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The 5th Wall: Wallpaper On The Ceiling

Everyone has different tastes when it comes to their interior. Wallpaper is no different. When decorating a room, some people prefer to clothe every wall in gorgeous wallpaper. Others prefer to do a feature or accent wall. Another option is to do the top portion of the wall, just above a chair rail or wainscoting. Often neglected is the 5th wall, installing wallpaper on the ceiling. However, those thinking outside of the box, yet still inside the box (pun intended), often tend to look at the forgotten 5th wall as an opportunity to do something unique. Let’s take a look at some inspirational examples that keep us looking up by applying wallpaper to the ceiling.

Wallpaper On the Ceiling • Making It Lovely • Ornithology • Bird Wallpaper
Installing On The Ceiling

First, let’s go over some helpful practical tips that you will want to keep in mind when wallpaper the ceiling. You may wonder, which direction should I paste the wallpaper? Where do I start?

It’s always a good idea to apply the wallpaper roll in the direction of the light coming from the window. Otherwise, there may be some shadows created that could cause certain designs to have their appearance altered. More importantly, you always want to make sure that you begin the wallpaper wherever the focal point of the room is. You don’t want to finish at the focal point of the room where a portion of the design will end up cut off by the edge of the ceiling. So for example, if there is a television on one wall, you may consider beginning the install on the end with the television. This is because that is the area that will draw your attention. It is where you will want the full pattern of the design to be on full display.

As with any normal installation, you will need to remove light fixtures before you get started. You will also want to mark your ceiling with a pencil using a level (laser level if you have it) so that your first drop is perfectly straight. But that’s enough of the technical stuff. Let’s get inspired!

2020 Wallpaper Trends • Cranes Wallpaper • Ceiling Wallpaper • The Hommeboys
INSPIRATION

In the photo above, the Hommeboys didn’t want to cover up the beautiful paint and texture that was happening on the walls. So the ceiling, which wasn’t very inspiring, was the perfect blank place to add some pizzaz. They used the Cranes Wallpaper design, which matches all the gorgeous, warm, earthy mustard colors in the bedroom. It really helps add to this master bedroom’s sense of luxury. The bedroom is a fantastic space to put wallpaper on the ceiling. You spend most of your time in this room looking up.

Kingdom Palm Wallpaper • wallpaper on the ceiling • tropical wallpaper • banana leaf wallpaper • kids room wallpaper • boys bedroom wallpaper

DIY mom, Fariha Nasir, was looking for a way to make her little boy’s bedroom more fun. She thought creating a tropical jungle theme would be just the touch to intrigue her son’s imagination. She uses the Kingdom Palm wallpaper on the ceiling so that when her little boy opens his eyes every morning, he’s ready for an adventure.

Hockney wallpaper • Casa watkins Living • Wallpaper on the ceiling

Sometimes to get the creative juices flowing, the space we create needs to be stimulating. In this case, Stephanie Watkins not only chose the colorfully explosive Hockney design, but she chose to install the wallpaper on the ceiling of her basement office. To top it off, she installed this all by herself. Now as she’s digging deep into her creative depths and her eyes wonder toward the heavens, she’ll receive inspiration from above.

Jennifer Lake from Style Charade posing in a pink dress with a fluffy fair skirt and camisole in her wardrobe closet with a crystal chandelier and pink Trellis Wallpaper by Bethany Linz on the ceiling

When it comes to style and fashion, there are a lot of eyes on Chicago-based Jennifer Lake and her lifestyle blog called Style Charade. She recently had a spare room in her home that she turned into a gorgeous wardrobe closet where everything is meticulously organized. The space is colorful, beautiful and feminine. If your eyes aren’t stuck on her latest outfit, they’ll be drawn upward toward the Trellis design by Bethany Linz on the ceiling. This geometric wallpaper design comes in beige, black, ivory and the pink color pictured here. It brings so much character to the room and only adds to the sophistication.

Ornithology • Bird wallpaper • Wallpaper on the ceiling

Last but not least, in one of the most interesting installs I have ever seen, the mother-daughter design duo at Impeccable Nest took wallpapering to another level. Using the Ornithology design, they extended the design up and out of the wallpaper itself. Using wallpaper leftovers, they cutout portions of the design to continue it from the walls and onto the ceiling. The result is a 3 dimensional visual that adds an immense amount of character to the powder room.

Whether you want to include the ceiling in your wallpaper install or wallpaper only the ceiling, it is definitely an area that shouldn’t be overlooked. It can add a whole lot of interest and an entirely new dimension to your interior.


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