FABRIC AS WALLPAPER
I hope you all had fun watching the eclipse yesterday!! It was a little cloudy here, but we were still able to see it and celebrate the event with friends (& cocktails!).
With the loft bed built in C’s room we painted over the black walls (insert tear here) and added some panel moulding. I wanted to share that you ever need to paint over a dark color with a light one, I highly recommend Kilz High Hide!! It was like magic. One coat of primer and two coats of paint. And I really could have gotten away with one coat of each!
Another trick I wanted to share was how I attached fabric as wallpaper to the loft bed. Initially, I was going to wrap a piece of board with the fabric but I later decided to try wallpapering the fabric instead. This application has been around for years, but is something I haven’t tried before.
I tried two different methods //
1 // DIY fabric starch with Corn Starch and water. Fail. I was impressed at first. It looked great. However, it bubbled as it dried. Like big bubbles. I panicked for a minute that I had ruined the fabric, but as it was just corn starch and water I simply rinsed the fabric out. And having previous experience with Designers Guild fabrics, I knew it would wash well.
2 // Real liquid fabric starch (easily found at your local market and comes in a bottle similar to bleach). I poured the liquid starch into a paint tray and painted the starch over the fabric onto the wood. The key to this technique is making sure the fabric is saturated. Immediately I could tell that this was going to be successful. The fabric stuck almost immediately and dried without a single bubble! I used a straight edge and a sharp blade to cut off the excess fabric.
The great thing about this technique is that it worked perfectly for my needs, but would it also works on walls too. So if you are wanting the look of wallpaper without the commitment I would highly recommend this technique. Once you are tired of the look, you simply wet the fabric again and it peels off.
So let us look at the room checklist…
Paint Room | Check
Add Moulding | Check
Build Bed | Check
Create Closet | Almost there
Create Desk | So close
Another week and I think I will be done!
xo – Kristin
I love this bed – that fabric is a serious head turner! I’m making a mental note of real liquid fabric starch. I’d love to use up some of my fabric collection/obsession!
I’ve done the backs of bookshelves with fabric starch and fabric for years, and it works like a charm. I had it in my pantry in our last home for five years and it stayed up the whole time with things banging it daily. It was still up when we sold the house! Such a fun update that is easy to change out! Love it on the bed!
I’ve used liquid starch before on an art piece where I needed to remove the fabric again at some point. It works great. And the fabric you chose looks so so good on the bed. Love it
Using plain Elmer’s white glue thinned with an equal amount of water works beautifully when applying the fabric. Another coat of the same on top gives the fabric the sheen of chintz and helps keep it clean. I’ve used this technique on walls and bookcases too. I may even give my walk-in closet some a new look in the same manner.