How to Paint Over Wallpaper

You can see all those lovely ducks below. Not to mention the border at the top. I know this was in style at one time, but it just wasn't working for my sister.

Here's what I learned and how to paint over wallpaper:

• You need a good quality primer. This wouldn't have been possible without it. I needed to make sure those ducks were hidden completely.
• Using a quality brush and rollers, paint two coats of primer on the walls. Use the brush to cut in around doorways/windows and trim and then the roller for the big areas.
• I used oil based primer so if you use this, make sure to use in a ventilated area. This stuff smells!
• Then I painted two coats of paint on the walls, letting the first coat dry completely first. I did this over the course of several days.
• Here's the first coat of primer below:

I didn't worry too much about the border. It's very hard to tell now that it's done. You can see it and the seams if you inspect the walls carefully, but it's not a deal breaker and it's certainly easier than removing the paper first.

Wait a few days before hanging anything on the walls or pushing furniture up against it so you don't mess up your paint.

This is a project that turned out better than I expected. You can see the full details over on the blog - here!

And here's what we ended up with!