Book Pages. A little sturdier than newspaper, this is a wonderful and whimsical look for a small room. Use pages from a favorite picture book in a kid's room, a book of romantic poetry (try French!) in a bedroom. For a similar aesthetic, try cards from card catalogs!
Newspaper: Although this wallpaper in Jason Wu's home in this month's Elle Decor is only inspired by pages from a newspaper, why not use the real thing? To give it extra durability and to keep it from yellowing, paint a layer of polyurethane over it. The polyurethane will also make it easy to wipe down. No wonder it's a popular look in French cafes. Use a foreign newspaper (we're partial to Chinese and Japanese papers) for a touch of exoticism. Takeout menus, used sideways, are another option.
Post Its: I still love this look. Not only is it colorful, it's also textural. Keep an extra pad of notes around to replace those that fall or, more likely, get used up!
Aluminum Foil: A bold look for a hallway or to create a focal point in a living room. Whether you use the dull side or the shiny side, a bone folder helps to smooth it out. A blow dryer helps it mold around curves.
Paper Bags: The familiar brown ones create a leather-like look that's an interesting background for a rustic, industrial or mid century modern look. Tear bags into generous uniform pieces (save any pieces with straight ends to apply along the edges of your wall). Apply to the walls with wallpaper paste, overlapping the edges. Leave as is, wash with a glaze or watered down paint (try a metallic) or coat with sealer. For detailed instructions, see Wuvie | How To Brown Bag Your Walls and More.
Images: Shanna Murphy; Elle Decor; Post It Decor at Bri & Chad's; Design Crisis via House Beautiful; How To Make Paper Bag Flooring
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Not sure tin foil is such a good idea... it would be a nightmare to remove. A few years ago there was a "good questions" post about this, a reader who wanted to remove tin foil cut outs the previous owners had stuck on the bathroom wall.
here's the post :
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/good-questions/good-questions-how-to-remove-aluminum-off-the-wall-058677
I'd like to add a 6th item - old maps! They can be used in so many creative decor ways - wallpaper among them.
papercuthearts.wordpress.com
I don't know about the post-its or the foil, but another thing I like is garment pattern tissue.
Whatever you do, prepare your walls properly. I had a heck of a time removing "Old Sears Catalog" newsprint from a bathroom once. I think they just glued it directly to the drywall.
Lots of retailers have been showing Blueprints applied as wallpaper in their catalog photoshoots recently....
I used nautical charts in a tiny powder room. Covered the sloping ceiling under the staircase, walls, everything. Charts are cheap now because most people are using GPS. Try marine supply stores that have used stuff; buy out-of-date charts; I even found some charts from the Persian Gulf!
We use large black and white posters of old movie stars and connect them edge to edge.
I read that Amy Sedaris made wallpaper out of ginger candy wrappers with packing tape over it - I'm going to steal the hell out of that idea one of these days.
I'm stealing the aluminum foil idea to cover my ugly end table
Sheet music!! Darn hard to come by sometimes. I've seen a few folk looking for it on my local freecycle