No wallpaper or solid wallpaper?

[kristinbot5000]

Hi all!

I'm hoping to start my house this weekend, tool shopping is tonight!

In the meantime, I'm doing some planning, and in general, I prefer solid color walls. I found a thread where someone had asked the question of whether or not anyone had only painted walls, and there were a few 'yes' answers, but I couldn't find any details. Specifically, I'm worrying about if I only paint the walls, will this sufficiently cover my tape wire? Will spackling help? I'm a stickler for detail, so I will want the walls to look as good as humanly possible!

One alternative that I've thought about is solid wallpaper. I've poked around at a few mini websites, and I don't get the sense that there's a lot of solid color wallpaper out there. (Granted, I haven't had a chance yet to go to Lowe's and see if there's any...)

Any suggestions? Thanks a ton in advance!!

Kristin

[Shakyshaky]

I don't think you'll find solid paper at Lowes. One thing you could do is paint poster board. That way you get the color you want and can remove it if you need.

[uppitycats]

You can find solid wallpaper. Go to the scrapbooking section of the craft store (I go to Hobby Lobby) and there'll be plain solid colored paper there. I bought packs of wallpaper from miniatures.com, too that have solid sheets in them. The scrapbook paper is cheaper, though ..and cheaper is always better! :whistle:

[KathieB]

I think the scrapbook paper is what you're looking for. It's a bit thicker than the dollhouse wallpaper and will cover the tapewire very well. If the wall has some complicated wiring (like joints) that may need attention down the road, you may be happier if you make a template of the wall from posterboard and wallpaper or paint it. Then use double-stick tape around the edges to attach it to the dollhouse wall.

Paint will not cover wiretape. The tape is thin, but not thin enough to be hidden by paint alone.

[madhatter]

Iv'e been using cardstock, if i print of any wallpaper i use cardstock. It covers many sins. LOL You can get lots of deals for packs too.

jenn

[Cuppa-Tea]

I use paint over tapewire and it is really barely noticeable. I put down several coats of primer to get a nice, even white and then several coats of the color I'm using to make that even too. With all that paint you really don't notice the tape. The thing that does show up, however, are the bumps where you put the brads in at tape joinings. I am using wainscoting around my rooms which covers that.

I like the idea of just papering with scrapbook paper (it comes in so many colors!), or with white paper or cardstock and painting over it. The only solid paper I've seen is the free stuff that came with one of my kits which is a really bright yellow.

[MiniMadWoman]

If you really want to paint and not mess with wallpaper, how about using round wire? You can hide it in the corners or under crown or base moulding. Just a thought!

[kristinbot5000]

Wow!!

Thanks for all of the help! I think that I will start shopping for scrapbooking sheets...something that I wouldn't thought of on my own.

As for round wire, I think that might be a bit too involved for my skill level - I leave all things electrical up to my husband, but he has his own projects... :whistle:

Hoping to start building on Sunday! I'll keep y'all posted with photos!

[evervescent]

I can only speak from my experience with painting. I put down several coats of primer and then several coats of paint and still didn't have the finish that I wanted. I eventually ended up sponge painting it to acheive a velvet wallpaper effect.

In retrospect, I wish I'd gone with wallpaper. :whistle:

[caitejay]

I've wallpapered my first wall today - with a solid color paper from an online dollhouse shop. I think it looks much nicer than painting could - I just don't have the patience to sand the walls that much and put on multiple messy coats. Plus it covers all the imperfections in the wood, which is a definite plus!