What do you do when you can't paint?

jb2rn · July 2011

We are living in Germany, just moving in this weekend to a house that has been freshly painted an off white color. We can't paint for the three years we will live here.

The room is good size, and I am happy about that...but how do I decorate?

I have been looking at the stick on decals (thinking of a car theme) but does anyone know if they damage the paint when they come off?

Or if you have any other pictures/suggestions for nursery decor w/o painting, I would appreciate it. thanks.

jesselayne8 · July 2011

My only plan so far is the large wall decal I had made with her name on it. I am going to put it over the crib. I got it off etsy. The seller claims it does not damage the wall paint but I dont have experience yet.

darmca · July 2011

I got these reusable decals at toysrus. I have moved some of them around to try to get them perfect (even weeks later) and have had no problem with them and the paint. The only thing I can think of is that over time they might leave discolouration marks in there is a lot of sun in the room (our nursery is north-facing so not a problem for us).

diddlenation · July 2011

So on the note of leaving discoloration from the sun fading the walls around it. Wouldn't the same happen if you had just hung a picture? I know they can't say you aren't allowed to hang pictures right? When we lived in Okinawa, on base, we painted the rooms and then right before we moved out we painted them back. No one ever said a word. Of course that was when I was 14 years old so things may have changed!!

purple4u · July 2011

The decals come off nicely

FWIW, I live in an apt which I am technically not supposed to paint the white walls. I did. I am just going to pay the super to paint them back to white.

JillianAshley6 · July 2011

I was at Ikea a few months back and they had some cool ideas on how to use fabric to change up a wall-

One idea was to put a curtain rod at the top of the room, and a curtain rod at the bottom, and then have a peice of fabric stretched between them. Obviously it wasn't the width of the whole room- but it was a neat way to put in some color and texture.

Kind of like this- but without the weird bar in the middle

Or exactly like this- (would be perfect behind a crib!)

I have also seen fabric used as a backdrop in situations like this-

Its almost like they hung a cornice from the top of the room, and then instead of wrapping it in the fabric, let it hang down.

GL!

goodgalpal · July 2011

If the room has been freshly painted and then you put a decal on, it can peel off some of the paint when you eventually remove it. It has to do with the paint being uncured. If the paint has been there long term, it is supposedly not a problem, but I have never removed our decal so I don't actually know.

CrimsonStar · July 2011

We have plaster walls in our home, and I'm afraid to use the stick-on wall decals, so I made my own. I cut out shapes from scrapbook paper and used white sticky tack on the back to adhere the shapes to the wall. Looks just like the commercial wall decals, doesn't harm the plaster and I can change them whenever I want.

Alternatively, you could use fabric to decorate either doing shapes or panels using a starch glue. This blog explains it perfectly. I've never tried this method, but it seems easy and perfect for a temporary location.

alliapistor · July 2011

We ordered a mural with SmartStick backing from muralsyourway.com . In the course of putting it up, we frequently had to peel it off and restick it to get it straight. It didn't damage the wall at all. My blue painter's tape, however, did take some of the paint off when I peeled it off.

GoldenPeaches · July 2011

We can paint in our house but we are choosing not to.

I picked a design scheme with our white walls in mind. I'm doing a lot of bright colorful accents with espresso furniture.

I think you just need to pick a design scheme that doesn't rely on painted walls to 'pop' if you know what I mean.

varkeyr · July 2011

No they don't damage the wall.

Another idea is to buy fabric, dip it in liquid starch (make sure it is really wet) and smooth it on the wall almost like wall paper. When you take it down just pull it off. No damage to the wall and can be easily changed.

ali_bl-nov05 · July 2011

Ditto pp about using fabric, you can hang it like she said or cover a large canvas with it. Only that I would most definitely not hang the fabric behind the crib unless you are willing to remove it in a few months when your LO starts pulling on it.

The safer option for behind the crib is a decal.

BTW, our nursery is white too, but I incorporated color with accents ***points at siggy***

jb2rn · July 2011

We aren't on base, we live in town so we can hang pictures, thankfully!

jb2rn · July 2011

goodgalpal:
If the room has been freshly painted and then you put a decal on, it can peel off some of the paint when you eventually remove it. It has to do with the paint being uncured. If the paint has been there long term, it is supposedly not a problem, but I have never removed our decal so I don't actually know.

good point. I will wait a few months before sticking anything on to it, then. I don't have to do it just yet.

thanks to you all for your suggestions and advice!

DiademChi · July 2011

Many wall decals cause no damage to the walls. Do your research and get a reputable, highly rated brand. Murals-Your-Way also has peel and stick canvas murals and decals that I know from experience cause no damage or sticky residue!

Hanging up artwork (even just quilts) is another option, as well.

wenbow · July 2011

sewing hoops as wall art

How darn cute would this be over the crib? Just get a variety of embroidery/sewing hoops, and add an array of designer fabrics. You can buy remnants and scraps (etsy) for cheap! Boy or girl, just depends on your fabric choices.

my nursery progress

What do you do when you can't paint?

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