click below for more images Pick up the color scheme with wallpaper and use the brightest accents in artwork and accessories. Photo c.2003 Glenna Morton, About.com    Email to a friend  Printer friendly version More of this Feature • Page 1: Measuring for Wallpaper • Page 2: How Wallpaper is Priced • Page 3: Looking for Wallpaper Related Resources • Beautiful Bedroom Color • Bathroom Update Ideas • Inviting Guestrooms More About Wallpaper • Estimating Wallpaper Quantities • Wallpaper Removal and Repair • Wallpaper Cleaning Tips About Interior Decorating Subscribe to the Free Newsletter Your Email Address:

Part 1: Tips on Measuring a Room for Wallpaper

Shopping for wallpaper is a task you either love or despise. You might look all day for paper and not find a thing, or you might fall in love with the first wallpaper you see.

Before shopping for wallcoverings, you'll want to consider where you want to install wallpaper -- on every wall, in just part of the room (as on one wall or under a chair rail), or a simple wallpaper border to install on a painted wall.

Gather samples like paint chips (the larger the better), fabric swatches, flooring, tile, etc.

Tips on Measuring a Room for Wallpaper

Take the following measurements in the room to be wallpapered.

• Sketch a simple floorplan of your room.
• Measure the overall length and width of the room and note these measurements on your sketch next to each wall.
• Measure the ceiling height. Be sure to note any differences in height if your room has a cathedral or sloped ceiling, making a sketch with height measurements.
• Draw a simple face-on sketch of each wall in the room, noting the overall wall size (height and width).
• On these wall sketches, draw in the placement of all wall features such as doors, windows, and closets. Write down the size and placement of each feature.
• Finally measure each individual wall section (for example from a corner to the closet door, then from the closet to the window frame, the width of the window, and from the window frame to the next corner). The measurements of these sections should add up to equal the overall length of the wall.

To get a rouph estimate of how many rolls of wallpaper will be required, go to a website with an online wallpaper estimating tool for a rough idea of how many rolls might be needed for your project.

Take your room diagram and measurements to the store. Ask the salesperson to figure out how much wallpaper to purchase. That estimate will require that a wallpaper match be considered. Compare their recommendation to your online estimate. The results should be within a roll or two of each other. Remember, the actual quantity needed will vary by the size of the wallpaper rolls as well as the match requirements for that paper.

Next: > Page 2: How Wallpaper is Priced and Packaged

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