Preparing Prepasted Wallpaper

With any prepasted wallpaper, you'll need to activate the paste prior to hanging the paper. There are different activation methods, however, and you'll need to read the instructions for the paper you're using for the exact method and you'll need to follow those instructions to the letter or your wallpaper might not adhere properly.

The most common activation method is to roll up your cut strips from the bottom with the paste side out and the pattern side in and to submerge the rolls one at a time in a tray full of water for the length of time indicated in the instructions.

With most papers, you then pull the strip up out of the water gripping the top and unrolling it as you pull and lay the strip out for booking, which is described below.

Some papers, though, must be applied directly to the wall after activation in water so you skip the booking step and go directly to the hanging step described below.

Some prepasted wallcoverings can now be activated with a water-based mixture applied to the back of the paper with a roller. This eliminates the need for soaking the paper in water and makes it a bit easier to handle. As with any paper, follow the instructions as to the specific activators and installation techniques.

NOTE: Whether you're using prepasted or unpasted products, don't do all your strips at once--especially on your first wallcovering job. Putting up the first strip may take a while, so it's a good idea to start with just 1 or 2 strips, book them, hang them, see how long it takes you and then determine how many you should be pasting at a time.

Preparing Unpasted Wallpaper

The simplest way to apply wallpaper paste to unpasted papers is to pour the paste into a clean paint roller tray and use a paint roller with a 3/8-inch or 1/2-inch nap to spread it over the paper.

It works best if you can rent a long wallpapering table so the paper doesn't drag on the floor. But you can manage with any clean, flat surface. One option would be to spread a piece of plastic on the floor, lay the paper face down on that and roll the adhesive out on the back.

As always, follow the manufacturer's instructions, using the recommended adhesive and applying it as they recommend. Once the strip is covered with adhesive (don't leave any dry gaps), book each strip as described in the step below.

Booking Wallpaper

Most wallpapers will require "booking" after activating the paste on prepasted strips or spreading adhesive on unpasted ones.

That means gently folding the ends of each strip back to the middle so that the pasted sides are touching, lining up the edges as carefully as possible. Don't crease the folds, though, or you'll leave a permanent mark.

Then you fold it in half again, lining up the ends. And you finish the booking process by loosely rolling the strip up from one end to the other.

This is a critical step for most wallpaper, because it lets the paste penetrate the wallpaper, keeps the paste from drying out before you hang it and allows the strip to "relax". Follow the instructions closely as to how long you should let paper book before hanging it.

Remember that some papers don't require any booking at all so, at the risk of being repetitive, check the instructions carefully for the details on the wallcovering you choose.

Hanging Wallpaper

After the first strip has booked a proper length of time, take it up on your scaffold or ladder, unroll it, undo the first fold and then peel back the top to free that end. The strips are long and difficult to manage at full length so leave the bottom end booked for the moment.

Position the top up to the ceiling as needed, leaving a couple inches above for trimming and making sure the pattern's in a pleasing position. Line up the edges with the plumb lines on the wall and use a smoothing brush to apply the top of the paper to the wall. If you see then that you missed the marks, don't try to push it back into position.

That can stretch the wet paper out and leave gaps at the seams later on when the paper dries. Instead, pull the paper back off wall and reposition it.

Once the top is straight, peel off the bottom half of the paper and brush that into

position on the wall, making sure it lines up with the plumb lines. Then go over the paper again with the brush to remove any air bubbles or wrinkles.

Raise the paper off the surface and re-lay it if necessary. It won't affect the paste's adhesion.

You could trim the top and bottom at this stage but it's usually more efficient to get a few strips up and then trim them all at once.

Before moving on, though, use a wet sponge to wipe any excess paste off the surface of the strip. Remember, though, that not all papers are sponge-friendly so follow the instructions in this area as well.

Making Seams

Hanging the second strip (and the rest of the strips) will follow the same pattern as the first one. But now you need to worry about seams.

Actually they're not as much of a problem as people make them out to be. Just make sure the edge of the second strip butts up to the edge of the first one and that the pattern is matching properly from piece to piece. Don't leave any gaps and don't overlap them at all. Finish the strip as before, brushing it smooth and then sponging off excess paste.

There are tools known as seam rollers which are designed to roll over seams and firmly apply them to the wall.

But people often overuse these tools, rolling the seams over and over and over again. What that does is press the adhesive to the surface, leaving very little below. That gets sponged away, and there's nothing left to bond the seams to the wall.

So if you use a seam roller, do not press down too hard and do not roll a seam more than once.

Trimming Top & Bottom

Whether you trim each strip as you hang it or wait to do 4 or 5 at once, the technique is the same.

• Use a broadknife (the 4-6 inch wide kind used for spackling or drywall joint compound) first to crease the paper where the wall meets the ceiling or the floor base to set up a straight cut.
• Then, with one hand, set the blade of the broadknife in the crease at one end of the paper.
• With the other hand, run the cutting blade along the broadknife, using it as a guide and making short cuts no longer than the width of the broadknife.
• Make sure the broadknife is positioned between the wall and your cutting blade to protect the wallpaper if your cutting blade slips.
• Reposition the broadknife for each cut till you get to the other end of the paper.
• Then wipe the area with a clean sponge to clean off excess paste.