I’ve put it off long enough and I need you, dear blog readers, to hold me accountable. I think it’s time to finally address that plain ‘ole, boring powder bath that laughs at me every time I walk past it.
Yes, that one. The one I painted color swatches on back in November. The one I had big plans on tackling over Thanksgiving. And then over Christmas. And then over the New Year holiday.
Some things have come up around Lindsay Land that have me totally sidetracked. No worries, life is good, and I hope that I’ll be able to fill you in on the exciting news in a few weeks. Until then, however, I’m going to need you to help keep me focused on this project!
So, focus area #1 for my powder bath: an accent wall.
My grand plan is to paint the wall directly across from the door with a really interesting pattern and then hang a crazy collection of black-and-white silhouettes on top of it.
“Wait, what?” you are asking yourself. “She wants to hang a huge collection on top of a patterned accent wall? I think she may have lost it.” No, no. I haven’t lost my mind. I have a vision and it’s fabulous, so just trust me, okay?
At first, I considered wallpapering the accent wall with a gorgeous, metallic damask paper. However, I’m pretty nervous about the permanence of wallpaper and my walls have a knock-down texture that may not be flat enough to actually paper. I thought about building a faux-wall and wallpapering it, and then I realized that I was going a little too far with the whole concept.
So now, I think I am going to use one of the large all-over wall stencils that are so popular these days. The pictures and tutorials I have seen online are so beautiful, and I think they are the perfect solution for someone like me who cannot commit to actual wallpaper.
The following photos are from Royal Design Studio, which is where I’m considering ordering a stencil. I love how classic their designs are (you’ll need to overlook the accessories in these photos, though), and they have many different damask styles to choose from:
It really does look like wallpaper, doesn’t it? I just wonder if I have the talent to pull it off. The instructions look very simple, but I’m one of those people who can manage to mess up the simpliest of directions.
What do you think? Do you like the look of all-over stencils or do you think they look dated? Have you ever used one before? Let me know in the comments!
My hope is to have a decision made and a stencil ordered (or not ordered, as the case may be) this time next week. You think you can keep me on track?
I say go for it! I see your vision, and I love it. Stenciling is EASY, and it will be gorgeous with huge silhouettes on top.
I adore the stencils. A perfect compromise for the look of wallpaper, but easy to paint over.
Do you have the TALENT to pull it off? If that's the question holding you back, then you have NOTHING to hold you back. I say go for it. Then give us a tutorial!
Lindsay, check out my blog post about a tutorial I saw for a DIY stenciled, textured wall!!
http://942dunreathstreet.blogspot.com/2010/01/holy-bathroom.html
I'm planning to do something similar to this in my girls' bathroom. I KNEW I had to go with stencils, because it's a bathroom, and I just feel like wallpaper wouldn't hold up to all the hot showers and kids.
I say GO FOR IT! Mostly because I want to see what yours looks like, before I attempt mine!!!!! LOL LOL. jk.
Shelley
We did a damask wallpaper beneath the stairs. We just had to trowel over the texture with joint compound first. I'm thinking even if you stencil, you may want to do that because, it will be hard to stencil on a very rough surface. Either way, I'm sure it will be glorious!
Hey Lindsay,
I just read an entire blog post on stenciling.
It's over at Little Green Notebook.
Here's the link
http://littlegreennotebook.blogspot.com/2010/01/stencilling-is-hip.html
It might give you some more ideas!
Go for it! Everything you touch turns out looking like it cost you a ton to have some fancy designer do it!
these are really pretty – I would much rather take on a stencil than wallpaper. Wallpaper application frightens me to the core! Good luck I say go for it! I wanna see pictures!!
I'm a new comer to your blog, but I just wanted to put my two cents in…I just did the same idea in my master bedroom, but with metallic silver vinyl in a damask print from floor to ceiling and I love it! To get a great looking stencil that doesn't have horrible bleed lines, once you stick your stencil to the wall paint it with clear acrylic medium and then once that's dry top it with your preferred paint color, that way the only paint that bleeds through is clear, works like magic.
Ummmm…Linds?
Isn't the whole reason you're thinking of doing a stencil because you're not wanting to "commit" to wallpaper?
Go for it, girl. If you hate it, paint right on over it and try try again!
I think you should try it! I can't wait to see what you do with that lil o' powder room. I have to do something with mine too. LOL
Michelle
Gorgious. That is what I think. And DEFINATLY you have the talent to pull it off. Look at everything else you do. What a big project, but fun too. It will look amazing when you are done. I am sure!
I would say to do it! I just finished stencling my girl's furniture for their room and will be posting it tomorrow. I bought my stencil @ hobby lobby for about $2 and some .88c craft paint from Walmart. Way to easy. I didn't even use tape to hold it in place (Though for the wall I def would). I was easy and cheap. I wish I wouldve layered colors though. Can't wait to see what you do.
I LOVE the all over stencils. I'm getting a vision of the stencil in turquoise and white, with the black silhouettes over it. Would be SO YUMMY!
I think skip the wallpaper and go with stencils. Much easier to paint over stencils if you don't like it than removing wallpaper.
I say stencil too! If you don't like it you can paint over it.
I stenciled a wall in our bathroom using texture and glaze, and it turned out amazing, even on top of our knock-down texture!
http://www.livinthesimplelife.com/2010/01/04/textured-walls/
I personally love it! I want to find a room I could do that in my house. A bathroom is a good place- nice condensed, small spot. Hmmm, now you've got my wheels turning.
Your vision sounds scrumptious! Do it girl…of course, then WE will all be the lucky recipients of your tutorial and expertise!
I like the stencil idea. And if it doesn't work you can always paint over and go for decals.
Angel
http://honey-sweet-home.blogspot.com
I DID wallpaper my l.room but painted my craftroom and I much prefer paint lol. Easier, quicker and you can always paint over it. LOVE the pattern you choose so I say go for it too.
Go for it! You could get one of those practice boards or something to try it out first. Good luck.
Go for it! Love the look!
I love the photos you show….stenciling is great!
Stencil! I love your idea, I think it will be awesome! I just saw on a couple of design blogs some posts about stenciling! Go for it!
NO PAIN no gain! You can do it! Wallpaper is a mess….paint can be redone in an instant if you don't like it.
Love this idea!! go for it! I looked all over online to find a stencil to use in our dining room… i ended up getting a 9.99 stencil from michael's… here's what i ended up with! can't wait to see your space completed!
http://thebusybudgetingmama.blogspot.com/2009/11/home-renovation-dining-room.html
DO IT! Jenny @ Little Green Notebook just did a post about stencils. When we move into our own home (soon!) I'm planning on doing some stenciling because the wallpaper I want is out of our budget. I think if done right it is totally hip and not dated.
Are you kidding? Do all-over stencils look great?? Just look at your blog background–of course they look great! I say go ahead with your vision, and then share it with us. I think we'll love it!
I stenciled my daughters room and I swear I would NEVER do it again. Maybe it had something to do with it being my first time, but it was a ton of work and didn't turn out as perfect as I would have hoped (I am a perfectionist! So the tiniest little blop made me mad). I should post it on my blog sometime. But if you can do it right then I think stenciling is the way to go!
Make sure you go with the sticky SPRAY to plaster that stencil perfectly on the wall before you paint!
I love the stencil idea! If you are afraid it might look busy with the silhouettes on top of the stenciled pattern, here's an idea: you could stencil one shade lighter or draker than your background color or stencil using the same color just in a different paint sheen. That way you'll still have a pattern, but subtle.
I can't wait to see the results. Please share as soon as you finish!
I'm going to have to read some of the links. I purchased this stencil (http://www.designerstencils.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store;_Code=DS∏_Code=3641&Category;_Code=NEWESTDESIGNS) for my daughters room and I'm kind of leary about it. It doesn't have registration marks and isn't made like it should be for a repeat so I have to lay it over the last one that I made, if that makes sense. I'm sure you have the talent though! I did a large scale pattern on our living room wall with a projector and I love it. It's on our blog as an older post. I'm sure your bathroom will turn out beautifully.
I love the stencil idea. It won't look dated at all if you use current colors and patterns!! Go for it!! Love that stencil on the blue wall. If you know where I can get that one please let me know.
I did it a few months ago in my bathroom and I love it!
I wrote up a little diy post about my experience
here.
I'd say that if you're just going for one wall, do it! The best part about stenciling is that you can just paint over it when you're tired of the look.
I would definatly do the stencil. Much cheaper than wallpaper and you could re-use it on accent pieces and do it on some paper and then frame it…etc. I heart stencils!
I was JUST at a restaurant on Monday and the bathroom had this exact stencil! It was a light green/sage wall with about 4-5 shades darker stencil. Then it was glazed…not sure of the color, but I totally fell in love with it! I say go for it!!! You can always paint over it if you don't like it!!! : )
Once your house is done, you can come over and start on mine!!
After stripping 6 rooms of wall paper my husband has banned wallpaper. He really doesn't care that it is "back." So I have stenciled plenty in similar all over patterns as I love this look.
I am intrigued by the "paint it with clear medium first" post above to avoid bleeds but I don't really get it. Try a light coat of spray adhesive on the back so it is tacky, use a very little amount of paint, and clean off the back of the stencil often to avoid bleeds.
The metallic one with a little antique glaze over it has me thinkin master bath…….
According the amazing Rhoda at Southern Hospitality wallpaper is BACK. I, personally, love the idea of the stencil using a different sheen of the same color. I have seen wall stripes done this way, and it was very nice. You will do a marvelous job, I'm sure. It is so much easier to paint over stenciling than to remove wallpaper. I have done both… no comparison.
I love the look of the stencils in your inspiration photos. I just did some stenciling on a floor and man, I can never get it right. It bleeds behind the stencil every time. Thankfully even with a fuzzy look, I love it. I say give it a try! Much better option than wallpaper!
Good luck!
Roeshel
I LOVE IT! Makes me want to figure out where to stencil in my house! I have one of those b-o-r-i-n-g 1/2 baths, too. Looking forward to how youre comes out so I can steal your ideas!!!
I was having flashbacks to my green ivy bordered backsplash in my old house's kitchen….your stencil idea is so shabby chic looking…I'll have to research it farther and read the comments others have posted. Good luck!!
Love the idea but… I'm going to be the one that disagrees with everybody else! I've done a LOT of stencilling and the one thing that concerns me is the knock down texture on your walls. You're not going to be able to get the stencil to lay perfectly smooth/flat on that texture even with the use of a spray adhesive and if you push it into the texture to get it to go in and out of the texture you're going to distort the stencil! Even with the smoothest of walls bleeding is a concern. My suggestion is to get a smaller/cheaper stencil (Hob Lob, AC Moore etc) and try it first to see if you CAN get an acceptably clean edge on the stenciling. Those allove stencils aren't cheap!
BTW they do make a wallpaper that is designed to smooth out textured or panelled walls. You apply it first and paper right over it! If the paper you're looking at is a vinyl coated that will also be a bit thicker and may conceal some or all of the texture.
The other is time. Even if you used the liner paper and wallpaper you're looking at two mornings as opposed to many days of waiting for stencilled areas to dry before you can move to other areas. If you skip around to get it done faster and are even the slightest bit off in your measurements so that something doesn't line up just so, how much would that bug you? Wallpaper just has to be matched at the top and middle and done!
Sorry to write a novel but can you tell I'm more for the wallpaper?
Hi, I'm just adding my 2cents….I have stenciled over textured walls and it works well if you don't have too much paint on your brush. I think that's the secret to stenciling….knowing how much paint to load on the brush. I keep tapping my brush on a paper plate until there's very little paint left.
Practice first and your walls will be gorgeous, go for it!
I can totally see your vision. Can't wait to see it in real life!
Of course I want you to do it first! This is exactly what I'm thinking of doing in my dining room and adjacent powder room, so you have to get this done in the next couple of weeks so that I can benefit from your experience!
I'm a rebel – Just say no to the stencil. It's going the way of the 90's faux finish.
Ok – are you telling me that I can get the great look of all those fancy wallpapers with the less painful commitment of a stencil? Can it be true? I think I need you to do this so that I can believe. (Please do it!!!)
ohhh, i love it! I think I'm going to have to check out this site, I would love to do a wall like that in my office/workspace!
Hi Lindsay, Go for the stenciling but do something crisp (not like the photos, they look dated) not gradated tones. Also for a classier look, install some molding and just stencil above the molding.
Since a powder room is a great place to play,how about a not all over pattern, I think it could be much more interesting, randomly placed designs, or how about stenciling a large tree with some details, they make stencils like that too.
And before that, stop by my blog on Sunday for a blog party with a slightly different twist, would love to have you! http://www.creativejewishmom.com
This is such a neat idea. We are redoing our bathroom at the moment and I was thinking about tiling the bottom half of the wall and using paint on the top half with me painting something there. Stencelling is not very known here in Germany but this is just the idea I needed. Go for it I will be waiting for your photos. I am sure it will look gorgeous.
Fabulous idea, loads of work. Flocked damask wallpaper would look great too. You can also buy Anaglypta wallpaper at Lowes that is plain with a raised pattern, then paint over it. Instead of doing all of the walls, you might consider just stenciling in certain places? Either way, I think it will look gorg.
That looks really great, Lindsey. It makes me want to re-stencil my own bath….but it's so time consuming!! I really love the pattern you chose.
I think it's a fantastic idea. And I love the idea of a grouping of silhouettes on it. DO IT DO IT!!
Hi Lindsey, I stenciled way back when…It's fun, easier than wallpaper and you don't have to pull if off! Be sure to spray your stencil with spray adhesive (over and over)! Make sure not to overload your brush (to avoid bleeding). The hardest part is arm strength
and getting the stencil straight. I used to make my own stencils (20 years ago) and have not done any stenciling until this last weekend. My daughter in law saw a pillow on Esty she wanted, they were sold out. I grabbed a pillow cover and form from DownEast, found a similar pic and cut the stencil in less than 15 minutes. She loved it and was totally surprised.
I love the idea. I just bought a stencil to do above my fireplace. I think it looks great, not dated.
I say go for it. It will be beautiful and it would make a great post because it's not something people are brave enough to do. You will be a blog-trendsetter.Thanks!
Do it. Check out the stenciling they did on http://www.mymarrakesh.com, and http://designamour.com/ for peacock pavilions, they have done the floor, ceilings, walls, and stairs. Gorgeous. I would do it in a heartbeat but I have that horrible orange peel wall texture. Have a friend who did plaster with stencils, gorgeous. DO IT
Love your blog!!! The stencil project looks awesome!!! I hope that you will take a lot of pictures as you go!!!!
I stenciled our bedroom in navy and cream (I have the whole blue & cream toile look in our bedroom, too!). It was super easy and turned out beautifully, but it was VERY time consuming. I only did 3 walls above the chair rail and it took me about 4 days from start to finish (the 4th wall is wall-to-wall closet). Doing any more would have been painful, although I was pregnant at the time…Anyhoo, hubby loves to show it off to anyone that comes over. I typically get 2 reactions: 1) awe and amazement, can't-believe-it's-paint, "How did you do that?!?" and 2) "That was entirely too much work!". Ditto on using spray adhesive and a dry brush w/barely any paint. It took me awhile to figure out exactly what I was going to do and perfect my technique. The finished product looks NOTHING like what I had pictured, it's better!
Well you know I love stencils! Stencil Ease has great huge ones I love that you can order online — really big — I think 19 inches across? Love them!
I COMPLETELY see your vision and am enabling you all the way. I think it will be smashing!!!
Cheers~
e
If you don't want to do wallpaper have you ever considered putting up a wall mural printed on a vinyl type material. My husband runs a company that does this and we have cute wall murals and things on the walls in our rental home. We can print any design and in any color! It is so fun to decorate and comes down without any hassel… just another suggestion for you.
Best of luck with your project. I think the difference between dated and current has to be subtlety.
Ellen
Go for it! Love the idea!
Would also LOVE your support on the ELLE DECOR window I did for the Big Window Challenge this year with Apartment Therapy. Check it out at http://www.bigwindowchallenge com. As we all know, AT doesn’t make it easy, but you can vote TWICE a day, once online and the other by texting “1” to 89800.
Your support means the world to me!!
Xo
Eddie
I linked to you on a post today and showed the picture of your gorgeous coffee table! I found a coffee table at the thrift store that I am going to make over to look like yours! Thanks for the inspiration! http://keriandbrian.blogspot.com/2010/01/furniture-finds.html
Stenciling is only dated by the type of design you use. If you stenciled your walls like any of the photos you posted you could not go wrong. If you have never stenciled before, just remember to start at the most prominent corner of the room and work to either side until you reach the least seen side of the room. This way if the design doesn't fit just right you won't notice it as much. Adding beefy moulding will look great with a full wall stencil. Do a few practice runs until you get the right pressure and paint load on the stencil brush. Always blot brush on a paper towel before the wall you will get a much better look. I have done this, the best tip I can give you is get more than one stencil get 2 of the same design, because after a full wall or two the edges will break down and the pattern won't look as sharp.
I did this in my friend's house. Here's the post link. It turned out great! you are going to love it!
http://sanctuaryart.blogspot.com/2009/01/prettied-up-bathroom.html
I like the stencil…i like the bluISH color…SO cute…
i posted a giveway…come on over and check it out
dejavucrafts.blogspot.com
Amanda
When I was a kid, we lived in a century-old farmhouse. After removing layers of paint and old wallpaper, my mom found the original stencil border. It was so pretty, and my mom recreated the stencil and redid the border. I think stencils are timeless, so I say go for it!