When Katie fell in love with a woodsy wallpaper from Anthropologie that was a little beyond her means, she decided to take matters into her own hands. With the help of her talented boyfriend, and armed with a few magic markers, Katie created a DIY version of the wallpaper for a fraction of the price.
When Katie saw the Woods Wallpaper at Anthropolgie she was immediately smitten. Katie just knew that the wallpaper would be perfect for the little hallway in the house she shares with her boyfriend, Matt. The only problem? At $198 per roll, the wallpaper was way beyond the couple's budget. Leave it to these two creative types to find a way create a DIY alternative!
To get the same look as the expensive wallpaper, Katie and Matt needed only a pencil, some magic markers, and a lot of patience. Matt, a talented tattoo artist, sketched the outline of the trees directly onto the wall using a pencil. Katie then darkened in the trees with magic markers. At first, she was worried that making the jagged lines of the trees would be a long, arduous process. However, since the walls are slightly textured, the jagged lines kind of created themselves as Katie dragged the marker tip across them.
The trees have a fantastic impact in this little hallway. The vertical lines make the small space feel bigger than it really is. And, because Katie and Matt DIYed the project, they were able to add their own little touches, like their initials "carved" into on of the trees.
You can see some of the behind the scenes of this project, well as follow her other projects, at Katie's blog: Katie's Pencil Box.
Images: Jason Loper
100 DIY Ideas for the 3-Day Weekend
Danielle's Charming, Classic Walk-Up
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
White Enamel Flatwa...
Party Recipe: Creamy Crawfish Dip
Perfect Summer Cocktail Recipe: Honey Bourbon Lemonade
From one textured-wall person to another... thank you.
It's beautiful!
Wow! Definitely worth the effort- beautiful.
do the magic markers stink up the house? I would think the smell would linger a little too much.
That is crazy impressive. I have a feeling this should have a *do not try this at home* warning attached. I think they might be slightly more talented than your average Joe.
wow- these look awesome! great job!
You could also use the birch panels from Ikea.
@mintlovesocialclub -- this is about 10,000 times cooler than those Ikea panels. In fact, it's even cooler than the original Cole & Sons wallpaper. Well done.
I love it! :)
Probably one of the coolest DIY's I've ever seen!
Beautiful!
Gorgeous. Totally not fair!!!
Wow. Absolutely gorgeous. Don't mean to be a buzzkill or anything, but aren't you worried about the markers bleeding through when it comes time to paint? My mom let my brother draw on the walls in our old house, knowing that they'd get redone shortly, and the marker promptly made an appearance through two layers of primer and one of wallpaper.
Totally agree with girlandadog. These folks are ridiculously talented. Great job, and as cool looking or more than the Cole & Son original.
Amazing!
I love this! Crafty AND gorgeous.
You guys are freaking geniuses! I have been drooling over the wallpaper myself I would not spend the money because as I know myself, a year later I will want to change the look because I will be drooling over something entirely different.
So nicely done, and WAY BETTER than the actual wallpaper!
All my thumbs up to you!
Wow, that is amazing. I would not have the patience for that.
There is nothing a bit of creativity and talent can't solve. This is super cool.
Using marker on the walls is a way underappreciated route to coolness.
FWIW to the naysayers, a bit of Kilz primer and that wall is good as new.
Oh, how funny this would look if I had tried it! It would certainly be one of a kind!
Very envious--beautiful!
I used to draw all over my bedroom walls as a kid. Sharpie will try to bleed through anything light colored, but a coat of Kilz (or some other thick coverage primer) takes care of that problem lickety split.
Beautiful, beautiful work. :)
GOOD ON YOU! Im so happy (and oddly proud) to see some initiative and an awesome reward. Congrats and don't forget its spring, time to add some leaves to those trees!!!! :)
What a good boyfriend! I like your work wayyyy better than the wallpaper!
This is gorgeous. Also, second or thirding Kilz or Zinsser primer can handle any kind of permanent marker.
Really amazing job guys, a real work of art!
This is completely awesome. Job well done.
ok, maybe I missed it, but how long did this take?
Fantastic!!
And it looks better than the original wallpaper because it is so much more personal!
I love it, but wow that looks time consuming.
I'm glad they didn't listen when their parents said "don't write on the walls". Beautiful!
The walls definitely look fab, but I am wild about those green chairs!
Bravo! This looks amazing. I thought this was the actual anthropologie paper when I saw it. The texture of the wall translates well with the birch design. There are also cheaper birch decals on Etsy.
extremely well done.
Aw, and they carved their names in one tree! Very nice.
Oooo. So daring. And so nice.
WOW. Can I hire him?
@girlandadog Cheat with a projector.
SO cool, the way the texture on the wall contributed to the design!
My experience with Kilz primer is that it does NOT cover stuff like this well at all... for anyone who's concerned, you might want to test it FIRST.
That's not meant to detract from this incredible art; it's just because I'm mad at Kilz.
damn. that is amazing!
Wow, this is amazing- it blows the wallpaper out of the water! I can't imagine the average joe/jane could pull this off-- if I tried this people would wonder who let a monkey play with markers!
Such patience!! :) Well done and love your intials in the tree ! ;) Lots of love in that room!
I actually do not like that wallpaper but this is really beautiful and impressive much better then wallpaper. It really works with the arch way too. You have a talented boyfriend.
Textured wall makeover for the win.
Fantastic, and it works so well with the nasty texture.
*looks at rented textured walls and sighs*
Way to go! You've recreated the look for less - and a handmade mural adds more value than any wallpaper.
Aww the initials top the cake! I always love to see artistic talent. My brother is also an artist, so this really appeals to me. Lovely!
really awesome!
what's with the dumb comments... "won't the marker smell linger and stink up the house?" and "you'll never be able to paint over it" ...can't people just say "nice job" and move on? it's not your house people! get over it!
I think if you get a stain-blocking primer and not just a regular primer, it should work over this.
Of course why would you ever want to paint over this? I can't imagine. So pretty.
I recently made the mistake of using a sharpie instead of a pencil to mark my walls and when it came time to paint over the marks, I tried three different primers I had on hand. I can confirm that neither Kilz nor Gripper cover permanent marker. The marks just seep right through the primer once it dries. The winner? Zinsser primer. Covered the marker in one coat. Now we can all confidently draw trees on our walls without fear. :-)