimming tools and plumb lines), give yourself a free afternoon and get your DIY hat on and get started. Begin by preparing the surface for hanging. Scrub, size and line your walls for that perfect platform, it is crucial for a quality finish. Get everything ready and laid out, so things run smoothly.

LWP Tip: Turn off the power and remove any fixtures on the wall, for safety and ease of access!

Sort Out Those Strips!

Get organised; your mural will arrive in equal strips tailored to the dimensions of the wall they have been earmarked for. Remove them from the packaging and organise them left to right, in an order depicting the design. Using a plumb line for straightness, divide the wall into sections in coordination with the strips. When measuring, remember to leave room for trimming and general wastage.

LWP Tip: The strips do NOT always come off the roll the right way up; make sure they are all correct and draw a ‘T’ on the back at the top to save confusion!

Add the Glue…

After you have your tools and the wall is prepped, and all the strips are in place, its time to get it on the wall. Apply paste; depending on the hanging guide on the label you may need to do this on the strips or on the wall. With many designs now being non-woven, it is more common that you will be applying paste directly to the surface, so less drying time and even less mess!

LWP Tip: For such a high-quality design you would benefit from using a high-quality, ready-mixed paste. Apply liberally and evenly for effective adhesion, but not too much as it could seep through the paper!

Time to Hang!

Once the paste is on you can finally hang the thing up! Make sure you are steady when handling the strips; sometimes folding the edges and the middle gently (without a crease!) gives you more control. Begin at the top, make sure it is in line and straight up, and work down, making sure the strip is true to the wall, then trim off any excess at both ends. Use a plumb line or a level to ensure straightness. Once you have the first strip up, the others should be more straightforward as you can use the first strip as a reference point. Smooth out any kinks with a brush or smoothing tool, and make sure your edges are sharp and clean.

LWP Tip: You might find it useful to wait a few hours until the paper dries before trimming off any excess!

Stand Back and Admire!

Assuming everything went according to plan, you should at this point be able to take a step back and purvey the finished product; a stunning image beautifully displayed across an entire feature wall. Your hard work is done so put the kettle on and give yourself a well-deserved pat on the back!

LWP Tip: Remember to turn the power back on!

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Have a nice day!  

 

 

 

 

Are Murals the Future of Interior Design?

In today’s daily offering we make the case for Murals, and their growing influence…

A mural is a piece of artwork canvassed directly onto a large surface, usually a wall or ceiling. In the past these would be painted almost exclusively by commissioned muralists, and could take weeks to complete. However, as we find our feet firmly in the 21st century, you can admire one of these stunning pieces in your own home after just one hour!

The dramatic improvements in the efficiency of this unique type of design has made it accessible for anyone and everyone to stand back and admire the opening to a beautiful forest, or experience how it feels to stand atop the tallest building in New York City, all from the comfort of their own living room. For this reason, murals are steadily making their way into the thoughts of customers looking for something a little different. But they aren’t prominent enough for our liking, so here at LWP we are endeavouring to spread the word, and the word is MURAL!

What’s so good about them?

Murals offer a unique opportunity; to experience truly stunning artwork in your home or office space without having to pay huge sums of money. They can be used to open up small rooms with their incredible panoramic scenery, and are a perfect solution for a feature wall. They come packed with cool tech as well; they can be UV resistant and non-reflective, so no need to be wary of opening the curtains when the sun is out – perfect for one of those typical Mediterranean-British summers! They can be cleaned with nothing more than a damp cloth and some elbow grease, and are also scratch resistant. Oh, and for all those worried about the planet, they tend to use environmentally friendly ink in their designs.

Perhaps the most obvious selling point for using murals, however, is the sheer volume of design options for you to choose from.You can have anything from floral and natural designs – how many people can gaze into a stunning forest scene whilst enjoying their morning coffee? – to brick effects, city landscapes, textured designs and even animals! Murals are not limited to the living room either, with a range of designs suitable for offices, studies and bedrooms; even the kids’ nursery. The ability to transform a child’s bedroom into a Disney scene is simply too good to turn down.

Are they difficult to hang?

In a word, no. Most styles are non-woven, paste-the-wall designs, so there is little drying time, and even less mess. They typically arrive to you in six separate strips, along with wallpaper paste and instructions on how to get them up onto the wall, and usually take up to an hour to complete. They are usually made to measure designs, perfect to fit any wall, although some designs have set sizes.

Where are they sold?

You can find details about the different styles and information about prices on our website: lancashirewallpaper.co.uk.

So, to summarise…

Murals are becoming more popular and more fashionable as the word spreads about their unrivalled design impact and ease of use. As awareness of this unique design solution continues to grow, it would be no surprise to see them explode onto widespread scene in the not-too-distant future. So what are you waiting for? Get involved!

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Happy Thursday!