Create an ideabook for your next remodeling project!
Browse more than 1,000,000 photos from top designers and save your favorites
Textured Walls: Inspiration Beyond Paint and Wallpaper
See what happens when you cover a wall with glass, metal, leather, upholstery, or a mass of living green
Houzz Contributor. Pangaea Interior Design is an award winning design firm specializing in residential projects including new construction, remodeling and kitchen & bath design. Pangaea's style is characterized by clean lines and uncluttered interiors that are warm, comfortable, inviting and reflect the personal taste and interests of her clients. Call to schedule your initial consultation and you'll be well on the way to the home of your dreams. 503-.816.4394
Houzz Contributor. Pangaea Interior Design is an award winning design firm... More »
So many new homes feel like plain white boxes when you first move in. Boring! Devoid of any real architectural interest, even after painting and furnishing, there can still be something missing. I love the idea of interesting textures on walls — not faux finishing that just looks like a texture, but the real deal you can feel with your hands. This is an inspirational collection of ways to add texture to your walls.
1. Glass installation. This multi-layered wall treatment was custom made from colored glass. This is really thinking outside the box when it comes to what to put on the wall. Absolutely beautiful.
If glass feels daunting to you, consider creating an installation from panels of clear acrylic. You can back-paint the acrylic to make it any color you want. It wouldn't look the same as this, but my mind just gets going with ideas when I see such creative wall treatments.
If glass feels daunting to you, consider creating an installation from panels of clear acrylic. You can back-paint the acrylic to make it any color you want. It wouldn't look the same as this, but my mind just gets going with ideas when I see such creative wall treatments.
Just couldn't resist showing another shot of this wall treatment in another room.
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| 2. Textured gypsum wall board. This is one of my very favorite products for creating a textured wall. Check out Seattle-based Modulararts for a wide array of textures. You can create a single accent wall, as they did in this room. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
Because the patterns line up, you can wrap a corner and just keep on going. These are paintable, but I think they look spectacular in white. In commercial spaces I have seen these with colored lights washing over the surface. See examples of that here.
3. Metal installation. This wall treatment is similar to the last one, in that the pieces of steel have been applied at different thicknesses on the wall. The metal gives a more industrial feel, but it is still a warm look because of the dark patina.
| 4. Copper. This textured copper panel's horizontal ripples look almost silky. |
| Here the large copper strips are pierced for texture, but it is actually their installation with several strips bowed out from the wall that creates a deeply textural wall treatment. This would work indoors as well as it does in this exterior courtyard. |
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| 5. Pierced wall panels. Creating panels pierced with a design is an innovative idea. It is possible to have a laser cutting service cut any design you like in metal. These panels are art installations, but you could also cover an entire wall to create an interesting architectural element. Oh, you can also have laser cut panels made from wood or other materials. Just depends on the laser cutting services equipment as to what they can or cannot cut. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
6. Wood blocks. These polished wood projection blocks of varying thicknesses create a highly textured wall within this shallow architectural niche.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
7. Tile. It isn't just for bathrooms and kitchens anymore. Take a trip in to some of the better tile suppliers and you'll find an amazing selection of deeply textured tiles. The ones on this dining area wall are a crocodile texture.
by BAAN design
»
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
The tiles on the wall above this water feature look like they are made of concrete.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
8. Leather. This wall has had leather panels with nailhead trim installed. Very much a men's club feel!
by Luo Zongze
»
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
9. Wallpaper. If your grandmother's house comes to mind when you think of wallpaper, then you haven't seen the latest developments. This line of heavily embossed wallpaper is fresh and contemporary.
I confess that I don't know what this material is. But it looks very much like some of the heavily textured, paper wall coverings available now.
| 10. Upholstery. This photo and the next five show various styles of upholstery applied to walls. There are square tiles like this available in different thicknesses and you can cover them in any fabric you want. Not only is the upholstery a beautiful texture, but it absorbs sound. If you have problems with a lot of echo in your house, this might solve that problem. |
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| These rectangular upholstered panels have a deeply bevelled contour. You can just cover the area behind the bed, or ... |
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| ... you can cover the entire wall. |
| These upholstered walls are tufted just like a Chesterfield sofa. Love it! |
|
by Tatiana Takaeva
»
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| The upholstered wall behind the television has horizontal panels that go all the way across the wall. |
|
by REGINA KURTZ
»
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| Flip them the other direction if you prefer vertical panels. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
11. Drapery. You don't need a window to cover a wall with floor-to-ceiling drapery.
|
by Imagine Living
»
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| Yards and yards of beautiful fabric create a gorgeous texture wall-to-wall and ceiling-to-floor. |
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| 12. Industrial or building materials. Oriented strand board (OSB) is normally found sheathing the exterior of homes before the siding goes up. It creates an interesting pattern and is quite textural. I've used this material for flooring, sanding it way down and clear coating it for a look that mimics cork. |
Peg board is used on the lower half of the wall for this teen boy's room.
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
And still on the industrial theme, corrugated metal siding is brought indoors to add rippling texture and shine.
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| 13. Stone. There are many products on the market that allow you to have a stone wall. Stone veneers or stone tiles give you the look of high-end masonry work. |
14. How about an indoor living wall? The lush, living texture is also an oxygen producer!
| Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
|
| 15. Wall panels. This is a contemporary take on paneling. I like how the narrow bands are separated by gaps and accentuate the horizontal lines in this room. |
Like it? Save it to your Ideabook »
16. Carpet. This may seem like an odd idea you see it from time to time in commercial applications. Why not in your own house? I like the very low, tight loops of the carpet in this photo. Run your carpet across the floor and right on up the wall. It's an especially nice idea for added softness in a playroom. If you have a home with a particularly bad problem of echo, then putting carpet on a wall would help dampen the sound in the same way that it would to carpet the floor or upholster a wall.
Well, I've just scratched the surface on ideas for wall texture. I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas — not "ooh, this will be hard to clean" or "I might bump against the wall and hurt myself," but about what other very creative and interesting things you could put on the wall for texture. As always, upload those photos!
More: 11 Inspiring Vertical Gardens
Ceramic Art Goes Vertical
Crocodile Rocks
Grown-Up Ideas for Chalkboard Paint
Well, I've just scratched the surface on ideas for wall texture. I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas — not "ooh, this will be hard to clean" or "I might bump against the wall and hurt myself," but about what other very creative and interesting things you could put on the wall for texture. As always, upload those photos!
More: 11 Inspiring Vertical Gardens
Ceramic Art Goes Vertical
Crocodile Rocks
Grown-Up Ideas for Chalkboard Paint
Ideabook published on Sept. 20, 2011.
What are you working on?
News From Our Partners
Latest Ideabooks
People found the photos in this ideabook after searching for:
View over a million photos:
Please excuse the notes in the images...they were for a designer.
Carol -- I know what you mean -- hard not to want to do these things in our own homes when we see cool ideas. That's the nice thing about interior design for me -- I just have to find a client who will let me do these things -- don't have to do everything in my house or I would be redecorating endlessly. :0)
orabider -- thank you!
imcmahon -- Wow -- they gave you absolutely no fireplace surround at all -- nothing but a couple of niches in the wall. I would actually do a minor remodel and build a surround if it were up to me.
kimberlyfawn -- thanks for stopping by!
louzucaro -- Good to know. Sounds like the paint will seal them and protect them.
rosebud3 -- BZZZZZZ!! That's the sound of the "spoilsport alert". I direct your attention to the last paragraph that specifically forbade all comments about these being hard to clean. :o} BZZZZZ!! BZZZZZZ!!
the heat from the fireplace caused the paint on the panels to develop fine cracks, and the seaming medium also cracked. i wouldn't use the panels around a fireplace again, but I love the look and would use them just as a textural element. I also found that it was difficult to make the panels look seamless.
sfeazel -- My goodness -- what a compliment. Glad you found so much inspiration here.
angelica1388 -- I don't have a source for you in NYC, but if you type "upholstered wall panels" in to your search engine, you'll see lots of options. It's also pretty easy to make custom ones as a DIY project.
sevenrich -- lucky you! Sounds like a cool office space!
eelsusan -- Fireplaces are tricky to work around -- that's a shame. And you do have to use someone really, really good to fill in between the panels to get a seamless look. They aren't easy, but they sure do look great!
@aprilaries what about the wall to the left of the fireplace and hosting the ferris wheel there to somewhat balance out the cabinet hanging on the right side of it? lol, just a first impression idea- not sure if that actually works in the overall space. however, that tile you put upon the fireplace is awesome looking!
Thank you for the photos and information on where the panels were purchased. So often interesting ideas are posted online but no information on where to purchase.
Can you tell us what your thought is on the quality of the tiles? Appears they are made of a compressed paper (similar to drop ceiling tiles). Do these tiles damage or mark easily?
The other question is around comfort near a fire place? Given the materials might be a form of paper (and that the website sells a special fire retardant paint for these tiles), wondering about your experience.
Anyone else purchase Wall Flats from Inhabit & Design?
Posted May 26th, 2012
PixelRogue
I'd also like to know more information about your experience with the wall flats, now that you've had them for a while. I am also considering them for our fireplace surround instead of tile, but am wondering how they hold up in real life. I can't find any in a showroom or anywhere on display!
Thanks for your insight!
Vanessa