Bradbury & Bradbury will give you the names of places that treat their wallpaper to make it more durable. It adds to the cost but it wasn't anything extraordinary when I looked a while ago.

I've never tried this but it's definately intrigued me. I really want to try it sometime!

You could do contrasting colors, or similar colors with contrasting sheens.

Here is a link that might be useful: Alternative to wallpaper

That willow pattern is pretty standard. Why don't you get it in a vinyl from a more reasonably priced manufacturer?

beth, a friend of mine tried that but said it really hard to get in corners. Thanks for posting it though, I'll check it out.

Cindy, where do you see a willow pattern? I've been searching and can't find it anywhere.

marcolo,
$57 a roll is pricy enough. I would think that could make it durable. That's good to know though.

There is always stenciling ... I think hobby lobby has a leaf one and I know there are online places with an even larger selection. Stenciling seems daunting but if you get the large (18 X 18 or 24 X 24 ones) it really goes pretty fast. And, if you don't like it, mess up, or change your mind, it's super easy to paint over.

Plus, if an area gets damaged, it actually not hard to fix it by carefully realigning the stencil and redoing it.

Maybe I'm just thinking of the pattern below. It's not quite the same as your willow, but the small leaves all over pattern is very common.

Here is a link that might be useful: Leaves

If you can find a fabric you like you can put it on the wall with fabric starch...

Cindy, thanks for the link. That's a website I haven't been too. I'll check it out.

Annie, funny that DH just said that to me last night. I was thinking fabric would just as expensive but maybe not. I'll have to google putting fabric on walls to learn more about it.

Yesterday I went to a specialty wallpaper fabric store. The owner told me there was a company that made good look a likes for many classic patterns like "willow" but that they just stopped making them. She didn't have any ideas of other papers. She did give me a quick estimate on hiring someone to paper. Turns out the labor is usually the same or more than the cost of the paper.

Anyone make their own stencil? Might sound unethical but I was thinking of making my own from the wallpaper samples. I would rather not do this for many reasons but....

That would be a violation of copyright to make a stencil from the wallpaper sample.

Depending on how much wall space you have to cover and how much time you have, you could free hand the vines and then make several sized stamps to stamp on the leaves....it won't be a regular pattern like a stencil or wallpaper, but you could then customize it for all the openings and get it to look like what you want. The gold acrylic paint is very inexpensive.

I faux finished the bathroom walls at the old house to look like wall paper with multiple colors of acrylic paint over a base color and it came out really nice. The good thing is that you can start and stop the process at will, so I worked on it as I had a chance.

And if it doesn't work, it's just paint...you can always paint or wallpaper over it.

Here is a link that might be useful: make a stamp

debrak,
have you seen deedles' powder room reveal? Her wallpaper is kind of willowy and she just grabbed it off the shelf at lowes. I am sure she won't mind if I paste a link

Here is a link that might be useful: Deedle's tiny powder room

Oh I love that paper. Great pattern. I will have to check it out on line and at our local Lowes.

It's only a violation of copyright if you sell it. You can do whatever you want in your own home. You could change it up a little to make it your own in some way. I had an art teacher who did that from bedding.

And I think old classics don't even fall under copyright. They too are reproductions. I was taught if the design is 100 years old, you can legally use it in a work for sale because copyrights are expired.

Check with your lawyer first, lol, but it's only an arts and crafts project in your own living room.

snookums2, it does not need to be sold to violate copyright....if you make a copy of something without permission of the owner, it is a violation. The fact that the wallpaper is still being printed suggests the copyright has been renewed and is still valid.

debrak, when I Google "willow bough" and stencil, the first item that comes up is this book, out of print but apparently available secondhand:

"Decorative Stencils for Your Home: An Imaginative Range of Stencils Inspired by the Arts & Crafts Movement" by Mary MacCarthy,
www.amazon.com/Decorative-Stencils-Your-Home-MacCarthy/dp/0891347674

(I tried to use the link boxes but they wouldn't take)

You might also want to contact the etsy seller OliveLeafStencils about a custom project, she has some William Morris-inspired patterns,

www.etsy.com/shop/OliveLeafStencils

dbrak, fyi the cost of paper installation in Maryland is $50 and up per double roll. Your area may be different.

Fear of copyright infringement would not discourage me from making a stencil for my own use. In the unlikely event that such action would qualify as infringement, the offense would be comparable to making a copy of a friend's CD.

Becky, Thanks for the links. I will check it out.

Cindy, I have an estimate of $350 in labor to paper the room. Was also told there would be alot of waste do to so many interuptions. I do have a friend with some experience and equipment that will help me if I tried it myself.

I'm still waiting for two more wallpaper samples and looking at stencils.

Here's an all-over stencil with a similar look

Here is a link that might be useful: Willow-look stencil

So funny you should post that. I have that one saved. Its as close as I've been able to find. I have never purchased from cutting edge stencils but they look like quality stencils and they give you the little one for tight spots. I really would rather just buy one as opposed to make a stencil. I have to be realistic as to my craftiness abilities.

Debrak $350 would be seven double rolls. That paper appears to have a large drop...18" - 24"? That does increase the amount of material needed.

Full time paper hangars typically charge a premium for a small job like this. But basically, you should expect the cost of materials and installation to run around $100 per double roll. The labor cost could be much higher or lower depending on where you live though.

I'm not crazy about anything less than floor to ceiling paper on every wall in a bathroom. This is because bathrooms are cut up enough, so I don't like using paper on only the top or bottom half or on a feature wall. But that is just my own taste. You might consider those options to save money.

Lazygardens: that is a great match. I just took wallpaper off my walls. We had wallpaper in almost every room. Some rooms came off ok and others were awful. After that experience I have sworn to NEVER put paper on my walls. I don't care how "hot" it is or how inexpensive. That is just my two cents.

I would do the stencils. Just take the wallpaper sample to sherwin williams or Benjamin Moore and ask them for their advice. In my experience they are very willing to help and know their products. Also, they sell the stencil edging for corners and the top and bottom of the walls.

I just realized I posted a photo of the "vines" stencil above and then lazygardens posted a link to it.

While I'm stilling waiting for 2 more wallpaper stencils I'm leaning toward the "vines" stencil. So you think it would work?

I looked at the claires willow pattern today and it is just too tiny of a pattern to make a stencil from and don't have enough of a pattern of the willow to make a decent sized stencil. On the copyright thread a link was posted to a book with william morris design stencils in it. I spent time search for more info on it but can't confirm willow is actually one of the stencil. It also appears the stencils are small. If this was a small project I would maybe buy it.

Gina, when we bought this house over 25 years ago there was wallpaper everywhere. Some my DH stripped off. Some was hard to do, so he just put drywall over it. So this dining room has a double layer of drywall with wallpaper inbetween. He really wants me to stencil.

I'm very tired of thinking about this but want to make a decision soon to move the remodel along. I close my eyes at might and see a slideshow of patterns until I fall asleep.

Debra, I totally understand.

I already mentioned that I wouldn't put up the wallpaper. I know it is gorgeous and adds a lot of personality. But, once you do it you are really stuck with it until you bite the billet and take it off and redo it. Mine was up over 10 years.

With paint you can change it twice a year if you want to. Plus, stop stressing about the stencils. Remember, you can paint over it if you aren't happy. It isn't expensive. Maybe a little time consuming if you do it right but not super costly. Just relax and enjoy it.

I finally decided on stenciling with the "vines" stencil posted above. Will post the results!

Good for you- it looks lovely.