Creating changeable spaces with mural wallpaper

Interior design trends come and go, and so do people’s tastes and moods, which is why more homeowners are looking for versatile, flexible choices when it comes to designing the rooms of their house. Mural wallpaper is one way to personalise your space and easily change it again, and with images as varied as large-scale floral blooms to a favourite European holiday snap, the possibilities are endless.

Artisan offers designer floor, wall and window products and design solutions and thanks to the recent acquisition of the Paper Room brand, well-known for its beautiful range of wallpapers and fabrics, the company now holds the largest collection of designer wallpapers in the country, including murals.

Bronwyn McAllister, design consultant at Artisan, explains that murals, which feature only one image and not a repetition of patterns, have been around for many years but as more of these types of wallpapers arrive into New Zealand and clients see them online and in other homes, they’ve become increasingly popular.

“Clients love the ability to swap the design out after a few years without it becoming too expensive,” says Bronwyn. “Murals are very versatile as they can be used on any wall, and, importantly, they are scaled and custom fit, so there is very little wastage. There is a huge library of images available and, if you own the image, almost any photo can be easily made into a mural.”

Murals are popular not only in residential homes but in a variety of commercial spaces, also. Architects and designers are specifying them for sites that have no windows, such as warehouses, to create perspective and depth. Trompe l’oeil (trick of the eye) murals composed of windows, arches or exterior views can create the illusion of light and space and turn a standard space into something special and enjoyable to be in.

In order to make choosing murals and other types of wallpaper as easy and accessible as possible, Artisan has recently introduced the ability to shop for and buy all the wallpaper collections that they carry in-store from the Artisan website. As there are literally thousands of different wallpaper patterns, colours, textures and styles to choose from, being able to shop for wallpaper online is both quick and easy.

“When a client comes into the showroom to look through the wallpaper books, it can sometimes be overwhelming for them, as there are so many options to look through. With the online store, you can filter options by style, colour, brand and collection and save your favourites, which makes it easy to go back later and view what you’ve liked," says Bronwyn. "We always recommend ordering a sample, as colours are often very different to how they appear on screen, and it’s also very important to see and feel the texture of the paper."

The House of Hackney collection is just one beautiful new patterned wallpaper range that has just hit our shores and is now offered by Artisan. An eccentric luxury English range inspired by the natural world, it has patterns ranging from tropical palms and floral prints to quirky prints featuring monkeys or whales. Whether it be a bathroom, living room or hallway, there’s a design for any setting in the home.

The House of Hackney range is unique in that rather than coming in a standard 10-metre roll, it is available in sets of three or four 3-metre panels, which are printed and made to order. Bronwyn explains that while this makes the range slightly trickier to size than murals, Artisan will work closely with the client on their measurements to make sure that this range suits their specific wall size – unlike murals, these wallpapers will suit some spaces and not others.

In terms of wallpaper trends, botanicals and palms are very much in vogue right now. Other designs that are being specified for both residential and commercial spaces are hard surfaces, such as concrete, marble or timber panels, which allow the layering of art and mirrors on top of the wallpaper.

Bronwyn says that oversized floral blooms are very popular, also, but believes fashions will come and go. She says, “Some people don’t want wallpaper to be a trend, as they want it to be timeless and to last well. One of the great things about murals is that they are easy to strip off so can be changed or painted over in a few years.”

Check out Artisan on ArchiPro for more beautiful mural and patterned wallpaper collections, and to order samples or buy online.