If you are brave enough, or foolish enough, to want to hang your own wallpapers, here is some advice for you on choosing the right TYPE of paper.

IMPORTANT NOTE!: A common myth about hanging wallpaper is that good paperhanging means you will 'not be able to see the line between each sheet', or the 'join' as it is sometimes called. I say this is a myth because there are so many variables in hanging paper that you simply cannot guarantee this. Without going in to all the variables, I will say that in MY experience, it is impossible for anyone to guarantee that the line between each sheet of paper will not show. (You heard it here first). - And I've hung a LOT of paper on walls. Some of the variables are: thickness of paper, quality of paper, wall surface, wall surface preparation, type of glue/paste, the skill of the paperhanger, temperature, humidity, type of work area. That's just a few. In a nutshell, you do your best, but don't beat yourself up over unsuccessful attempts to create invisible lines.

OK. Choosing the right TYPE of paper.

What are you going to do with the walls once they're papered? Are you going to paint them or are you going to have the paper itself as the final finish? Either way, opt for a good quality paper. Now, in the UK, good quality does not equate with PRICE, in my experience. There is one particular brand of wallpaper which is manufactured by a household name that is the same as the high street store name. The papers are quite expensive and usually floral. Personally, I've never successfully hung a Laura Ashley wallpaper, and personally, I do not like them at all. That's a personal view of course.

If you're going to paint over the paper, use a good quality Anaglypta or lining paper. How do you get good quality papers? What I do is to buy them only from Decorators' Merchants instead of the High Street stores or big DIY stores. That's not to say the High Street Stores or big DIY chains don't have good quallity papers - just that they do tend to sell a 'mixed bag'. Decorators' Merchants, who cater mainly for the professional decorator, on the whole, sell only good quality stuff and the cost is very reasonable. The Dulux and Crown Merchants are good, and so are Brewers Decorators' Merchants.

The thicker the better. Thicker papers will tear less, stretch less and the weight of them alone will assist you to get straighter lines. Yes, they will take up more paste, but that's minimal cost. For lining papers, go for 1200 grade, or even 1400. When it comes to hanging the paper on the wall, a thicker paper will 'butt up' against the last sheet soooo much better than a thing one.

If the paper you want is to be the final finish, again, I would always opt for a thicker paper, not tissue thin. Unless you're going to have vertical stripes, there will inevitably be some pattern matching to do, so don't buy a paper with a pattern so complex that it will be the devil's job to match up each sheet on the wall.

Measure your walls and buy enough to do the whole job in one go, with the same batch number for every roll. If you have to go back for more paper, having run out, you may not get the same 'batch number' and the colour can vary remarkably. SO BUY ALL YOU NEED IN ONE GO. If you buy from a Merchant, chances are you can return what you don't use as long as it's unopened and you have the receipt.

The only paper you can buy from anywhere with absolute impunity is good old woodchip. This was very popular in the '60s and '70s but it's still available and has its place, especially where you have walls which are 'all over the place'. If it is clear from the state of the walls that no way are you going to achieve anything like a straight line with any sheet, then maybe woodchip is your answer. You can overlap it without too bad a consequence, you do not have to pattern match, and of course, it's nearly always painted afterwards and you can cover up a whole multitude of decorating sin!

Wallpapering is never the 'easy option' so go easy on yourself and choose the right type of paper in the first instance.

GO THICK.
LESS PATTERN TO MATCH IS BETTER.
DON'T BUY CHEAP RUBBISH.

See later EzineArticles for my advice on how to paper a room.