DIY Fabric "Wallpaper"

Jenna Allen
by Jenna Allen
6 Materials
$100
24 Hours
Medium
Love the look of wallpaper but the price tag can be hard to swallow. Come see how we took this Ikea fabric and turned it into "wallpaper." Such an easy project and it made such a great statement wall!
Measure the area you want to cover and add 6 or so inches to each side to allow for shrinkage. Add more if you plan on pre-washing your fabric. I didn’t pre-wash because i’m a lazy DIY’er.


Steam or iron your fabric to get all the wrinkles out. I also didn’t do this at first and ended up having to steam part of it while the other part was stuck on the wall. FUN times haha!
I started by using thumbtacks and tape to secure my fabric to the top of the wall


Starting at the top corner I rolled some liquid starch on the wall then smoothed my fabric on top of it. Work in small areas because the starch dries fast!


Then roll the liquid starch on top of the fabric. You want to make sure it is completely saturated.
Continue doing this along the whole wall working in 1-2 foot increments. Be careful not to pull the fabric too taught. I used a small sponge brush along the edges to make sure they were very saturated and I used pins every foot or so to really secure it while it dried.


Allow to dry completely. At this point I taped all the excess back to the wall. It will look splotchy until it dries. 


Use an x-acto knife to trim off the excess
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Jenna Allen
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 35 questions
  • Sue Sue on Aug 20, 2019

    Question, how do you remove from wall?

  • Laura C. Fergie Laura C. Fergie on Aug 20, 2019

    What about textured walls? How would it work for them?

  • Kath NY Kath NY on Sep 09, 2019

    Can you do this on a bathroom wall?

Comments
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3 of 82 comments
  • Love the print. Did you know this was popular to do in the 70's for renters?

  • Cathy Cathy on Feb 22, 2023

    I did this on some ugly closet doors in my kids rooms many moons ago. But I actually soaked the fabric in the liquid starch. I like your way better!

    • Cathy Cathy on Feb 20, 2024

      Funny. I did too - and like her idea better!

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