Unusual, Off-the-Wall Wallpaper

Filed under: Your Home, Fun Stuff, Design, etc, News & Trends

If these walls could talk they'd definitely have something to say. Here, 7 things you probably never thought you could use to cover your walls.

The history of wallcoverings is vast, and while we've personally seen flowers and fabric and even chewing gum (yuck!) covering walls around the world, there are tons of other materials that make for some pretty unusual wallpapers. Here are some that surprised us.

Imagine your favorite winter sweater -- toasty and tactile and neutral enough to match everything you own. That's clearly what the designers at French company Koziel had in mind when they created this Knitting wallcovering. But don't let those soft, knit ribs fool you; they aren't really made of yarn. Koziel specializes in trompe-l'oeil wallpapers (including these fun bookcase and toilet paper designs) that use photos to simulate the real thing.



Wallpaper isn't resigned to the kind you buy in rolls, as we found in these two rooms. Elle Decor featured artist John Derian's Manhattan entryway, which used pages from vintage books to cover his walls, while designers at Post Typography fashioned a wallcovering out of one ubiquitous office supply -- Post-it notes.


If you can get past the adorable, cardboard panda head in the front of Smithfield menswear shop in Manchester, England, you'll find a pretty inspiring study in green design. Created by artist/designer Peter Masters, the store's interior is constructed from 100 percent recycled materials, including a wall covered in once-used mailing tubes. (Check out the matching light fixtures, too.)

If you've lived through any of the 70s or 80s, you know that wood wallcovering is nothing new. But this installation isn't quite the same old wood panelling your parents used to decorate their basement back in the day. "Pixels of Driftwood in Relief" is made of reclaimed pieces that have been cut down and cored, and then glued onto particle board tiles. The designers, Bleu Nature, will not only install the handmade wallcovering for you, but they can waterproof and fireproof it too.


Not all that glistens is gold. This feature wall at fashion designer Erica Tanov's California shop, left, is actually made of brass -- 4,000 individual pieces to be exact.

On the right, designers Matthew White and Frank Webb added sparkle to a bedsit at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House in New York with this geometric paneling made of tin can lids.

Looking for a new use for that old 5,000-piece jigsaw puzzle you never could finish? This installation from an exhibit called "Imaginative Qualities of Actual Things" at the Price Tower Arts Center in Bartlesville, Oklahoma may be the inspired moment you've been waiting for. The exhibit featured this wallcovering as part of an artistic discussion on "object reassignment" or, as they put it, "presenting creative repurposed or 'upcycled' objects that both stretch the imagination and suggest how to reduce the impact on the environment." What a cute project for a kid's room!

Want more fun decor ideas? Check out these ShelterPop stories:
Striped Tablecloths: Decorate Like the Fockers
Wallpaper Trends 2011: New, Fresh and Fun Designs

Thinking of putting up wallpaper at home? This video shows you how:

 

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