How to smooth textured walls with a skim coat?

Before moving to Texas and building a house, I didn’t realize the wide variety of texture finishes that are possible on drywall. Where I grew up in Utah, walls were always smooth, and the heavy texture that seems to be the norm in Texas and many other southern states feels unfinished to me. So, I’ve decided to tackle the texture myself by smoothing it out with a skim coat before I paint or wallpaper each room.

 

I started the process in this small bathroom, where I was planning to add some fun jackalope wallpaper, but couldn’t wallpaper over the thick texture. After lots of research I determined that a simple skim coat would do the trick to smooth the walls enough to add the paper. Adding the skim coat to smooth the textured walls was super inexpensive and a very simple process.

You can hire a painter to smooth textured walls, but the cost for labor would have put the project out of my budget. The cost of supplies and doing it myself put the total investment around $50 and 5 hours. Not bad for the huge impact.

 

Here is the bathroom before. I was told that the walls get this orange peel texture treatment to hide imperfections in the sheetrock seams, but I’ve lived in a lot of places with sheetrock and flat walls, so I’m not sure what is really going on. What I do know is that I don’t love it.

How to Smooth Your Textured Walls

The process of smoothing textured walls with skim coating is fairly common. It refers to spreading a layer of joint compound over the walls to fill in the bumps and valleys in the texture effectively creating a smooth surface. The texture itself is made of a spray-on joint compound, and since my walls were painted with a flat paint, I had no prep work before I got started. I looked at a few tutorials before attempting on my own, and as I began I actually developed a little different method that really worked quickly and easily.

Step by Step Instructions for Smoothing Textured Drywall

To smooth your textured walls with a skim coat, you will need:
– All-Purpose Joint Compound (I got mine at Home Depot in the box, and next time I’ll get the bucket for ease.)
– 10-12 inch taping knife
– 14 inch mud pan
– smaller putty knives for details



First, scoop some of the pre-mixed compound into the mud pan. It has the texture of creamy peanut butter. The process of layering it onto the wall is also a little like smoothing peanut butter onto a piece of bread and going all different directions until it stays perfectly smooth.

 

Once you have the mud in the pan, use the longer taping knife to scoop a couple inches of compound up, then with the mud facing the wall, simply spread in a smooth motion down the wall.

 

You’ll find that the long taping knife makes creating a smooth surface pretty simple. Scraping right on top of the existing texture, pulling the compound down the wall will start to fill the holes in the texture and create a smooth surface.
Work in about a 2 foot area pulling the compound down and down, then across and across in smooth motions until it begins to set a little bit. As it dries, the compound becomes harder to scrape, so the final swipes with the taping knife can create a fairly smooth surface without a bunch of seam lines.  You can see the difference between the skim-coated surface on the bottom of this shot, and the textured wall below. What a difference!

You can see that the compound can have bubbles in it, and you may notice some air bubbles forming as you spread the mud on the walls. Don’t worry, you’ll easily be able to smooth those out further as the coating dries, and even add more mud if you need to.

 

As you finish spreading in one area, scoop another inch or so of mud and move onto the next area. With the large knife and some efficient scraping, you’ll be able to make great time. I was able to start and finish the bathroom skim coat in about 4 hours.

 

To skim coat around the tile and fixtures, I taped it all off as I would have had I been painting. The joint compound is super easy to clean-up once it’s dry, because it’s basically dried powder. I used the ladder to reach the tops of the walls. I decided against skim coating the ceiling (I’m planning to add some wood planks eventually).
Once the skim coat has dried, examine it for major rough areas, or fallen globs of mud. These can all be carefully smoothed with some sandpaper. Once the walls are smoothed and sanded, you’re ready to paint or add wallpaper!

 

I love the finished look of my smooth, wallpapered walls. You can find more details about this guest bathroom here, and see some more walls I smoothed to paint in my newly redesigned Indoor Patio Room!
Good luck with your own wall-smoothing project!

How to Apply Liquid Wallpaper for Interior Design？

You started a repair, or purchased just about to buy liquid wallpaper, and you are interested in how to apply them?We'll tell you how to apply liquid wallpaper: a tool is required, whether pre-prepare the walls should be as dry mix plant.So, on the implementation of the process you planned!

Tools Required

First of all, prepare a tool that you will need in the process of applying liquid wallpaper:

• plastic spatula,
• trowel for leveling solution,
• Linen Squirtwoman (spray) to wet surfaces,
• Basins and bucketsin which the solution will get involved,
• Roller for soil
• Spotlight or a powerful lamp.

Preparing walls

After all the necessary tools will be prepared, you need to make a pre-treatment of the walls.It takes place in two main phases:

• Alignment walls, if there are bumps on them.For this will be enough ordinary plaster with fine sand and a starting putty.Putty you need only if you use a coarse plaster.
• Priming and painting.Skilled craftsmen are advised to use a liquid wall facade primer, ie dirt paint for facade work.Under the liquid wall is sufficiently two layers of primer.

Please proceed to the alignment:

1. removed from the walls of all the old materials:. Wallpaper, paint, primer, plaster, etc.
2. also get rid from all protruding from the wall of objects: nails, screws, screws, pieces of rebar protruding.
3. close up all exposed plastic parts and pipes.
4. Lata (fill plaster) small holes, pits, depressions.Aligns projections higher than two millimeters.
5. are sealed with plaster all joints and seams on the walls, as well as cracks and crevices.
6. is a thin layer of plaster over the entire surface of the walls, completely leveling it.

Then proceed to priming and painting:

1. Apply the first coat of paint, primer and wait until its complete drying.
2. Gruntuem surface of the walls for the second time and again leave the primer to dry.If the primer using a cheap paint is not too high quality, the gruntuem wall in three or four layers.
3. usual paint the walls vodoemulsionkoy, which must be white.The white color of the walls - a mandatory condition of their preparation for the application of liquid wallpaper.

Once the walls are ready, you can begin to prepare themselves liquid wallpaper.

Preparation solution

Preparation of liquid wallpaper for drawing on walls - it is kneading solution.Dry mixture of liquid wallpaper is sold in two forms: ready, which should only be diluted with water, and professional, which requires the addition of caramel, decorative components and water.

In preparing liquid wallpaper dry mortar is mixed with water and allowed to swell for a while.Knead the solution should be strictly in accordance with the instructions, observing the dosage and the technology.Yet there are a few universal recommendations that will facilitate you the process of mixing.

1. Dilute wallpaper warm water.
2. solution Knead by hand.
3. knead the first time only one packet.
4. Knead solution of one whole package, not dividing it into pieces!Only then can all the components of the mixture is uniformly mixed.

Application Procedure

When the wallpaper will be ready for application, practice, ie tamp hand on a small section of the wall, which then will not be too noticeable (under the window, behind furniture).Relate the selected area to apply the wallpaper to the volume zameshennogo solution and start the process.

1. plastic spatula, apply the solution to the selected section of the wall.Apply the solution in small portions, as a normal filler.If the mixture sticks to the wall is bad, then add a little water in it.
2. Using a trowel smooth out the applied mixture, spreading it is not a very thin layer, to achieve a glow effect.
3. With the spotlight or flashlight, illuminate the side of the wall to see and correct the shortcomings: nodules and divorces.
4. Click the adjacent section of the wall and repeat the whole process, starting with the trowel mortar.
5. Border treated area sprinkled with water to the transitions were not visible.
6. Apply a liquid wall across the width of the wall from corner to corner, gradually moving from top to bottom.
7. At the end of the wall of water and sprinkle lightly smooth out the wallpaper spatula.
8. Wait for the complete drying of liquidwallpaper, which would require about a day.

How to clean silk wallpaper to keep your wall looking fabulous？

Your new silk wallpaper is finally up, and it looks fantastic. Hooray! Your entire household loves it. Visitors rave about it, even the mail carrier noticed – so you're feeling great about your decorating skills. However, after a few weeks, you're already noticing water spots or smoke stains that are keeping your new wall coverings from looking perfect. Now what do you do? Depending on what your new silk wallpaper is made of, there are simple steps you can take to keep it looking fabulous.  

Vinyl coated wall coverings are the easiest of all to clean. Just give them a wipe down with mild soap and water. Yep, that's all. Like any cleaning job, start at the top and work your way down. You shouldn't have to scrub hard. If you use circular motions, you're less likely to leave streaks or watermarks on your walls. More delicate silk wallpaper may be a little trickier. For tough or sticky stains, you might be tempted to use one of those magic eraser sponges. Resist! While these may seem like a quick and easy way to remove stains, these sponges are actually a very fine sandpaper. That means they're literally scraping off the top layer of your wallpaper – which will take the design clean off in time.

Raw silk, grasscloth, or stringcloth wallpapers won't abide scrubbing of any kind. Small stains may be removed via a cotton swab and a mild cleaning solution. Better still is a newer product called a dry cleaning sponge. This is different than dry erase, since a dry cleaning sponge utilizes a cleaner that evaporates quickly without leaving a residue on your silk wallpaper. These cost just a few dollars and will last for many cleanings. No matter what variety of wallpaper you choose, there's a way to maintain a fresh look for as long as you like.

How to Install Silk Wallpaper in a few Steps?

 Silk wallpaper is beautiful, and if applied correctly, your house will be the envy of the neighborhood. Pay close attention, and be sure to follow every step.

Necessary Tools and Supplies

Before beginning the wall covering process, take a look at what is needed to accurately apply the paper:

1. Masking tape

2. Straight Edge

3. Smoother

4. Utility Knife

5. Primer

6. Putty Knife

7. Soft Cloth

8. Spackling Paste

9. Sponge

10. Paint brush

11. Sand Paper

12. Clear Adhesive that doesn’t stain

Installation Directions

Once all of the necessary tools and supplies are on hand and available, you can begin prepping the walls. Follow these steps to ensure minimal mistakes.

Step One: 

When applying wallpaper, especially one as fine as silk, the walls must be smooth. To smooth it out, you will need to use spackling paste, sand paper, and a putty knife. Now, take the spackling paste and fill in any area of the wall that is not level, or has a hole. Use the putty knife to apply and scrape away as much excess as possible. Let the putty dry completely. Once the putty has set (COMPLETELY dry), use the sandpaper to sand over the putty and any rough spot on the wall. The goal is to achieve absolute smoothness.

Step Two: 

Now that you’ve finished sanding, you will inevitably have dust from the sand paper all over the wall. Use a dry cloth to wipe the dust away. Repeat with a damp cloth. Let the wall dry completely before starting the next step.

Step Three:

 It’s now time to prime the walls with wallpaper safe primer. Once you have primed the entire wall, let the primer dry completely.

Step Four:

 Let the fun begin! The instructions become much more intricate now, so pay close attention. You will need the adhesive from your supplies (non-staining, clear, and safe for silk wallpaper). Take one sheet of wallpaper and apply the adhesive using a paintbrush. Before placing the silk paper on the wall, make sure the adhesive has become tacky. It should take no more than a couple of minutes for the adhesive to become tacky, though usually it takes merely seconds.

Step Five: 

Carefully place the sheet of paper against the wall, smoothing as you go with a soft cloth (if the cloth is too rough, it will damage the paper). To smooth out the bumps under the wallpaper, use the plastic smoother.

Step Six: 

It’s time to trim the edges of the paper with a utility knife, keeping straight lines by using a straight edge. Do this to only one sheet at a time.

Step Seven: 

After trimming, use masking tape to create a barrier between that sheet and the sheets that surround it. Do this to ensure no glue drips onto another sheet. Repeat steps four through seven for each individual sheet.

That’s it! Silk wallpaper is time consuming to hang, but it is incredibly beautiful. If the time is taken to complete each step properly, your walls will become everyone’s favorite characteristic about the house.

How to calculate your silk wallpaper requirements?

 

How much wallpaper do I need to buy?

To work out how much silk wallpaper you need to buy, first measure your wall(s) by the width and the height. Measure the height between the skirting and cornice, or to the ceiling if you have no cornice.

Say, for example, your wall is 4.10 metres wide and is 2.40m high.

Once you’ve found the wallpaper design you like, note the width and length (also known as the ‘drop’) of the roll and the pattern repeat.

For example, say you love our design Pop! in red from our Silk Interiors collection. This roll of wallpaper is:

 1.06m wide

15.5m long

with a pattern repeat of 26cm.

These are not standard sizes, though. Most silk wallpaper is 52cm x 10m and there is no standard pattern repeat.

How to calculate your wallpaper requirements

Step 1. Work out how many drops you need

So we know our wall is 4.10 metres wide and our wallpaper is 1.06 metres wide.

Divide the width of the wall by the width of the wallpaper.

In this instance 4.1 / 1.06 = 3.86

This tells us that we need 3 drops plus 0.8 of another drop so we’ll round it up to 4 drops. Let’s see how that works. 1.06m x 4 = 4.24m which means we’ll have an extra 14cm to cut from the final piece.

Step 2. Work out how long each drop needs to be

Now, let’s work out exactly how long each drop needs to be.

Our wall height is 2.40 metres. But we don’t want to cut each piece at 2.40 metres because we need to account for the pattern repeat. If you were to cut each piece at 2.40 metres, when you try to match the pattern when you hang the wallpaper, you’ll find that you’re unable to and it will be one big ugly and expensive mess.

So instead, divide the height of the wall by the height of the pattern repeat.

In this instance, 2.4 / 0.26 = 9.23

From this we know that we need at least 9.23 pattern repeats for each drop of wallpaper.  Let’s round that number up to 10 because whole numbers are so much easier to work with and we haven’t taken into account the trim we need at the top and the bottom.  Let’s see how this works.

10 (repeats) x 0.26m (pattern repeat) = 2.60 metres

Our wall is only 2.40 metres high so if we cut each piece at 2.60 metres, we allow for 10 pattern repeats per drop and we have plenty of trim for the top and bottom, which is great for when it’s time to match the pattern when hanging the wallpaper.

So, how much wallpaper do I need to buy for my feature wall?

Now we’re ready to work out how much wallpaper you need to buy.

We know that we need 4 widths of 2.6m in height.

4 x 2.6m = 10.4m of wallpaper

If we look at the size of the roll, it has a drop of 15.5m which means for this wall and with this pattern repeat, we only need one roll because my feature wall needs 10.4m.

Calculate wallpaper requirements using a standard wallpaper roll size

Say we have the same wall and pattern repeat measurements but the roll of wallpaper is 0.52m wide and has a drop of 10m. Let’s calculate how much wallpaper you will need.

In this instance, 4.10 / 0.52 = 7.88

We’ll round that up to 8. So you’ll need 8 silk wallpaper drops.

The wall height (2.40m) and pattern repeat (0.26) are the same so we know that we need to cut each drop at 2.60m. From here, let’s work out how many rolls of wallpaper we’ll need for this feature wall.

10 / 2.6 = 3.84

This means that we can only get a maximum of 3 drops from each roll. And we need 8 drops in total. This means we need three 0.53 metre x 10 metre rolls of silk wallpaper.

Got it?

If your brain is hurting, take a shortcut and check out our online wallpaper calculators. Save your brain and work out your wallpaper requirements within a few seconds.