How to use wallpaper in your bathroom

Many of us are starting to realise that wallpaper can be an easy cheat way to get a feature wall. Whether it’s to create anything from a brick-effect to a bold jungle print, there are some great patterns out there. It’s also more affordable, and easy to change when you feel your room needs a new look.

More related content:

• Book-matching marble and bathroom symmetry
• Minimalist bathrooms and wall-hung toilets
• Shaker kitchens and cockbead finishing

Although wallpaper is taking other rooms by storm there’s one place it’s taking longer to migrate to.

It makes sense to have historically avoided using it in the bathroom; heat and humidity don’t usually mix well with paper. But things are changing.

One new trick is to apply a decorator’s varnish to the paper after it has been applied – making sure that the paper has been put on correctly with as little lumps and bumps as possible. When done properly it creates a seal and can make any wallpaper moisture resistant.

Placement choice can make a big difference too, using paper on just one wall (as a feature), can be done to avoid the dampest areas, like next to the bath or shower.

If that sounds a little too fiddly and you had your heart set on a particular wall, there are now plenty of companies that create wallpaper specifically for bathrooms.

Washable papers are popular: there are ‘scrubbable’ and ‘highly scrubbable’ types available at Iwantwallpaper.com.

If you hate grouting (and even tilers hate grouting) a bathroom-approved scrubbable wallpaper with tile printing could provide a simple solution.