old-style decorating?

moneyistooshorttomention

Well - the possibility of free half cans of paint - combined with maybe colourwashing and .

Never mind "upmarket" homes with walls in a shade of white - I'm struggling to think of any homes I know with anything else on the wall:rotfl:. So I am rather coming round to wondering just why colourwashing seemed to have "gone out of fashion" - as it might add a bit more individuality and warmth to homes.

I wouldn't even attempt wallpaper myself - huge hassle to choose suitable wallpaper and then I'd lay odds I'd make an enormous mess of trying to put it up. But - even I can manage to do a basic job of painting.

PasturesNew

I'd suggest you paint the whole lot with 2 coats of WHITE paint .... then sit back and live with it ... by Easter you'll have decided if you want to do something different/more - and the white won't be wasted as it'll make an excellent base coat for any other colour.

Personally, I'd leave it at white though

VfM4meplse

Wallpaper would never occur to me. Apart from the fact its not easy to put up if you don't have experience, "feature" walls often look cheap rather than interesting and paper looks awful once it decides to detach itself from the wall. No such hassle with paint.

moneyistooshorttomention

...and, at pretty much the exact moment I was reading the comment about "upmarket" homes having white walls - an email from my last EA (as I'm obviously still on their mailing list) was winging its way to me with details of a house for sale in "That:eek:" area of the city.

You guessed it - every single wall in the place was painted white - apart from one feature wall of wallpaper in the sitting room.

I think that dispels that idea of white being upmarket any longer. Nope - it's so much the style of the city that every single house/flat/etc/etc has got it - even in the "policemen walk through in 2s - correction = make that a patrol car" area of the city.:rotfl:.

Larumbelle

I second the don't wallpaper advice! It's a lot harder than painting and more expensive, and can be difficult to pull off.

You can get prints and pictures really cheap from all sorts of places, and a feature or gallery wall can look really lovely and striking. I see my plain walls as a huge canvas that I can dress up in all sorts of ways.

I have never had a problem with own-brand paint, when I got the flat I am in now I was given a voucher for Dulux Trade, and while it did go on nicer, and needed a coat less, the price difference meant there was no benefit IMHO. I tried some of that Light and Space stuff too, Out, Vile Jelly, and I can't discern any benefit either!

My starting point for choosing a colour would be to work with what I already have. I had all but decided on a duck-egg colour for my bedroom, but then I was given a beautiful set of curtains in a completely different colour. I ended up going for a colour that tied in the curtains with the bedding that I already had, which happened to be a pink - I would have said never in a million years would I have pink walls, but actually it looks really lovely (and surprisingly not too girly nor too immature).

There are plenty of lovely neutrals out there that aren't white or magnolia, though white and magnolia do tend to be a lot cheaper.

That said, you are the only person who has to live with it (at least, you and anyone who lives with you LOL) so don't worry about whether any of us lot thinks about wallpaper/stencilling/colourwashing/etc, YOU are the person who will look at it every day so it is only your taste that matters!

Proxima_Centauri

culpepper wrote: »

A mirror can make a huge difference too.

prosaver wrote: »

why dont you get some really big pictures and fancy big mirrors instead?saves getting your hands dirty:)

I have a few pictures hanging up, but when I tried to put a mirror up using screws the plaster /plasterboard (which is really thin) wouldn't hold. A relative of mine said you can get flexi-grips but I haven't looked into it yet. It's a newly built flat and the inner walls seem to be just thin plasterboard and then a gap.

VfM4meplse

I'm now going to share an example of a "showhome" that is very clean and well-maintained, done up to someone's taste yet to me the decor still screams cheap, tacky, Mum's-gone-to-Wilkos. (Not my taste at all ).

Proxima_Centauri

VfM4meplse wrote: »

I'm now going to share an example of a "showhome" that is very clean and well-maintained, done up to someone's taste yet to me the decor still screams cheap, tacky, Mum's-gone-to-Wilkos. (Not my taste at all ).

The floors look like a skating rink :eek:

I much prefer a home to look more comfortable, with carpets. If I could afford to get someone to put wallpaper up I would, but it is an expense I can't afford at the moment.

GreyQueen

VfM4meplse wrote: »

I'm now going to share an example of a "showhome" that is very clean and well-maintained, done up to someone's taste yet to me the decor still screams cheap, tacky, Mum's-gone-to-Wilkos. (Not my taste at all ).

:eek::eek::eek:

O-M-G, there is some truly shocking wallpaper in that home. I feel slightly queasy and have an urge to reach for sunglasses and paracetamol.

I like walls painted in matt emulsion in soft colours or neutrals, with white gloss woodwork. Colour and pattern come from textiles and pictures. Easy to do, economical, and easy to change.

I painted two coats over my whole flat in a soft warm yellow and still had a third of a 2.5 litre can left. But it's a very small flat.;);)

prosaver

Proxima_Centauri wrote: »

I have a few pictures hanging up, but when I tried to put a mirror up using screws the plaster /plasterboard (which is really thin) wouldn't hold. A relative of mine said you can get flexi-grips but I haven't looked into it yet. It's a newly built flat and the inner walls seem to be just thin plasterboard and then a gap.

you could try and find the wood supports to screw things on..
this is what your wall looks like b4 the plasterboards are fixed.
you need a stud finder. oh matron:):D
https://www.ffx.co.uk/tools/product/Stanley-Int077050-3253560770501-Stud-Dectector-S50?gclid=Cj0KEQiA4JnCBRDQ5be3nKCPhpwBEiQAjwN1bn2MjE2zg8fLG4hliYyj1S4W4PX3Q1jIvXr_h1gsx_waAmbN8P8HAQ