One Room Challenge Week 3 | Cheetahs, Jaguars, and Palm Leaves OH MY

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Boy, am I relieved that this wallpaper is finally up! Phew!! Ya’all, it was waaay easier than I had psyched myself up about. I picked this stunning paper out months ago and it’s been patiently waiting to be busted out. It set the colors and overall design for the room. I mean, how could it not right!? It’s the Faunacation wallpaper by Divine Savages.

I have installed a peel and stick vinyl wallpaper before, but never done a classic paste on wallpaper. I was sooo nervous I would mess it up. Wallpaper isn’t cheap, so getting it right with as little mistakes as possible was key. We did some research, watched lots of YouTube videos and then watched some more. The video that helped the most is linked HERE. This gave us a good place to start, but I definitely learned a couple more things in the process.

First, my husband skimmed the wall with joint compound and sanded it. That took the texture out of the wall. That is key to getting the paper to stick properly. Then, he primed the wall with this oil based primer by Zinsser. This is a very strong primer. I recommend wearing a mask when using it, it seriously hurts your lungs to breathe in for too long. We bought this Roman wallpaper paste and then this tool kit from Amazon. I think there are some better quality kits than this one though. Having all the proper tools on hand was huuuge!

Creating a straight level line with pencil for your first panel is very important. Since most walls aren’t completely straight this was a must. You roll the paper down and cut it so there is about an inch above and below where you want it. The paper is fairly thick so it was tricky to get to lay flat in the corner. It also kept rolling up at the bottom. So watch that or it will touch the wall and get paste on it. If that happens, just get a wet rag and wipe it off.

  • 1 panel in
  • 3 panels in

Since the top edge and bottom edge took a bit of time, I would do them last. I’d have to reapply paste by the time I got to them. When the paper has paste on it for a bit it becomes a little soft or soggy. When trying to cut it with a razor blade it would start to tear or wouldn’t cut. Wait until you are ready to do the top or bottom before putting the paste on those areas. Waiting helped to prevent the softened paper and would let me cut it more smoothly. Also, get a REALLLLY sharp razor. Like, so sharp you gotta watch yourself holding it because it could for sure send you to the ER if you aren’t careful sharp. The one that came in the kit was not good enough. I had to use a different one I already had with a brand new blade on it. Even with a new blade, near the end it still was not as sharp as I needed. I should’ve changed the blade again halfway through.

  • Having the proper tools was huge.
  • Get the sharpest razor blade for cutting as possible.
  • The paper will roll at the bottom. Watch that so you don’t keep getting paste everywhere.
  • The paper gets soggy once its had paste on it for awhile and it’s harder to cut through. The paper can rip if you aren’t careful.
  • Wait to add paste to the top corner and the bottom so the paper doesn’t get soft while waiting for you.
  • The paper might shrink a tad, keep that in mind. Ours did this and it’s not very noticeable, but it happened. Slightly overlap the edges to prevent this.

My take away from this process is; wallpapering isn’t as hard as you think. YOU CAN TOTALLY DO THIS YOURSELF! There will be some imperfections as is with any project, but honestly you are probably the only one that will notice, so don’t sweat it. We did one wall and it took only a few hours. It was fairly quick and made such a huuuge impact!

I’m excited to announce Mox and Molly as a Sponsor! She is a vintage slinging queen. Since this challenge is on a time crunch, I’m not able to source all the vintage I’d like. I enlisted the help of this boss babe and she’s already pulled through on some rad pieces, like this guy!! Isn’t he perfect?? I’ll be sharing more from her in the next couple weeks.

Have you seen all the other One Room Challenge participants??? I’m in awe of all the talent! Check out the Featured Designers and other Guest Participants.

Next up is wood work! I am so dang lucky to have my carpenter (AKA my dad) on board with doing some refinishing and custom work for this room. Check my Instagram Stories to follow along there. Then, check back here next week to see what we accomplished.

Cheers – Jenasie

25 thoughts on “One Room Challenge Week 3 | Cheetahs, Jaguars, and Palm Leaves OH MY”

    1. Jenasie Earl

      I’m so glad you say that. Rich and fun is totally what I was going for in the room! Thank you Suzannah!

    1. Jenasie Earl

      Thanks Jamala! I do love me a good animal print. That’s what made this room so fun to come up with.

    1. Jenasie Earl

      It’s even feeling too bright now. Ha ha ha. Oh well, I think with the furniture in the room it will tone it down.

  12. Bilha

    LOOOVE the Wallpaper. It is absolutely stunning! Where did you purchase it if you don’t mind me asking. Cant wait to see the final reveal of your space. Cheering you on for this week 🙂

    1. Jenasie Earl

      Thank you so much Bilha! It’s from Divine Savages. If you go to the top of the blog post I have it linked there. They have amazing wallpapers.

  13. Pingback: One Room Challenge Week 5 | Measure Twice, Cut Once – Ms Vicious Design

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