Personalise your child’s room with wallpaper
3D wall paper will bring a whimsical feel to the room. These go for about Shs60,000 per square metre and can be found in supermarkets or bought online. PHOTO from DHgate.com
What you need to know:
- A child’s room should be able to induce restfulness but also have features that capture their attention in a provocative and creative way. You can decide to incorporate your child’s personality in their room. One of the best ways to do this is by using wallpaper
Joseph Kato, an interior designer with Kawa Interiors Limited, notes that using wallpaper has many benefits.
It gives you a chance to bring what the children like into their room in a creative and decorative way. For instance if its football, or certain cartoon characters, all you need is wallpaper with those features.
The child has more connection with their bedroom since the wallpaper is an extension of what they like.
Joan Neumbe says she has seen some people use wallpaper and it is a venture I would love to explore in my next home.
“I could not find the particular shade of purple paint my daughter wanted and that is how I ended up using purple wallpaper,” Hellen Namaganda a home owner and mother of four shares.
Bashir Masembe from Nomaro, a wallpaper shop at Equatorial Mall in Kampala says when buying wall paper, put into consideration the child’s age and sex.
“Boys usually like colours like blue and green while girls like brighter colours such as pink, red and yellow,” he says.
Put emphasis on cartoon characters and bright colours. Photo from www.designswan.com and www.homify.in
Masembe adds that if it’s a shared room, it is safer to use a neutral colour. He advises that if one intends to have the wallpaper up for long, then they must find a design that the child will not quickly outgrow.
“Patterns are better than characters in this aspect. They can’t be outgrown,” he notes.
But even with all its benefits, there are still some down sides to using wall paper to decorate your child’s room.
Expensive
Wallpaper can be expensive if you children with different interests, this might mean buying various wall paper to meet everyone’s tastes.
Time consuming
This is because one must invest in finding wall paper that matches with the rest of the house décor and depending on the wall type or weather, one may need to change the wall paper regularly.
In some cases, children may peel it off or write on it and as such, may need to be changed often.
As you establish your preferences, have a chat with your little one and ask them what they would like. This makes them feel part of the decorating process.
They will feel some sense of responsibility to keep the wall paper in good and clean condition. Before you step out to get wallpaper for your home, here is what you need to know;
Wall measurements
You must know the height of the wall on which you are going to put the wallpaper. Wallpaper should not be used on rough surfaces.
This is because it will peel off easily and not last long. Besides, a rough surface affects the finished look.
The wall needs to have undercoat so that the wallpaper can stick perfectly and last longer.
Cost
Masembe says both buying and installation of wallpaper for a basic child’s room could cost about Shs800,000.
How to clean wallpaper
For wallpaper that is not water resistant, washing or scrubbing is out of the question. Instead, dust with a microfiber cloth at least once every two months. Use a broom with a long handle to dust hard to reach areas.
However vinyl wallpaper can be washed.
