I am sure you have noticed wallpapers appearing in everyone’s homes and offices. With wallpaper becoming increasingly popular, you must be wondering, should I paint my walls or go with wallpaper?
Here are things you should consider.
1. Are you going for a plain, textured or patterned look?
The number 1 benefit of wallpaper is the variety of designs available. While both paints and wallpaper come in many colours, wallpapers can also offer you complex and unique patterns and motifs.
Recreating the same design with paint will take time, money and is prone to error.
Patterned wall with a textured background. Photo credit: Fedora Wallpapers
2. How long would you like your wall to last?
Generally, wallpaper lasts longer than paint. While paint usually needs to be re-done every 5-6 years, wallpaper can remain for 10-15 years.
3. How much do you want to spend?
If you want a textured look, wallpaper will save you money! Textured paint costs Rs 80 per sq. ft., while good quality texture wallpaper costs between Rs 25-35 per sq. ft. This is even including the labour cost.
Plain coloured paint will be a similar price to wallpaper.
4. How damaged are your walls?
If you want a smooth look, you will have to fix any imperfections on your walls such as holes or bumps regardless of whether you are using paint or wallpaper.
If you don’t mind these imperfections, then you can paint over them without affecting durability.
However, wallpapers need a smooth surface to avoid the formation of air bubbles which can damage wallpaper over time. Imperfections will need to be fixed before applying wallpaper. This may increase the cost and time before wallpaper can be applied.
Photo credit: Henry & Co. on Unsplash
5. Will the wall become wet often?
Even though wallpaper is waterproof, over time it may not be suitable in locations where it will be frequently wet. Usually, paint will have better durability in bathrooms and kitchens.
However, some wallpaper types like PVC wallpaper can be used in bathrooms and kitchens so long as they are not constantly in contact with water, such as in the shower.