How to wallpaper around radiators and fireplaces
17th Apr 2016 Home & Garden
Wallpapering around fixtures like radiators and fireplaces can be fiddly, but our easy-to-follow guide shows you how to do it.
Radiators
- Tuck the paper in behind the radiator until you reach the supporting bracket. Hang the next piece over the radiator, brushing it flat as far down as possible.
- Use a pencil to mark the position of the wall bracket on the back of the paper and make a vertical cut in the paper from the bottom edge to the top of the bracket.
- Feed the paper down behind the radiator and smooth down with a radiator roller. Trim it at the skirting board.
- Alternatively, if the radiator overhangs the skirting board, save paper by trimming it off 150mm below the top of the radiator.
- Sponge any paste off the radiator before it dries.
Fireplaces
- Cut the lengths of paper which are to go round the fireplace roughly to size before applying paste—so that you don't have to cope with a lot of pasted paper when trimming. Leave a margin of at least 25mm for trimming in situ.
- Paste and hang the paper in the ordinary way as far as you can, then mark the outline of the fireplace on the paper using the back of a scissor blade.
- Peel a little of the paper away from the wall so you can work comfortably. Cut along the marked outline.
- Use small, sharp scissors if there are lots of small cuts; otherwise, use paperhanging scissors. If the trimming takes some time and the paste is beginning to dry, apply a little more paste to the wall, rather than to the paper.
- Smooth the paper in place all around the fireplace, using the points of bristles of a paperhanging brush to push the paper into awkward corners. Continue down to the skirting board.
Chimney breasts
If you've chosen a strongly patterned wallpaper, centre it on the chimney breast and hang subsequent lengths from here towards the room corners.
If there's no dominant pattern, hang the wallpaper round the chimney breast in the same way as for other corners.
Read more: How to move a radiator
Read more: Your complete decorating and wallpaper guide
