Difficult Areas
Introduction
Every wall isn't flat and straight. There are cupboards and corners, plumbing, fixtures and odd architectural kinks that look like they're going to be a problem getting around. But they're not if you know how to handle them. Here's how!
Inside Corners
New house or old, you'll rarely find a straight inside corner, so don't try to wrap a whole strip of wallpaper around the corner. Measure the distance from the edge of the last strip hung to the corner, at the top, bottom, and middle of the strip. Now add 1/2" to your widest measurement and cut this width from your next strip. Hang the first postion of the strip. It will overlap 1/2" onto the new wall at the widest part, buy may not overlap the entire length of the wall. Make a diagonal clip in the corner at the ceilng and baseboard overlaps. Measure the width of the other piece. Drop a plumb line, allowing the other side to overlap in the corner. It is more important that the wallcovering be aligned with the plumb line on the new wall, than to have a perfect match in the corner. The corner mismatch is minimized by illusion anyway. If using vinyl wallcovering, secure the overlap with vinyl-to-vinyl adhesive.
Getting Around Cupboards
Kitchen and baths are quite often the first rooms you choose to wallpaper. And there's just no getting around the
fact that there are cupboards in those rooms. But YOU can get around them quite effortlessly with these simple
instructions.
It would be impossible to try to cover the entire cupboard situation that may be encountered, but you should be able
to improvise using these basic instructions. Measure over from the last strip hung to the cupboard at the top,
middle, and bottom of the cupboard. Take the widest measurement and add one inch to it.
With a pencil and straightedge, rule this measurement on the backside of the new strip, starting from the matching
side of the strip. Carefully cut the strip in two, using scissors, or straightedge and very sharp razor.
Work this side of the strip that goes OVER to the cupboard first. Wet if prepasted or paste if unpasted.
Match this part of the strip to the strip on the wall and smooth down. It will overlap onto the cupboard.
Clip into the overlap at corners, and trim away excess along the side of the cupboards only.
REMAINING HALF OF THE STRIP . . . . .
Measure the distance from the ceiling to the top of the cupboard, and cut this top portion 1" longer (PLUS whatever
you have overlapping onto the ceiling from trimming), from the remaining side of the strip. Actually the best way
to do this is to hold the piece up, matching it, then cut it slightly longer (1") than where the match hits the top
of the cupboard. Do the same underneath the cupboard, working with the bottom part of the strip. (Do not try to save
paper by using the middle of the strip at the bottom. The key to this method is that where you cut the pieces
vertically you're creating your own perfect butt seam.)
Wet or paste the two remaining pieces, match and hang. They should fit perfectly with the first half and the seam
you created will virtually disappear. Trim away the overlaps. Wash paste off the cupboards, with short pieces
that match.
This method also works well when you encounter a large window which you have to hang around, above and below.