I moved into my new desk space in my home office/library last night, and it feels like a whole new world.  Throughout this remodel process, I was committed to the idea that I was not going to use anything industrial to hold my office supplies.  That aisle at Staples filled with black plastic letter holders and ugly paperclip dispensers makes me shudder. 

Months ago, I began collecting pretty little containers to hold my supplies because I wanted to surround myself with things that inspire me.  I pulled from thrift stores, antique stores, and discount stores to achieve a high end elegant look, without the cost. 

Here’s a peek at some of the non industrial containers at CG Central.

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I do not like plain mouse pads.  They bother me.  There are plenty of pretty pads available out there for purchase, but I wanted to recycle my old one with the use of some fabric.  This is such a simple project !

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Sometimes, you get really lucky being in the right place at just the right time.  My local Villeroy & Boch outlet was closing its doors last month, and they were selling all of their display cabinets for $20 dollars each.  My jaw dropped.  I was giddy with excitement!  At those prices, I could redo my entire home office/library for a fraction of the cost of new bookcases. 

Here they are in the store the day I found them.  Oh joy, what luck!

I bought two of the taller shelves you see in the middle for the desk and window side of the library, and two of the twin towers for the sofa side of the room.  I brought them home with the help of a friend with a truck, and they’ve been sitting in my garage ever since. 

They were a buttery yellow shade with country blue trim, and the paint was a little nicked up from traveling across town.  I really wanted a bright cream color to showcase my books and collectibles. 

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Okay, so I finally sat down to answer some of your questions from this recent post.  Quite frankly, I’d rather talk about DIY or design instead of myself, so I’m going to answer a few questions now and perhaps some more later.   Because I’d rather focus on some of my upcoming projects.  So here goes:

Q from Jen and Maman Tattoo, Your girl’s room is so beautiful. What does your little boy’s room look like? 

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I’ve been wanting pearlized grasscloth wallpaper since I fell in love with the line of York wallcoverings designed by Candice Olson. Wanting to remodel my own home office/library space in shades of gray, spa blue, cream, and chocolate, I sought out the perfect luminescent shade of grasscloth from a book of exotic wallcoverings I found at Lowes.  This particular grasscloth wallpaper is by Patton Wallcoverings, from their ‘Decorator Grasscloth’ collection.

This book is filled with so many fabulous colors from celedon to gray to cream and mocha brown.   My gray/blue pattern number is 488-309.

Here’s the step-by-step I followed for installing grasscloth wallpaper all by myself!

Supplies:

1. Grasscloth wallpaper, enough to cover the desired walls.
2. Wallpaper paste
3. Smoothing tool
4. Level
5. Measuring tape
6. Staple gun
7. Sharp scissors
8. Paint roller and tray
9. Medium sized paintbrush
10. Extreme tenacity!

Step One:  I measured the height of my wall and cut my first piece of grasscloth, allowing an extra inch on the top and bottom for later trimming.  With a level, I realized a certain truth – no wall is perfectly straight.  I lined up the first piece of paper in the corner, and used a level to make sure it hung straight.  With a staple gun, I secured the top to the wall, then trimmed my corner where the paper was uneven.  The only way for me to hang this very heavy, very awkward paper by myself was by use of a staple gun.  Otherwise, I would have needed a second pair of hands.  I found that the texture of the grasscloth allowed me to cheat by securing my grasscloth with small staples.  I later removed them without any holes or damage.

Step Two:  After stapling on the top, I climbed under my paper and up my ladder, and added paste with my roller to the wall.  I did NOT put the paste on the back of the paper first.  I applied it directly to the wall.  This way, I avoided the need for a big work surface, and kept my paste exactly where I wanted it.

Tip:  Don’t skimp on paste, especially with grasscloth.  The heavy paper needs a sloppy amount of paste – I was very generous in my application.

Step Three:  I used my smoothing tool to get rid of bubbles, and they creep up everywhere.  I had to be extremely patient in pushing them out, and often I had to pull back the paper entirely, and resmooth it.  This is where #10 on my supply list comes in handy.

Step Four – Aligning seams:  This was by far the trickiest part.  With the second piece of grasscloth, I followed steps 1 and 2, but then had to align my second piece perfectly next to the first piece.  Again, I used the staple gun, this time on the vertical, to secure the pieces together every 8 to 10 inches.  Repeat step three and smooth out all bubbles with smoothing tool.

Tip:  Apply extra paste underneath the seam with a paintbrush before you align your neighboring strip.  Be careful not to get any paste on your grasscloth.

Step Five:  Carefully trim around your electrical and light switches.  Be sure to remove your switch plate covers before you wallpaper!

Tip:  Do all of your trimming, both horizontal and vertical, with very sharp scissors.  Do not use a razor blade – it will tear the grasscloth and give you a jagged edge.

Step Six:  Trim the top and bottom of your strip of grasscloth once your paste has set.

I’ve never hung wallpaper with paste before, so this project was very time consuming and very challenging for me.  It took me five hours the first day, and another five hours today.  And it’s going to take me awhile to recover before I consider doing any more grasscloth anytime soon.  Besides, three walls in a small office is plenty grasscloth for me!

But I am truly loving the subtle texture grasscloth wallpaper adds to a space:

One drawback:  the seams are more visible than I anticipated (see below).  That’s just the nature of grasscloth.  But with a furnished room it’s less noticeable. Have you all ever wanted to install grasscloth in your home or office?

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