Wallpaper or Stencil? A Tale of an Unfinished Project and New Inspiration!

I had been dreaming of wallpaper for a while, so when we moved into our house two years ago I seriously started looking at my options.  There were plenty. If you have opened a design magazine or blog recently, then you know how awesome the designs are these days.  One of my favorites was this trellis design.  There are "discount" versions which seem like a steal compared to the original Kelly Wearstler wallpaper that retails for $187 (for a single roll?!) 

 

But just look at it in a small bathroom! LOVE! 

Still, when I priced out my small powder room with the more "inexpensive" papers, it still rang in around $300, which I couldn't justify back then knowing that I had a whole "builder beige" house to decorate from scratch.

Enter the DIY stencil!

My friend Amanda had just bought a stencil at Hobby Lobby for $16 and said that I was welcome to borrow it. 

I loved the design and thought it would be a great alternative to wallpaper.  So within a couple days, we got started. 

First, I painted the whole bathroom "lamb" by Martha Stewart.  I had been holding her "Plumage" swatch for a while, knowing I wanted to use it somewhere.  It is a blend of navy and teal I would say, and very very rich! 

Im not going to sugar coat this.....it was a HUGE pain in the a$$.  

I lost my steam many times, and I almost talked myself into stenciling just a feature wall.  There are six corners in my little bathroom and it was so frustrating to get the stencil in them without slanting.  I had to paint over the blue a couple times with the white and start over. UGH!

The thing that takes so long when you get started is that you have to wait for the square you just painted to dry before starting another.  I sped it up with a hair dryer...worked like a charm.

After each square is painted you line up the little triangle markers in the corners to make sure you are going straight.

This is how far I got on day one after several hours.  Yes, that is all. 

This post isn't going to end how you thought. There will not be a finished room to share. 

I worked on it a couple other times and just couldn't get a lot done at once.  Although I loved the way the stencil looked, I got annoyed with the whole project and dreaded the thought of pulling everything out and working on it again.

So I didn't.  I was able to convince myself that every wall doesn't need to be stenciled.

 Fast forward TWO YEARS and the stupid walls are still not finished.  Im used to it, but not satisfied. I have said many many many times that I would finish it.  Ok Cindy, just finish the one wall opposite the toilet where the mirror hangs.  At least then I would look intentional that I left the two entrance walls white. But no!

The reason I am finally sharing this project (and old-never finished post) with you is because I am going to change it.  To wallpaper.  Yes, a full circle.  What seemed like a lot of money to spend on this small powder room two years ago, now seems like...A finished bathroom!!  So worth it.  Plus I am kinda over the trellis design.

My inspiration?  This wet bar redo by Ally.  Here is the before and after.

 

Crazy right?   It was nice before too, but this is now WOW! So bold!  And so doable in a small space. Check out more of her before and after pictures on her blog From the Right Bank.

Guys, this is vinyl wallpaper from Lowes. Isn't it awesome?!  And look at the color choices!

The price is right too.  Only $45 for a double roll. (Does that mean 2 rolls?  How many will I need for my bathroom? Mom? )
This is what the website says

Wallpaper Width (Inches)	20.5
Type of Roll	Double
Roll Size (Sq. Feet)	56.0

After seeing Ally's wetbar, I was reminded of all the cool "gem/mineral walls" I had seen/pinned on Pinterest. I am inspired all over again.

Modern Bathroom by Miami Interior Designers & Decorators DKOR Interiors Inc.- Interior Designers Miami, FL

Ok that one is a real agate slab and would be 5 million dollars (real figure!) but how about this one which is hand painted?




































Or this one (from LONNY) that is actually sheets of marbled paper. So beautiful!

{via LONNY}

This Malachite wall is crazy gorgeous.


Anyway, the bottom line is that I am never going to finish that stencil.  It's time for a new plan and there are so many good wallpaper options...Now to choose THE one!