When talking about wallpaper I often think people think of it in two ways: WOW or EW.  The latter response may come from an initial reaction when thinking about their aunt’s kitchen from 1980 with blue gingham borders and lots of chickens. Am I right?!   

With my experience in historic preservation I fall into the WOW camp. 

Wallpaper these days has ways to transform spaces into fun and whimsical, classic and timeless, or completely dramatic. Even though trends and style change as often as the pantone color of the year, there are some wallpapers that will never go out of style.

The history of wallpaper goes back to as early as the 1790’s, and is said to have traditionally been made to imitate architectural details.  Painted murals, marble and wood, textiles, and even architectural elements can be mimicked through wallpaper. Grasscloth is a texture that can be found in a variety of colors and styles of wallpaper. What is grasscloth you ask? Northshore Magazine writes, “Grasscloth is an umbrella term commonly used to describe wallcovering made from hand-woven strands of natural fibers on an unpasted rice paper backing. The fibers include hemp, jute, seagrass, arrowroot grass, bamboo and raffia.”

Since style is relative due to everyone having their own, wallpapers, I feel that will never “go out of style” are murals and grasscloth. Solid color textured wallpapers like grasscloth can be timeless because textures add another dimension to a space. There are plenty of neutral colors that will always “match” or work well in any space, no matter the style, and grasscloth is also a texture that doesn’t lean one way or another on the style spectrum. 

Another type of wallpaper that I think can withstand the test of time are murals (depending on the mural). Murals are versatile and can transform walls, making them feel like art. Since murals don’t often have a repeat or pattern, they can last longer and change with time. Another great thing about murals is that they can be framed in many different ways. This is great for making the murals read as art. Framing a mural can be helpful if you don’t want to wallpaper an entire wall for reasons like cost. 

Wallpaper is a great way to express your personal style, and your home should be a reflection of you! The best thing to note about wallpaper is that it should make you feel excited or joyful when you view it in your space. I think getting a “timeless” wallpaper is excellent so that you will like it in your space for as long as you are there, but this shouldn’t make you want to shy away from color and pattern.

We hope these ideas help, and here are a few of our team’s favorite wallpapers that we believe will never go out of style!

Adios,

Erin + Sidney and the HouseMill Team

Have you seen Chris Loves Julia’s new music room murals? We might be a little obsessed 🙂

Thanks for stopping by, we hope these ideas help and inspire you, and as always, we’d be honored to work with you on creating your perfect space!

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