Entryway - Step 1

Well the overhaul of the entryway is under way! It must be stated up front here that I in no way shape or form was I able to do this with out the help of my Hubs. This was a four hand type job...think long pieces of gluey wall paper sticking on itself while I am balancing on one leg from a ladder. Therefore the addition of the Hubster was a critical addition and for that I thank him!

This project is going to be broken down over the course of a few steps as we have changed our original plan a bit. As a reminder, we purchased one package of the allen & roth Spanish Tile pattern wall covering from Lowe's ($20.98/56 sq. ft.).

The paper itself has a little nubby texture to it and the slightest sheen which I love. It almost has a reflective quality to it which brightens the area immensely.

Since we grabbed this on a whim (during a quick shopping trip into Lowe's), we were not 100% sure what  the square footage of the wall was. Upon arriving home we quickly realized that we would need 2 rolls. After chatting a bit and surfing around online, we decided to change the plan of covering the whole wall. Instead we are going to install a chair rail and some decorative squares on the lower part of the wall.

Hence the multiple parts of this project!

Here is a small overview of Step 1: Application of Wall Covering

To prep, I removed all nails from the wall and cleaned the entire wall thoroughly to ensure proper adhesion. It is not critical to spackle the nail holes as you are literally going right over it (and quite frankly I am all for skipping that step).

I also created a staging area in the kitchen for cutting the pieces, activating the glue backing and the five minute set up time required for the glue.

The area to the left was marked with a pencil for 62 inches. This was the length from the ceiling to the chair rail plus an additional few inches to allow for overlap on both the top and bottom of the piece (to be trimmed once dried). Our chair rail will be 36 inches from the floor which is a standard height and will mimic the height of the bookshelf to be built opposite this wall. The area on the right is the "set up" spot where the moistened paper will be allowed to sit for five minutes in order for the glue to fully activate. The paper should be moistened in warm water.

While waiting for our first length to set up, we established a plumb line on the wall. A plumb line is a vertical, level line on the wall which each length of paper will be lined up against. We use a plumb line rather than the end of the wall to ensure we are working with a level edge. This line was set up 20 inches in from the edge of the wall. (The end of the wall can be trimmed to accommodate any waviness or uneven lines.)

The plumb line can be seen vertically while the horizontal line denotes the chair rail height.

 The first length was applied using the plumb line as the guide on the left. There was an overhang on the end of roughly 1/2 an inch.

**Some important points to remember:**
Using a broad knife or a wallpaper brush, apply LIGHT pressure to smooth out the wallpaper and press it into corners. Start at the top of the wallpaper, and work your way down, making sure to follow the plumb line. Use vertical and sweeping strokes and make sure to wipe up excess glue with a sponge or damp rag as it seeps out the sides. Work from the inside area toward the edges to remove wrinkles and bubbles.

By leaving the top of the paper a little longer, we could ensure a proper straight edge when finishing. The Hubs call this "leaving the paper a little proud". Apparently this is a construction term.....me thinks it a very Bob Vila-ism. :)

Once the paper was up, we allowed the wall 24 hrs to set and dry completely before trimming the edges. Now we are onto Phase 2: Applying Chair Rail

Isn't it gawjus?