Wallpaper Storage?

[Debra from Olde Cape Cod]

I have accumulated quite a bit of dollhouse wallpaper over the years and wonder how all of you store it. I have it standing up in a tall shallow box, but the top edges faded and got crinkled. Scrapbook paper fits nicely in drawers made for it, but the dollhouse wallpaper is too long for those. Plus, wallpaper came with an Alison Jr. and it is 24" wide! Need some ideas.

[Caseymini]

Debra, I have all of my wallpaper laying flat on a shelf. The shelf was originally made for storing shoes. I got it at Kmart years ago, as a part of one of their cheapo closet systems. It is about 2 1/2' long and each shelf is about 9" high. I have cardboard dividers between the papers meant for different rooms. It works for me.

The one thing that you should never do is roll it. If you do, it has a memory and is difficult to flatten when you want to use it. When I did the kitchen in Daisy's cottage, I used some that I bought in rolls, many years ago. I finally took a spray bottle of water and an iron to it to get it flat. Now I see why they stopped selling it that way!

[Creamcheese]

I store my wallpaper in large ziplock plastic bags which then lay flat. I got mine from Itsy Bitsy Minis when I ordered some of their wallpaper and the wallpaper sheets fit perfectly. You could also use some large clear plastic bags and then store them flat and in a drawer or closet to protect your papers from UV. I like the idea of storage in clear bags because then the wallpaper is easy to see and accessible. Hope this helps!

[Dalesq]

I store it flat in a drawer in a roll around cart that is about 30 inches wide.

Like Casey said, don't store it in rolls, you'll regret it. I used to store it that way and just recently got it all out to check what I had and I had to flatten everything first. PIA. It's all flat now and I'm keeping it that way.

[havanaholly]

I have shoeboxes full of borders and other pieces that came rolled, so they stay stored that way, but all the other paper is flat on a shelf.

[More Minis Dollhouses]

I also store wallpaper flat on a shelf but I have stored it in the long and wide drawers of my dresser.

[moonberry]

I bought three Alex units from Ikea years ago. They take quite large sheets of paper and are shallow enough so that you don't have to move heavy piles of papers every time you are looking for one particular sheet. Perhaps you could find one on eBay or Craigslist.

http://www.ikea.com/ae/en/catalog/products/40196241/

If you don't want a stand-alone unit, try a desk-top unit. I have a lot of A4 and A3 size units from the Buddy system that I bought in South Africa, but there are many different kinds.

http://www.officefurn.co.za/images/Product_pictures/Accessories/A4_and_A3_drawer_details_jpg.jpg

The bigger one on the left is A3 (which is roughly 24 inches by 10 inches). I have two of those full of scrapbook paper, and 4 of the smaller towers, also full of acid-free cardstock in A4 sizes. I bought the entire colour range from Canford (100 sheets in a pack) when I taught scrapbook classes from home and I needed somewhere to organize everything.

The deeper drawers are great for storing rubber stamps (I have 4 of those just full of stamps too).

[rodentraiser]

I went to Walmart and got one of those plastic boxes with the latching lids. They're maybe just a little short for some wallpapers, but most of mine fit in there just fine. I also have a carpet I got online from someone a couple years ago. I wish I remembered who it was, because this little carpet has a neat little pattern through it and it's about half as thin as the regular dollhouse carpets. Anyway, I store the carpet in there as well.

[Debra from Olde Cape Cod]

Thank-you all so much. I was wondering about just rolling it all up--see that was a bad idea! Will check out some of those container and drawer units and see what will fit in the craft room. Organizing again--Mom, her boyfriend, Brother and Sister-in-Law are coming to visit on Saturday!

[chapchap73]

I use mostly scrapbook paper for wallpaper so scrapbook storage bins are where most of mine is. When you go to the smaller scales, the paper gets smaller too so the half and quarter paper is stored on the top. I have some "real" paper that is too long so I just saved the plastic bags it came in and laid it flat in the bottom of a long ottoman I have. After reading this thread I realize I have a few pieces rolled up somewhere, so I have to find them and get them flat.