Paint or wallpaper the walls

[ouch321]

I'm thinking of changing the again decor at home. I painted on moving in 9 years back and did some of the rooms again about 4 years ago. Was thinking to change the look again to try and take my mind of other things.

I live alone so no-one else to consult with or whatnot.

I wandered into the wallpaper aisle by mistake and realised it had never occurred to me to wallpaper the walls instead and not sure why.

So are you a paint household or a wall-paper household and why?

Which is better?

And is wall-papering hard to do compared to painting?

Thanks

I paint the existing wall paper every couple of years but I have to say I am board with it now I want something a bit different .
I have two issues though . The cost not only of the paper but paste , brushes, paste table ( only got a small dinning table so I cant use that ) and the time it will take . And I have never hung wall paper on my own before .

I am considering just doing one wall / alcove for now to see how I get on , could you do that ?

Wallpapering is easy enough as long as you match any pattern and don’t drag/ stretch it with the smoothing brush (not its real name, the brush used on the pattern side of the paper to smooth onto the wall from the centre out). Tips: don’t panic if bubbles appear once it’s up, the paper stretches when wet and they’ll go as it dries. And I use (very sharp) scissors to trim edges to the right length.

I love wallpapering and get carried away when doing a feature wall and end up wanting to do the whole room it’s my fave Diy thing to do. Watch a load of you tube videos to find out how to do it. Paste the wall wallpaper is much easier than paste the wallpaper. I find ready mixed paste better than the one you mix yourself as well; no bumps.

I usually paper one or two walls and paint the rest. I love decorating!

Also if cost is an issue check out B and M and Wilco for both paper and tools - you can get a good wallpaper starting kit from a Wilco for about £6. I got some wallpaper for my living room from B and M recently on sale for £6 a roll - two rolls did the whole wall. The only thing worth spending money on is a really sharp good pair of scissors and a Stanley knife to make the edges neat.

I like wallpaper but mainly do feature walls and not the whole room.
For me it's just that little extra finish I like

I much prefer paint, there's no wallpaper in our house. It is easy to slap on, easy to keep clean, easy to change your mind. Also I like the plain unpatterned aesthetic, but even if you don't, there is always plenty of scope for pattern with curtains, cushions and general mess!

I usually paint, but last year decided to do a feature wall with wallpaper. Nervous as hell about it as I thought it would be difficult, but it actually looks awesome, accidentally did a really good job!

The only thing is wallpaper can be expensive. I suppose paint is as well, but I have been surprised by how much wallpaper can cost if you have to start matching up patterns. And the maths involved - I'm ordering online for some expensive wallpaper for the loo. It's a bit of an odd shape as some pipes have been boxed in and I can't work out how much I need for the life of me. I phoned them in the end, and they're working it out now for me. I think I'm going to be unpleasantly surprised as to how much it will cost.