Wallpaper has been coming back strong in the last couple of years and with a whole new look. The design trend of wallpapering rooms last peaked in the late 80’s/early 90’s when we draped our homes from top to bottom in ornate patterns (think grandma’s bathroom) and busy borders (remember kitchens lined with farm animals and fruit?).

Don’t worry, those trends are long gone, but the new face of wallpaper seems to be sticking around. Here’s the latest styles we’re seeing on walls…

Texture

Textured walls with a subtle feel are high among the trends. Single colors, often a neutral, are enhanced to resemble the unique profiles of different materials. These wallcoverings can range in creating the effect of a room wrapped in woven fabrics like burlap or linen, or fashioned with more rigid materials resembling stone or concrete.

Floral

Floral is a long-lived tradition in wallpaper, but before you start having flashbacks, rest assured that floral wallpaper is not what it once was. This era of floral boasts bright, varied colors and layouts, similar to the familiar patterns of say Vera Bradley or Lily Pulitzer. On the other hand, another floral trend of Oriental blossoms and blooms tends to be more elegant and simple, often featuring just a couple hues.

Geometric

Geometric wallpaper design is a modern and sophisticated trend which seems to be leaning toward simple shapes, like basic squares and triangles. Multi-layer and multi-color patterns are prevalent in geometric wallpaper, but all while maintaining clean, eye-catching lines across the wall.

Framed

This is a favorite design trend when a homeowner absolutely loves a certain wallpaper, but knows it would be overwhelming for an entire room, or even too much for a full wall. What this trend does instead is cuts and frames sections of the wallpaper with trim. Often multiple, vertical, rectangular sections are used side-by-side. This imitates large picture frames and the wallpaper acts as a work of art on display.  

Mural

Wall murals are single images often taking up an entire wall. There are many different themes of wall murals available, but maps, skylines, and landscapes are certainly the most popular. Of course the digital age allowed for this trend to sky-rocket because now any personal photograph, say that sunset from a favorite vacation, can become a focal point in your home décor. Many online companies allow homeowners to upload a favorite, high-resolution image and create a truly one-of-a-kind wallpaper.

Wallpaper is definitely more varied than it once was and it’s being applied everywhere. Many homeowners choose to cover over switch plates to give the room a seamless flow, but some are even leaning toward covering doors, casings, and ceilings also. Experts predict this wallpaper craze is going to keep growing and even bolder, brighter prints will be seen this year.

But no matter how the styles may change, wallpaper traditionally has been created by artists and executed by craftsmen, and hiring a skilled paper-hanger will never go out of style. 

All photographs are of original work by The Painting & Wallcovering Co.