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How to hang wallpaper

In this guide, we'll show you how to hang 'paste the wall' wallpaper. With paste the wall wallpaper, there’s no need for a pasting table, which means you might be able to save up to 30% of your time compared to traditional wallpaper hanging methods.

Hanging wallpaper steps:

  1. Prepare the wall
  2. Mark the wall
  3. Cut wallpaper to size
  4. Apply wallpaper paste
  5. Apply the wallpaper
  6. Trim excess

Safety first
Remember to keep adhesives, chemicals and scissors out of reach of children. Always ensure good ventilation during application and drying of wallpaper adhesives. If hanging wallpaper around a stairwell, get someone to help you as you’ll be working at height with heavy lengths of wallpaper.

1. Prepare the wall

The walls must be clean, dry, healthy, straight and smooth. If you’re wallpapering on plaster, plasterboard or wood, apply a universal primer the day before so the wall can get a good grip of the wallpaper. If your walls are covered with gloss or silk paint, sand them down and then apply a universal primer. If they’re covered with matt paint, wash them with a cleaning product that contains baking soda and let the walls dry for 24 hours before wallpapering.

Hanging lining paper prevents the new wallpaper from shrinking when it’s hung, which leads to gaps between the lengths of paper. You may also want to hang lining paper if your walls have any stains or small imperfections in the surface, as it will help to disguise this. For more information, take a look at our how to hang lining paper guide.

2. Mark the wall

Use a spirit level to trace a vertical line 50 cm from the corner of the wall (if your roll measures 53 cm in width). This makes sure that you start wallpapering from a perfectly straight hanging mark and the remaining 3 cm will allow you to avoid imperfect corner junctions (if the corner is not straight) which you can focus on once you’ve finished wallpapering the whole wall.

3. Cut the wallpaper to size

Once your wall is ready, you can cut your first piece of wallpaper to size.

First, measure the height of the wall. Then, mark this length and 100mm extra for trimming on your wallpaper. You can then cut the wallpaper with a pair of scissors.

4. Apply wallpaper paste

With a pasting brush or a roller, start applying the wallpaper paste on the wall in a thin, even layer, from the vertical line you’ve just traced onwards, starting at the top and working your way down across the width of a roll. Use a stepladder to reach the ceiling.

Holding wallpaper up to the ceiling to check its positioning on the wall. Wallpaper overlaps the ceiling slightly at the top.Holding wallpaper up to the ceiling to check its positioning on the wall. Wallpaper overlaps the ceiling slightly at the top.Holding wallpaper up to the ceiling to check its positioning on the wall. Wallpaper overlaps the ceiling slightly at the top.Holding wallpaper up to the ceiling to check its positioning on the wall. Wallpaper overlaps the ceiling slightly at the top.

5. Apply the wallpaper

Place the wallpaper roll on the floor, align it to the vertical line and start unrolling it up to the top of the wall; keep 2-3 cm on the ceiling to allow a straight cut.

Carefully position the wallpaper against the wall and double check the strip’s alignment against the vertical mark. Once you’re happy this is straight, use a wallpaper smoother to smooth it from the centre to the edges to smooth out any air bubbles and wrinkles.

“Paste the wall” wallpaper is easy to reposition: If the strip is not positioned as you want it, slowly take it off and reposition it.

6. Trim excess

Trim any excess paper on the top and bottom with a knife and a ruler. To make the job easier, use a wallpaper cutting guide

You can then flatten out the seams with a seam roller and then repeat for the rest of the wall, making sure the seams line up each time.

Wallpapering around difficult areas

Unless you’re wallpapering a completely flat feature wall, you’ll probably need to wallpaper around some obstacles. Here we outline how you can wallpaper around:

Wallpapering around sockets & switches

To wallpaper around any switches or sockets, cover these with the wallpaper strip and use the snap off knife to cut around them. For a neater finish, you may want to unscrew the socket from the wall. If you do this, always turn off the power first.

Wallpapering around doors & windows

To wallpaper around doors and windows, cover the openings with the wallpaper strip, mark the angle with your finger and use the scissors to cut the excess paper. Be mindful of leaving some extra centimetres on the window or door case. Cut the wallpaper at a 45 ° angle at the mark left by your finger.

Smooth it out with the wallpaper smoother and cut the excess paper with the snap off knife.

Illustration showing that wallpaper should be installed behind a radiator, then cut to line up with the top of the radiator fixings.Illustration showing that wallpaper should be installed behind a radiator, then cut to line up with the top of the radiator fixings.Illustration showing that wallpaper should be installed behind a radiator, then cut to line up with the top of the radiator fixings.Illustration showing that wallpaper should be installed behind a radiator, then cut to line up with the top of the radiator fixings.

Wallpapering around radiators

Ideally, you’d remove the radiators before wallpapering, but if this isn’t an option, you can still wallpaper behind them. Measure the dimension from the ceiling or window edge to the radiator fixings, adding 2 to 3 cm for the cuts around window casings/ceiling. If the wallpaper has patterns, add the length needed to align them to the adjacent strip.

Using a pair of scissors or a ruler and a snap off knife, cut the necessary wallpaper length and hang it on the wall. Smooth it out around the fixings of the radiator.

Cutting a piece of wallpaper with scissors to fit underneath a pipe that runs along the wall.Cutting a piece of wallpaper with scissors to fit underneath a pipe that runs along the wall.Cutting a piece of wallpaper with scissors to fit underneath a pipe that runs along the wall.Cutting a piece of wallpaper with scissors to fit underneath a pipe that runs along the wall.

Wallpapering around pipes

To wallpaper around pipes, apply paste to the wall, then measure and cut the piece of wallpaper you will need.

Place the wallpaper behind the pipe, and smooth it out.

Wallpapering a feature wall

If you want to create a feature wall and choose to wallpaper only one wall or corner, align the last strip you will hang next to the one already on the wall, smooth it out and gently follow the corner line to cut the excess paper.

Choosing wallpaper

Before you choose your wallpaper, there are a few things you’ll need to consider.

Wallpaper calculator

Our Wallpaper Calculator helps to estimate the amount of wallpaper you’ll need for your project. 

Are all the rolls of wallpaper the same batch number?

Make sure all the rolls have the same batch number printed on the label, as the colours and in some instances, the finish, can vary between batches.

Wallpaper ideas

Wallpaper can completely transform the look and feel of any room. However, with such a huge range of different styles, colours and patterns available, it can sometimes be difficult to know where to start.

If you’re not sure which wallpaper is right for your home, take a look at our wallpaper ideas and bedroom wallpaper ideas guides.