Using wallpaper in a bathroom is a subject I’ve touched on before 3 years ago when I first wallpapered my own bathroom. Since that time, I have had a number of questions asked about the wallpaper in here (mainly, how it is holding up and if I used a special type of wallpaper in the first place), so I’ve decided to re-visit this topic.

The answer to the question ‘can a bathroom be wallpapered?’ is YES! There are special splash-proof wallpapers on the market, but the design choice is limited. The good news is that you can use any general wallpaper in a bathroom, but there are a few rules to avoid water and moisture ruining your paper.

Humidity

If your bathroom has a window and a decent extractor fan and steam doesn’t drip and run down the walls when you have a bath or a shower, then your bathroom will be able to be wallpapered. If your bathroom is a small, very steamy affair that causes condensation then I would advise against it. However, there are alternatives available to wallpaper that will enable you to add pattern in your bathroom via other means.

Showerwall UK sells large acrylic or MDF-coated panels that can be glued onto the wall and used within your shower or behind a bath or sink. I collaborated with them last year on my small, steamy en-suite, having the whole room decked out in blush-pink scallop shapes.

Alternatively, Otto Tiles sell printed, handmade tiles that feature the intricate patterns found on wallpaper. They also offer the service of having a bespoke pattern glazed onto a ceramic tile, so if you are looking for a specific design click here to visit their website.

As another option, you could reduce the humidity in your bathroom by installing a dehumidifier in your home. An AC could also prevent moisture from collecting on your walls. If you want to go this route, make sure to call a local HVAC company like Conway AC Services to complete the task.

Above: Birds Printed Tile by Otto Tiles

Location

The location of where your wallpaper will be positioned in your bathroom is really important. Avoid placing it in areas that might come into contact with water on a daily basis. Wallpaper placed behind a sink or really near a bath or shower is not a good idea as it will not be able to take this much of a soaking. Instead, only place wallpaper in areas that will not come into contact with constant water splashes and use an alternative for wet areas of the room. A great way to use wallpaper in a bathroom is to have it on the top half of the wall only - with a half-tiled or half-panelled wall at the base that can take the continuous hit of water.

Above: before & after! How my bathroom looked 3 years ago before I wallpapered the top and painted the tongue and groove around the bath to match in a durable eggshell paint.

Decorators Varnish

I first discovered the product ‘Decorators Varnish’ by Polyvine 9 years ago when I wanted to put an expensive roll of Nina Campbell wallpaper up in the kitchen of our previous home. An old London townhouse, the kitchen was well-ventilated with tall ceilings, but I was wary of the odd splash of pasta sauce ruining my gorgeous new wallpaper. After much research, I found out that Decorators Varnish can be applied directly over the top of the wallpaper to protect it from stains, scuffing and colour-fading. A clear, acrylic varnish that uses nano-technology - you simply roll it on top of your wallpaper with a gloss roller. The varnish comes in dead-flat, gloss and satin finishes, but I’ve always used it in dead-flat as I never wanted to alter the look of how the wallpaper was supposed to be seen.

This protective varnish worked a treat in our previous kitchen (we rent this home now and the wallpaper is still up 9 years later with not a mark on it!) I knew that if I ever used wallpaper in an area where there was a high risk of damage I would use it again in a heartbeat, so once I put my Cole & Son ‘Hummingbirds’ wallpaper up in my current bathroom, I applied two coats of Decorators Varnish on top.

I’m happy to report that even though the wallpaper gets more of a beating than it should with a young child who loves to splash about, it has stood the test of time in my bathroom.

Wallpaper can really inject a shot of personality into a room that can otherwise be a bland, sanitary area of your home. It is a really great tool if you have inherited a basic, white bathroom that is in good condition, but you do not want to replace the fixtures and fittings.

Once you have chosen a wallpaper for your bathroom, pick out an accent colour from the paper and paint any woodwork in the room a complementary shade. By matching your paint colour to your paper, you’ll really make the room a well thought-out, cohesive space.