You had unfinished, unresolved issues and you let her do more work…….why?!

A pro would tell you you neef a smooth wall. That smooth wall gets primed, in a tint to mime backgrond of the paper! . Paper is ordeted in a quantity dependent on pattern repeat, ”drops”….meaning you must account for ceilin height at same time , along with the repeat! Waste?

Yes there is always some of that, or you het what you just got!!!

Quality results dont result from amateur installers

I love both of your papers and would be sick about the installation. It seems your only recourse besides just eating the expense and starting over with someone else would be to sue her. You could probably take her to small claims court for this amount. Whether a judge would think the errors are glaring is a crap shoot, I think. If s/he isn't into home decor or familiar with wallpaper hanging, they might think it's fine.

I wonder if you could find a border for the top of the flamingo paper to cover the headless birds? Maybe the paper manufacturer has one.

Say what now Jan? 😄

@JAN MOYER I sure wish I had you do it instead of the ”pro” I hired! And the past work is a long story, and it’s been in the process of getting resolved, but it’s taken much longer than I think is reasonable. It’s her unprofessional attitude that is really getting to me. She’s trying to gaslight us into thinking it’s fine. We have eyes! It’s NOT fine.

@chispa I would certainly have paid for an extra roll to account for error. I assumed she knew how much to order, since wallpaper is her specialty. You’re right, I’m trying to chalk it up to a hard lesson and move on, but I am so annoyed.

@KW PNW Z8 the crown was already there. I agree, it looks bizarre. I wanted a fun and funky guest room, but not this kind of funky!

We had wallpaper in nearly every room that was installed on a heavily textured (slapbrush) surface. It adhered extremely well and was a PITA to remove. I don't see any hints of texture in your images but do agree that the placement and installation doesn't look right.

I think that @KW PNW Z8 nailed the reason for the headless birds...was the crown added later and that covered the heads?

So sorry you are dealing with such this.

A Professional would have told you they could not do the job unless the textured wall was smoothed first. Not do the job anyway.

Ha! I have a Pro for every trade I may need. Hang paper ? Me??! No way! I have a perfectionist do it - and I get the ORDER quantity from him.

i stay in my lane. Because loyalty is to the client first, for that best outcome. I don't sanction DIY either, and I care not how many times a client has done it , unless we'd be talking about a scenario where my own paper hanger became my client : )

@lucky998877, she said the crown was already there, so not a valid excuse.

There is no excuse. None. When you are getting issues? Unresolved? You CUT the cord.

Not relevant here, but a side note that the peel and stick wallpapers require the seems to have a slight overlap meaning the match will not be perfect.

What fun paper! So sorry for the bad experience. Since it's a guest room I'd probably leave it rather than redo - at least from the photo it still looks pretty fabulous except the poor decapitated birds and slight misalignment. I can't really see the texture problem though. Definitely time to look for a new person for sure.

The paper looks like it has a "dusty" print because I imagine she could not get the textured wall to behave with the paper and had to over compensate with a smoothing tool. I bet it removed some color along with it.

It is strange but Lord Twig's Facebook and Instagram pages do have photos of this paper installed and, although the birds are not completely decapitated, they are scalped.

Amazing that the vendor would display example photos like that. Maybe submitted by a non pro customer - a DIY job only slightly better than OP’s hired Pro?

I put together this mock up to give you more finished perspective. I put white wide trim under existing crown molding. Added Audubon blue crane art framed (I would do antique gold frame but couldn’t find one quickly. Then a pair of petite night stands with navy base and white shade. Add bedding in whites and off whites.

First I want to tell you how sorry I am that you are dealing with this. I once had draperies, with a bird & flower pattern, custom made---sideways. I was told because it was in my bedroom and no one would ever see it there wasn't a problem. Oh yes there WAS and they were remade.

Because I do know how to wallpaper just enough to do it in my own house I would either take the scraps and patch the heads over the crown molding or remove the molding and patch the heads.

I don't think I would let this person "fix" it as they don't seem to know what they are doing.

Decapitated birds is the kind of mistake I'd make knowing zero about wall paper and ordering and installing . . . not a pro. And it would drive me nuts to look at it.

I would talk to installer or whoever hired them and develop a plan to properly clean off wallpaper. And add trim of your choice at top edge to deal with heads of birds cut off. That would cost less I believe than removing and replacing the wallpaper.

If the desire was NO scalping or head cuts? Every drop of the paper made all above the white lines........W.A.S.T.E That waste had to be accounted for at the order moment. There would still be decapitation of something at the floor. It's always about repeats. In this case 20 INCHES.

Every cut/planned drop hung on the wall will waste 20 plus inches, or you will cut off bird heads. It's that simple.

"easy paste the wall application
pattern repeat 20 in
roll width 20.5 in, length 33 ft
coverage 56 sq ft

The Lord and Twig Facebook page with the “scalped” heads looks fine to me and is balanced at top and bottom. Flow’s photo with mock-up shows what the paper would look like without and decapitation and I think the lack of major body parts at the top looks odd…like a band of nothing.

Best advise is to talk with your installer again to see if they can come up with any resolution.

Sorry, Flo's mock does not look odd......it's what a pro paper hanger would do.

He's call this waste , above the white line. @0.5 inches. Yes, you waste a repeat. or you decide to cut heads in a visible spot, or you ignore cut heads

I disagree with others that say you can make this work with molding, furniture and pictures. This was a bad installation and if it were me I would cut my losses and remove it. Since it was not installed properly there is a good chance that it will not age well. Years ago I had a bad install and as the paper aged the excess glue on the paper yellowed and became much more noticiable and the seams began to curl. I'm sorry this happened to you.

UPDATE: The wallpaper company’s response to the situation is that the wall should have been skimmed and had two coats of primer before installing the wallpaper. Gee, that would have been nice to know before we started the project! If only we had hired a professional whose job it was to advise and direct us on these matters … oh wait … 🤦‍♀️

The installer is now telling us to skim and prime the wall (paid by us), purchase more paper (again, paid by us, $530), and then she will redo the installation for free because she wants us to be happy with it.

The thing is, even if we had the funds to do such a thing, I would not trust her at all to redo it and do it well. And I‘m pretty sure she got so worked up and defensive because she KNOWS she did a bad job.

By the way, we picked the wallpaper from samples that SHE brought us and approved. So it’s not like we insisted on this random paper and forced her to put it up on an unsuitable wall. And even if we HAD insisted, it was her job to tell us ”you know what, guys, I know you like this paper, but it won’t look good with the wall texture as it is, so let’s either smooth the wall or pick a more forgiving paper.” /end rant

So, there is still no resolution. We are not willing to pay another penny after the what we’ve already sunk into this. I think we’re stuck with the wall for now. 😞

To her you say and use the "disappoint" word!

Dear Missy.

"I am so disappointed!

You could have advised the additional prep necessary to get a good result, versus this very disappointing result.

You could have asked another pro, how much quantity was required to achieve a good look on the wall.

You could EVEN have said:

This particular paper on your walls is outside my expertise. I'd like you to get someone else to measure , order, and install. ...............

How disappointed would YOU be if this were the result in your own home, and you could not possibly pay to do it over?"

Spit it out. Maybe nothing happens - but you will feel better : )

@JAN MOYER believe me, I did! Her response to our disappointment was ANGER because we didn’t love it!

Aurrrgggggghhhhhh

Her next lesson is client satisfaction at almost ANY price for any reasonable client. Because in the end? It's extremely IN expensive over years in business. Which it seems she will not be.

The word of mouth advertising and good will from satisfied customers is the most valuable asset a service business can have. It takes so much time and experience to build up this intangible asset but it can quickly be lost or severely damaged by customers with good reason to be dissatisfied. Your paper hanger pro has much to learn & likely will learn the hard way.

So sorry. I know you will try to make the best of it. I would call the wallpaper company again and ask for advice on at least what they recommend to clean off the residue paste at this stage. With a nice piece of art, nice bedding and lamps etc you can draw the eye away from the discrepancies. Totally unprofessional. In today’s world we simply can’t trust much. I hope you can problem solve around this. But if every time you see this wall you feel angry or other negative emotions then might just take it off and start over. Wallpaper hanging on this wall is easiest application so what a terrible person to do this. The more you cook on it the more harm you do to yourselves. So pick your path forward and remember the “lessons learned”! Hope you can laugh about it in time. Or at least don’t go into dark thoughts. Life is too short!

the installation is no good, but OMG you have spectacular taste in wallpaper!

@U U So, maybe you want to move on with making lemonade with this room? You mentioned it’s a guest room. What a great background and what a fun guest room. Are you by chance in a beach or coastal area? Are you interested in sharing with us what the rest of your decorating vision is for this room? @Melissa L is spot on & brought me back to focusing on this room - she’s right that you do have spectacular taste! That’s why I ask about the rest of the room. 😊

I had this kind of crazy idea. If you decide to remove the wallpaper before you do it, mark out a large portion above the bed like a picture. Remove all paper around it. Put a big gold frame around it and get a brass plate that says “Original Wallpaper”! It would be a fun conversation piece.

@Flo Mangan What a great Lemonade idea!!

Make my Lemonade! Turn it into a great story. 🥳

Thank you everyone for your input, sympathies, and helpful suggestions! I am definitely trying to move on and make the best of it. Unfortunately there is still another matter that needs to be resolved ASAP, involving a larger fireplace remodel. We have apprised our family attorney of the situation just in case. We hope it doesn’t come to that, and we’ll do everything we can to avoid it, but we’ll move on that if she doesn’t remedy it to our satisfaction. On top of the botched projects, we’ve also noticed billing discrepancies - some minor, some not so minor. I am kicking myself for letting it go on for so long, but it’s for sure a lesson I will NEVER forget!

The difference between the OP's job and the one in the bar is that the top of the one in the bar has more neck and almost the entire beak of the flamingo. Your eye easily fills in the missing piece. The top of the OP's has too much missing to have the eye easily fill in the missing piece. They really do look decapitated.

Any chance that the cloudy stuff on the wallpaper could be the paste? Did the installer wipe it down with a sponge? Just hoping that's what it is....try running a damp microfiber cloth over one of the area. As you have read from others, designer missed the boat and the installer, also, should have warned you of issues.

Just another thought about what you might do to the room. Thinking the 3 walls would look better painted the dark blue of the paper and the bed be made up with blue bedding. As is, the (beautiful) paper is such a focal point that the mistakes are right in your face.

So, this photo, head board is dark blue...you could spray your metal one. and use lots of white touches with lamps, sheets.

I haven't read all the replies but I will tell you this: my now deceased wallpaper contractor-husband would have first applied a thick BLANK STOCK on the walls to disguise the texture. It's always hung at a MUCH lower per-roll price since it's so easy. Head cut-offs? Unforgivable and done by an amateur. If she's a licensed contractor and refuses to make everything all right, then tell her you will immed. report her to the state licensed contractors board. That's a big deal here in Calif.

I've read this three times. I am still unclear as to who is WHO?

Is the "designer" the paper installer? The designer hired the paper installer ?

No interior designer I know, installs wallpaper. They select the paper, get their PRO and done. In this scenario of dumb designer ? The pro tells the designer:

"Hello Missy......I'm at your client. Call me please

I can't hang the paper, the walls need to be skimmed, primed - or forget the concept of paper on this wall"

In this room? Paint the remaining walls the same dark navy as the background, Include the molding!. It's really too strong a paper for the walls and admittedly I'm not a fan of accent walls.

When you dress the bed , nobody but you will study the decapitated heads!

I see the bedside lamp.....you were going for some glam whimsy, take it the rest of the way: )

It's a real PITA when you remove wallpaper and find the wall was never finished/skim coated. Ask me how I know!!! grrrrrrrr Still I am not sure who would ever think they could paper over textured walls???? We scraped for HOURS on my mom's 'feature' wall--she had sandpaper texture.

You DON'T try to remove it. The mess will be ridiculous.

I think I would create a frame and paint over the decapitated birds.

With the textured walls and wallpaper I would use thin trim to create the frame- painting perfect lines without ruining the paper would be too difficult.

@JAN MOYER she is an interior designer and general contractor (she and her husband own the business). She made a big deal about how skilled she is with wallpaper. And maybe the paper is not your style, but I love it. I had a sort of ”midcentury tropical” theme planned for that room.

@Jennifer Hogan that looks really cool! Unfortunately I had already painted that room SW Alabaster to keep it light and breezy and pick up on the grays in the flooring, so painting right now is not an option. I have neither the time nor the budget after what we’ve spent already.

Consider adding more white-painted molding to the ceiling trim. 6 inches may be wide enough to cover the headless birds. The molding might be something as inexpensive as polystyrene (available at big box stores). Paint it in SW Alabaster before installing.

I agree!!! The paper is very cool!!! I think cooler still without the very strong differential between it, and the remaining walls : ) which read a bit as afterthought against the great paper. Scroll back up to their website pic....LOADED with color.

You have choices.

You can cry about what has been done and how your money was wasted and live with what they did.

You can stand up and demand that they reimburse you for the labor and materials that were ruined by their unacceptable application method.

Or you can compromise. In most cases, compromise is the easiest answer. You get a 50% refund of both labor and materials or 100% refund of labor and you eat the materials cost.

If they refuse to compromise at any reasonable level, you let them know that you will be going to small claims court and you will do everything in your power to destroy their business. You will post on Yelp and Nextdoor and Facebook and Twitter. You will make official complaints against their license (if either are licensed as GCs or Interior decorators) and complain to the BBB. Let them know that you take this very seriously and you will continue to barrage social media for the next 5 years. It will be your new hobby and will help you relieve the frustration of having such a disappointing result.

With the money you get back you can choose how to move forward. My solution is a pretty inexpensive fix for decapitated birds. You are only painting the wallpaper border around the part you are keeping. You could do the border and border trim in Alabaster if that is what you want. I happen to like it with a darker border that matches the background of the wall paper.

You have choices.

You can cry about what has been done and how your money was wasted and live with what they did.

You can stand up and demand that they reimburse you for the labor and materials that were ruined by their unacceptable application method.

Or you can compromise. In most cases, compromise is the easiest answer. You get a 50% refund of both labor and materials or 100% refund of labor and you eat the materials cost.

If they refuse to compromise at any reasonable level, you let them know that you will be going to small claims court and you will do everything in your power to destroy their business. You will post on Yelp and Nextdoor and Facebook and Twitter. You will make official complaints against their license (if either are licensed as GCs or Interior decorators) and complain to the BBB. Let them know that you take this very seriously and you will continue to barrage social media for the next 5 years. It will be your new hobby and will help you relieve the frustration of having such a disappointing result.

With the money you get back you can choose how to move forward. My solution is a pretty inexpensive fix for decapitated birds. You are only painting the wallpaper border around the part you are keeping. You could do the border and border trim in Alabaster if that is what you want. I happen to like it with a darker border that matches the background of the wall paper.

This post is 3 yrs old, I am sure they have taken care of the problem by now.