05/06/2008 by conrad.

Wallpaper Damaged edge:  generally caused by improper handling either by the carrier from factory to supplier or from supplier to installer.  Many times the edges are only damaged within the first turns of the wallpaper, but that should not be a huge problem.

Scalloped edge:  result of the trimmers in the factory moving back and forwards as the wallpaper
is passing through. This results in the seams weaving in and out when they are supposed to be cut perfectly straight. The installer should identify this problem within the first roll hung, the remaining product should be returned to the supplier for replacement.

White edge:  a common problem that is especially evident when installing dark colored background wallcoverings because the edges show white when butted together. White edges are caused when the steel at the factory is either dull or is slightly tilted towards the center of the strip, the edges, prior to installation, are actually beveled leaving the substrate or backing of the wallpaper exposed at the edge.  When two strips are joined together this problem is magnified.  After installation, color white seams with colored chalk or permanent water colors of a similar color to the background of the paper.  If either of these remedies are unacceptable, the remaining wallpaper should be returned to the supplier for replacement.  Note:  seams may be apparent after the installation process due to expansion/contraction factors inherent to the installation process and are not manufacturer’s defects.

Shading:  normally the fault of the manufacturer’s printing process.
1.  Edge shade:  where there is a color variation from one side of the sheet to the other, with plain all over designs and some textural type designs the technique of reverse hanging can be applied. This involves reversing every other strip to match up shading variations.
2.  Shade roll to roll:  this is where there is a color variation between rolls in the same batch number. This product shouldn’t be installed and should be taken back to the supplier for replacement.
3.  Uneven emboss:  where the embossment of the wallcovering is deeper or lighter on one edge, this will give an effect of shade variation. This is normally most prevalent when looking along a finished wall where the light dark variation is most conspicuous.

Trimming Errors:  caused by manufacturer’s cutting error.  These may be discovered by comparing the patterns of each roll, and insuring they are identical especially where they meet the edges of the wallpaper.
1.  Over-trimming is a result of too much of the wallpaper being trimmed away. When an excess amount of material has been trimmed away, there is no way to compensate for the missing pattern. If it is noticeable at a glance or is unacceptable, you should return the wallpaper to the retailer for replacement.
2.  Under-trimming is the complete opposite to over-trimming. This means not enough of the wallpaper has been trimmed away which results in a slight double image forming at the seam. This excess may be trimmed at the work table using a straight edge and razor, or may be “double cut” on the wall.

Printed on a bias or cut on a bias:  where the print is cut or printed on a slight diagonal so that the pattern drops down about 1/4 inches on every sheet. This error makes for bad ceiling lines.

Out of register:  where multi-pass printing of a wallpaper design is out of alignment.  For example, the out line of a leaf is printed first, then the inside green part. The inside green part is out side of the outline. Or the yellow center of the flower is an inch off. Some times the print will be OK and then further into the pattern, it will start to go outside the lines again.  A good example of this type of error is the Sunday comics, where the color can sometimes appear outside of the lines.

Vinyl runs out on front of vinyl coated paper:  caused by acrylic coating running out during final coating process.  This would call for replacement of affected rolls.

Paste missing on prepasted paper:  if using additional wallpaper paste, this isn’t a major concern.  If you use plain water to activate the paste or activators, then replacement would be prudent.

Ink spots:  caused by leaks and drips of colorant during the manufacturing process.  Depending on the location and severity, this type of error may be cause for replacement.

Drag lines in ink:  caused by the manufacturer when the paper runs through the various bars and rollers of the printing press.  These lines may either be blank lines resulting from scraping or ink colored lines due to still wet colorants coming in contact with the rollers of the press.

Ink runs out for certain colors:  simple factory error where the colorant level runs low and causes faded to no coloring in the pattern.  This defect will always be cause for replacement.

Delamination:  this is a manufacturing error that can effect various substrates.  It is caused by improper lamination of the ground material to the substrate.  Some of these errors may be repairable during the installation process, but others may require the replacement of the defective materials.  Sometimes this error may be caused by improper booking time during the installation process.

Paste on front and vinyl on back of vinyl coated paper:  normally this is caused by factory errors relating to the reverse installation of the paper into the coating machines.  Paste on the front calls for a good washing during the installation process, though delicate wallpapers may require replacement with this defect.  Vinyl coating on the back of wallpaper generally requires replacement.

Ink runs when paper is rinsed with water:  this can be caused by improperly sealed wallpaper or delicate colorants used in the manufacturing process.  In the case of normal wallcoverings, this may be an indication of lack of coating on a coated paper and calls for replacement.  Some wallpaper is naturally delicate and installation instructions should pre-warn the installer that care is needed in the installation process to ensure that no liquid comes in contact with the surface layer.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

10/04/2008 by conrad.

There are two options when one paints in watercolor on a secondary support like the watercolor canvas prints or clay board. Precautionary steps can be taken to ensure that painting doesn’t go directly in to contact with the glass which is being framed with a traditional watercolor. Also, it can be ensured that there is a gap between the glass and the canvas picture artwork or else one can seal the work and even frame as an acrylic or oil painting. Since, painting comes out easily out of such surfaces, the safest to be considered would be varnishing and sealing.
However, there are certain advantages while painting on larger surfaces as it would be expensive to purchase the matted painting frame and also it would be heavy for hanging. On the other hand, few artists have remarked the importance of pictures to canvas that are sealed and varnished as they are easy to frame with no glass and also that they are sold better. Moreover, there exists a thought that oils are priced higher than the water colors. Perhaps, oil painting would be considered to add certain secret to the work in the long tradition or may be because of the advantage to frame without glasses. Watercolorists from Victoria have taken great pains in using gum Arabic and body color to enhance a painting to look similar to oil painting in order to be rewarded with higher rates for their work. For people with different views, it may look a frame without a glass and easier for transport and nothing more would be said as it is completely safe.
There are several methods for sealing which gives a glazed finish and the products which are mentioned further helps in achieving the goal. Clay board fixatives give a fine start to clay board as well as pictures to canvas and nearly three coats can be given permitting enough time for it to be dried between the coats. Also, Krylon triple-thick clear glass can be used where the “triple-thick” signifies that a single coat of the product levels three coats of various acrylic fixatives. Along with Krylon, UV tolerant varnish can be used and six consistent coats can be sprayed typically to end up the process. However, certain things are to be borne in mind while doing such a process and it is to be ensured that there lays a large space to carry out literal spraying and nothing lies near to it which may have the chance to be sprayed. One would need to remove the glasses in case they wear it. Of course, it needs to be ensured that good ventilation surrounds the room and since much of spraying goes along, necessary precautionary steps needs to be taken.
It is obviously rated high when the works done on the pictures to canvas are neat and elegant. Sealing and varnishing one’s work gives a glossy finish to the product once they are done. It really supplements a lot to the product as the painting reflects like the watercolor when they are initially applied wet and juicy.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | 1 Comment »

22/03/2008 by conrad.

CanvasDezign recently released a mini Canvas Prints. These canvas prints are regular 6×4inch in size and are a brilliant canvas prints gift idea.

Have canvas prints on your desk at work or even give canvas prints as a special gift to your loved ones.

Give canvas prints today and make somebody smile!!

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

05/03/2008 by conrad.

Metamerism is a psychophysical phenomenon commonly defined incorrectly as “two samples which match when illuminated by a particular light source and then do not match when illuminated by a different light source.”

In actuality there are several types of Metamerism, of which the first two described below are most commonly referred to and also most commonly confused:

Sample metamerism: When two color samples appear to match under a particular light source, and then do not match under a different light source this is “sample metamerism.” One can conclude that the spectral reflectance distributions of the 2 samples differ slightly, and their plotted reflectance curves cross in at least 2 regions. By illuminating them with lights with consideralby differing spectral power distributions you can witness and even exaggerate the visual differences between the 2 samples. The example below is how most remember this is the most commonly experienced form of metamerism.

Example: most people have experienced sample metamerism when putting on two socks that appeared to be black while in the bedroom (which may have incandescent lights), but later finding that one is black and the other is blue upon stepping into the kitchen (which may have fluorescent lights). The differences in the wavelength distribution between the incandescent and fluorescent lights interact with the differences in the spectral reflectance curves of the socks to make them appear the same in one light source and different in another.

Explanation: Incandescent light bulbs contain relatively little light in shorter (blue) wavelengths, and thus it would be more difficult to distinguish blue colors in such lighting conditions. The fluorescent illumination in the kitchen emits more short-wavelength light, and thus the dark blue can be more easily distinguished from black. In incandescent light, the socks are a “metameric match”; in fluorescent light, they do not match.

Illuminant metamerism: Illuminant metamerism is witnessed when you have a number of spectrally matched (exactly the same) samples, but when each is independently, yet simultaneously illuminated and viewed under lights whose spectral power distributions differ. You can perceive significant variations of the color.This phenomenon is rarely witnessed, unless you have a light box that allows you to see both lights separated by a divider, and your 2 identical samples illuminated by the different light sources.

Example: When you visit a lighting department of a major home improvement store they will have a bank of lights with dividers in between. Grab a number of identical sample swatches from the paint chip department and place one identical sample under each light. Stand back to winess how each illuminant affects the sample.

Observer metamerism: Every individual perceives color slightly differently. (Assuming the individuals posess adequate color matching aptitude.) This can be demonstrated in many ways, but suffice it to say, observer metamerism is the reason there were 31 individuals tested to derive the 1931 “standard observer” values adopted by the ISO and are still used as the basis for the majority of color science study today.

Geometric metamerism: Identical colors appear different when viewed at different angles, distances, light positions, etc. It can be argued that one reason men and women often perceive color differently is that the distance between woman’s eyes is, on average, slightly less than a man’s, and that slightly different angle of stereoscopic viewpoint also falls under the category of geometric metamerism.

Graphic arts and color reproduction considerations: In the printing industry, metamerism is the source of great frustration. It is perceived as a negative characteristic of color, and if it did not exist, color reproduction problems would be eliminated . In actuality, it is this phenomenon of metamerism that allows for mass color reproduction of an artwork.

Explanation: Artists paint with oils, pastels, crayons, and various dyes and pigments, and each medium has unique spectral reflectance curves. The majority of color reproductions utilize cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks or colorants. In some cases printers incorporate a few additional colors to expand their gamut. But none of these inks are exact spectral matches to the media originally used to produce the original art. Therefore, a printed reproduction of an original artwork reproduction is a metameric match to the original. Inks used to create a color reproduction can be combined to simulate an artwork, but can only be made to accurately match the reproduction under only one (D50 or D65) light source. Because of metamerism it is impossible to generate a color reproduction that can match under every light source. But without the phenomenon of metamerism, mass color reproductions would not be possible and the color reproduction industry as we know it simply would not exist.

Posted in News, Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

21/12/2007 by conrad.

A really good Rotary Screen Engraver in the UK is planbseparations Ltd. If you do find yourself with the need to engrave wallpaper you can still use us Concept Coverings.

planbseparations Ltd is based in the UK mainland and is not an offshore Rotary Screen Engraver. The advantage of being a mainland based ROTARY SCREEN ENGRAVER is that your screens never arrived damaged.

There are only I think 3 main Rotary Screen Engraver ’s based in the UK and 2 of them are mainland. One of them is on a little Island classed as UK, but the natives there like to see the country as a standalone one. The place has its own symbol that is depicted by 3 cut off legs??

If any one knows what the symbol means, by all means email Conrad or a member of our sales team to let us know.

The role of the rotary screen engraver has changed over the last few years and will continue to change over the next few years too. Firstly fabrics, those rotary screen engravers that could get it right, and lets face it Meshtex were probably the only ones, must see a change digital printing having over the overall business. Many Rotary screen engravers can ONLY engrave wallpaper, and they try and sell the separations again as co-ordinating patterns. This is totally rubbish and why most if not all wallpaper engravers are really not that good at engraving fabrics.

In time though, wallpaper will change and the birth of digitally printed wallpapers will finally come through, with the leaders, Conrad McKee and his team at ConceptCoverings showing the rest of the industry how wallpaper should be done.

Merry Xmas all you with Flair in the Decor industry.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

18/07/2007 by conrad.

Chintz-style wallpaper, with matching border, Second half of 18th century. Museum no. E.797-1969 (click image for larger version)

Textile wallhangings of various kinds were the precursors of paperhangings, so it is not surprising that the earliest and most consistent influence on wallpaper design has come from textiles. It is important to make a distinction, however, between wallpapers made to match fabrics, and vice versa, as is common practice now, and wallpapers which derived their patterns from textiles and were intended to imitate them.

There are odd examples of the former in the 18th century, for example Horace Walpole (in a letter dated 12 June 1753) describes a sitting room ‘hung with a blue and white paper in stripes adorned with festoons, and a thousand plump chairs, couches and luxurious settees covered with linen of the same pattern’. John Sigrist’s trade card from the 1770s also offers to make papers to match fabrics, but generally speaking wallpapers were designed to imitate the styles, patterns and textures of fabrics, and effectively to represent textile wall coverings.

In Holinshed’s Chronicle (1577), Sir William Harrison’s ‘Description of England’ includes an account of the kinds of wall coverings then in use: ‘The walls of our houses on the inner sides in like sort be hanged with tapestry, arras work or painted cloths … or else they are celled with oak of our own, or wainscot brought hither out of the east countries, whereby the rooms are not a little commended, made warm and much more close than otherwise they would be.’ In consequence, wallpapers were designed to look like the materials they were substituting. What is thought to be the earliest known wallpaper in England was found in the Master’s Lodge in Christ’s College, Cambridge, and has a formalised pomegranate design derived from a contemporary Italian velvet or damask. Although traditionally dated to around 1509, it is more probably late 16th century.

A number of the earliest wallpapers are described in advertisements as being ‘after the manner of real Tapestry’: in the early 18th century the Blue Paper Warehouse was offering ‘Forest-Work … after the Mode, of real Tapestry’. The term ‘forest-work’ implies a pattern of foliage. In France, papiers de tapisserie - single-sheet pictorial papers, each part of a larger design imitating a tapestry - continued in use into the 1760s. These decorations, with their landscape subjects, hunting scenes and so on, were the precursors of the panoramic papers which appeared around 1800.

Portion of a lining paper found on an early 17th-century box. Museum no. E.405-1968 (click image for larger version)

Tapestries themselves were already being imitated by painted cloth hangings, and these were in turn imitated by printed sheets for wall decoration. Several of these latter designs survive, all from the period around 1680-1700 and all very similar in style, with block-printed outlines, some plain, some with stencilled or hand-painted colour. Each of these surviving designs is pictorial: a stag hunt, a house and garden with a robed figure, a woman in a garden beside a fountain, and a seated woman fishing in a pond, with a house beyond. The papers have been discovered in various locations - in the drawer of a chest, lining a deed box at Clandon Park, and at Colonial Williamsburg; only one example has been found in use as a wallpaper - the Stag Hunt design in a first floor front room at The Shrubbery, Epsom.

The 1738 edition of Chambers Cyclopaedia of Arts Sciences has no entry for paperhangings but has the following comment under ‘Tapestry’: ‘Some use “Tapestry” as a general name for all kinds of hangings whether woven or wrought with the needle; and whether silken, woollen, linen, leathern, or of paper (in which they are countenanced by the etymology of the word formed from the French: tapisser; to line, Latin: tapes, a cover of a bed etc.).’

Sheet of wallpaper, late 17th century. Museum no. E.1003-1976 (click image for larger version)

Other textile wallhangings included embroideries, chintzes, silks, cut-velvets and damask. The first trade cards advertising paperhangings offer imitations of textile wall coverings such as ‘Irish stitch’ [flame stitch], ‘Damask’ and Turkey work’ [English imitations of oriental pile carpets], and others ‘after the mode of real Tapistry’, and by the later 18th-century ‘chints’. The early wallpaper designs are directly imitative of their textile source, to the extent of attempting to reproduce the characteristic stitching of black-work embroideries, the angular patterns of flame stitch, and the delicate filigree of lacework. In almost every case the motifs were floral.

A number of 16th- and early 17th-century lining papers and wallpapers were direct copies of the contemporary embroidery known as ‘black-work’, in which patterns - usually of flowers and fruit - were stitched in black and silver thread on a white ground. This was easy to reproduce by woodcut printing. The various stitches which made up the in-fill and the different textures of the pattern were carefully simulated by cross-hatched lines.

Fragment of wallpaper imitating crewel-work embroidery, probably about 1715-30. Museum no. E.517, 517A-1964 (click image for larger version)

Although the style seems to have been popular, to judge by the number of embroideries and related papers which have survived, few examples of black-work papers have been found on walls. The majority of extant examples have been found lining drawers and boxes. However, a fine example of a single-sheet design resembling lacework and dated around 1680 came from 14 Market Place, Kingston upon Thames, and a version with some stencilled colouring was also found at the Shrubbery, Epsom around 1680. The same pattern, with the background omitted, was also used to line a wooden box.

The distinctive zigzag pattern of flame stitch in embroidery was also copied by the makers of paperhangings, who advertised it as ‘Irish stitch’. It seems to have been commonplace for the makers of paperhangings to copy their textile sources as closely as possible, even to the extent of using a single graduated colour for each element of the pattern, as in the textile original. The surviving flame stitch patterns, for example, are printed in warm reddish tones.

A handsome paper dating from around 1730 is block printed and stencilled in direct imitation of crewel work, a kind of wool embroidery with a design based on Indian printed cottons characteristic of such textile hangings. The paper is on a similar scale to the embroidery it copies; the latter would probably have been used as a bedhanging.

Portion of wallpaper with matching border, about 1755-60. Museum no. E.2296, 2296A-1966 (click image for larger version)

Calicoes and chintzes were often used as wall coverings. Pepys records (5 September 1663) that he had bought his wife ‘a chinte … that is paynted Indian callico for to line her new study, which is very pretty’. Upholsterers and sellers of paperhangings such as Thomas Bromwich (around 1740) advertised that they would hang rooms with ‘Chints, Callicoes, Cottons, Needlework & Damask’, all of which could be ‘Matched in Paper to the utmost exactness’.

By the early 18th century the paperstainers were producing chintz-style floral wallpapers. An early example survives as a fragment with pink and blue flowers from Hampden House, Buckinghamshire. A finely detailed, delicately coloured piece, dating from around 1730, was found at 29 Sackville Street, London, in a back room on the first floor which had probably been either a closet or a bedroom.

Sackville Street was redeveloped in 1730 and the houses occupied by prosperous members of the professions and minor nobility; No. 29 was taken by William East, a barrister who also had a house in Berkshire. Very similar large-flowered papers are pictured in the trade cards of both Edward Butling (around 1690) and James Wheely (around 1754), and were clearly both popular and fashionable. At Paxton House, Chippendale supplied ‘16 pieces of fine Chintz paper for the Bedchamber and Closet the pattern made on purpose to match the Cotton £6. 8. o’.

A bourgeois interior, mid-19th century. Museum no. E.876-1982 (click image for larger version)

Amongst the many papers found at Uppark (Sussex) was a late 18th-century paper, with a spare and delicate pattern of trailing lue flowers, with a simple cable-pattern border, more closely resembling embroidery or Spitalfields silk patterns of the mid-century. By the mid-19th century the full blown naturalistic floral patterns found on glazed cottons were replicated as wallpapers.

Papers imitating brocaded damasks ranged from formal designs such as a green and yellow design from Wichenford Court, Worcestershire, around 1730-40, to vivacious rococo styles exemplified by a blue-ground paper of 1755-60 with a design of flowers, vases and rococo scroll-work, with matching border, from a house in High Street, Brentford.

Textile patterns of all kinds provided inspiration to the paperstainers. Stripes, flower-sprigged patterns, and combinations of the two were perennially popular. Chippendale supplied ‘13 pieces of Blue Stripe and Sprig paper @ 6/-’ to Sir Ninian Home for a bedchamber at Paxton House, Berwickshire, in 1774.

Fragment of wallpaper imitating festooned fringed drapery, about 1800. Museum no. E.1042-1925 (click image for larger version)

A similar pattern was pasted over the red-flowered flock at 6 St James’s Place, London W1. Sprigged patterns are amongst the simplest designs derived from textiles and have never lost their appeal. Derived from printed cottons and sprigged muslins, the 18th-century block-printed examples were succeeded by machine-printed designs in the mid-19th century, and are still a staple of middle-market wallpaper design today. By the 1830s and 1840s these light, simple, pretty patterns were commonly used in bedrooms, but in Germany and Austria the Biedermeier style also favoured this kind of decoration for more public rooms.

French manufacturers, notably Réveillon, produced designs imitating Lyons silks. Lyons, capital of silk weaving, was also the most important provincial centre for the French wallpaper trade, so a cross-fertilisation of ideas and influences was perhaps inevitable. Réveillon used multi-coloured flocks to copy silk patterns, in contrast to the largely monochrome English flock papers. He also copied silks in distemper-printed papers, mixing the colours with varnish to give the finished paper a silken sheen. Irisé (a method of blending colours to give a subtly shaded effect) was also used for papers which were designed to reproduce the effects of a silk wall covering. These trompe l’oeil techniques reached their high point in the early 19th century, when the French excelled at producing papers which effectively imitated drapery.

Sheet of uncut wallpaper borders, about 1840-50. Museum no. E.80-1965 (click image for larger version)

It became the fashion to decorate the walls with papers that appeared to be panels of silk, velvet or satin, pleated, in vertical folds, looped, tied or swagged, and trimmed with cords, tassels and braid. The effect at a little distance was startlingly realistic. Paper borders in similar styles were also produced. These could be used, to less lavish but equally convincing effect, with a plain or lightly patterned wall-paper. The drapery panels were almost exclusively French and were more commonly used in Continental houses.

A watercolour of the drawing room of the Villa Christine in Nice (then Nizza, part of Savoy), painted around 183o, shows walls hung with swagged ‘drapery’ that is almost certainly a wallpaper from Dufour & Leroy of Paris, produced in 1825-6. By the mid-19th century English manufacturers were also producing borders of pleated and swagged ‘fabric’, often using flock to simulate velvet. Subsequent illusionistic styles included all-over fabric patterns such as lace.

Wallpaper border printed to imitate velvet drapery with fringing, about 1820-30. Museum no. E.2156-1913 (click image for larger version)

A number of rooms furnished with textile-patterned wallpapers were recorded by amateur watercolorist Mary Ellen Best who painted views of her various homes in England and on the continent. For her drawing room in York she chose a paper with a design of tasselled braid; a few years earlier she had depicted her room in a new hotel in Rotterdam, with a wallpaper imitating the newly fashionable buttoned, padded upholstery. The effect was comfortable and cosy, in a richly furnished room.

Later in the 19th century, papers imitated everything from carpets and tapestries, to watered silks and woven fabrics. The embossing and stamping techniques first introduced in the 1840s allowed French manufacturer Paul Balin to produce convincing paper imitations of silks, gold-threaded embroidery, and other Renaissance textiles - examples of technical virtuosity and elegant luxury. Some of the finest were exhibited at the Vienna Exhibition of 1873.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

12/07/2007 by conrad.

It was said that some of the wallpapers that William Morris was involved in the manufacture of, actually contained poison. With a quest for beautiful wallpaper Morris brought back some old trades that were fading in that era. A study in Aberdeen showed the green pigment used in this early patterned wallpaper was found to contain the toxic element arsenic. If the room was damp and cold, this would release the arsenic into the air, slowly killing people nearby. The same was happening all over the hospital trade were workers were falling ill and some would die after painting the tiles Green before they were put into the furnace. The green paint was applied with a brush and just before people died it was said they lost there mind. This is were the saying “As daft as a brush” was derived. If you were the person painting the tiles, your job description was ” The Brush”. After a small study was taken, it was finally found to contain arsenic. To combat the problem, hospital employers introduced job rotation and everybody had a stint on The Brush. It took longer but in the end, the entire workforce went crazy and died!!

1 2 3

1 - William Morris, peddler of poisonous wallpaper? (William Morris aged 41, photographed by Frederick Hollyer (source: William Morris Gallery))
2 - Toxic wallhanging ’Daisy’ wallpaper
3 - Toxic wallhanging ’Trellis’ wallpaper

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

23/06/2007 by conrad.

Wallpaper has been around for hundreds of years, and yet people claim that there has been very little advancement in wallpaper. At the surface it might seem like a remark that seems true, but the truth is far from it, wallpaper has evolved from the really old looking red and white stripe paper, to a work of art that can adorn your home, or your work place. There are more or less no limits to the colours, variations and styles you can choose from, the best part is, contrary to popular belief wallpaper has evolved and changed as time has gone by, and they are no longer just another thing you put on your walls.

Just like art and fashion has evolved, so have the various styles of wallpaper, earlier wallpaper was made to resemble the various tapestry styles, as fashion style and taste of people evolved, the wall papers became more and more diverse. Just like clothing, technology and so many other things today, wallpaper has now come to reflect the taste and moods of a home owner. With the numerous advances in technology, the method of printing wallpaper too has advanced, earlier massive offset printers, or block printers were used to manufacture wallpaper, where as today more and more people are turning to digitally printed wallpaper for their homes.

Today wallpaper is classified based on the commercial application, and is divided into two categories commercial and home use wallpaper

Commercial Wallpaper

Commercial wallpaper is usually printed on thicker, and more resistant paper. Since commercial wallpaper (as the name suggests) is used in retail outlets, hotels, discos etc. The wallpaper has certain health and safety specifications that it must meet like being fire resistant etc. Apart from the health and safety requirements, there are additional requirements like being easy to clean, dust and dirt resistant etc. What has made commercial wallpaper making an entirely different section, is that more often than not commercial wallpaper involves customization like having a company logo printed or having custom designs, this is where having a digitally printed wallpaper comes in handy, as the imagery that is produced using digitally printed wallpaper is far superior when compared to wallpaper printed using traditional methods.

Wallpaper for home use

The earliest and oldest application of wallpaper is for home use, wallpaper for home use is by no way inferior to commercial wallpaper, as it too has to meet strict quality control guidelines, however the added advantage that wallpaper for home use has is that, it is easier to apply when compared to commercial wallpaper, and in addition you can have multiple wallpaper in the same home (compare this to commercial establishments where the wallpaper is uniform throughout). Just like commercial wallpaper, digitally printed wallpaper is available for home users also, the biggest benefactors of digitally printed wall paper have been home owners, who can now either get custom wallpaper with a particular design built, or can choose to adorn their home walls with some of the greatest works of art ever made. The choices that wallpaper today has bought to home owners is just mind boggling, and all it takes to get customized wallpaper made is a photograph or image of your design.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

19/06/2007 by conrad.

Wallpaper sets the mood with the color and design. A bright, cheerful wallpaper lightens up the room, while a dark and dramatic wallpaper immediately sets a formal, more elegant feeling to the room. Wallpaper can also change the look and feel of a room’s size / dimension, making it feel bigger, smaller, taller, or more cozy. With wallpaper, you can create anything you want, the only limitation being your imaginataion. Because wall papers are available in so many colors, textures, patterns and styles and are so easy to install, they have a place in every room in the house. Go ahead, buy a new wallpaper today and change the feel of your home.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

04/05/2007 by conrad.

COLUMBUS, Ohio–(BUSINESS WIRE)–April 26, 1995–Borden, Inc. today announced the promotion of Ian G. Collins to Group Vice President, Worldwide Decorative Products, effective May 15. Mr. Collins, currently Chief Executive of the Borden European Wallpaper Group based in Darwen, England, succeeds Sumner S. Feinstein, who recently announced his decision to retire.

The Borden Worldwide Decorative Products Group accounted for 1994 sales in excess of $400 million. It includes wallcovering operations in the United States, Canada, England and Germany, as well as the U.S. production of decorative printed materials for laminate overlays.

“Ian Collins has been instrumental in the successful consolidation and growth of our European Wallpaper Group,” said Joseph M. Saggese, Executive Vice President of Borden and President of its Worldwide Packaging and Industrial Products sector. “We look forward to seeing his broad expertise brought to our entire decorative products operation as we solidify and build upon recent marketing and technical advances.”

Under Mr. Collins’ direction, the U.K. wallcoverings unit has achieved a 30 percent sales increase and earned the ISO 9001 quality control certification in design, manufacturing and distribution. In 1993, Borden’s Transprint unit in Morecambe, U.K., won the prestigious Queen’s Award to Industry for excellence in export.

Mr. Collins, 47, will maintain his headquarters at Darwen, as well as an office at Borden corporate headquarters in Columbus.He started his career in 1969 as a Management Trainee with the Crown Wallcoverings unit of Reed International, which Borden acquired in 1985. He rose steadily through a series of manufacturing positions with Crown, becoming Operations Director in 1983, and was promoted in 1986 to Managing Director. He left Borden in 1988 to head Antler PLC (a British manufacturer of travel goods), returning in 1990 in his current capacity.

Mr. Collins holds an M.A. in engineering from St. Peter’s College, Oxford University.

The Borden Worldwide Decorative Products Group manufactures and markets wallpapers for a full range of trade channels — from traditional paint and wallpaper stores and decorating centers to mass merchandisers and home centers.

Among the company’s leading retail brands are Wall-Tex, Sunworthy, Borden Home Wallcoverings, Crown, Borges, Shand Kydd, Bob Mitchell Designs, James Seeman Studios, Birge, Foremost and Westmount. Wallcoverings for the commercial and industrial markets are sold primarily under the Satinesque and Guard brands.

The Group’s decorative surfacing products are used for simulated wood furniture, flooring, audio/video equipment, kitchen cabinets and other applications.

These were the good days !!!

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

04/05/2007 by conrad.

Well done to Derin Shorrock from Essex who answered the wallpaper question right via email.

The answer was :-

Anaglypta is beautifully embossed paintable wallpaper made from cotton pulp. The term anaglypta is from the Greek terminology and means raised ornamentation. This style of wallpaper is over 100 years old. It began to increase in popularity — and availability - outside of Europe in the late 1900’s.

Anaglypta wallpaper is not typically a ready-to-hang wallpaper. Because it is thick and heavy, it requires a strong wallpaper adhesive. While this crisp white wall covering is beautiful as is, and is used in its natural state on many occasions, one of its lures is the ability to paint it.

Anaglypta wallpaper should be hung and then allowed to dry for a day or two before applying paint. It should also be primed first, and a lightly tinted primer is the best choice. Since anaglypta wallpaper is white, using a primer in the same color carries with it the risk of missing indentations or intricate areas of pattern.

The best way to create a luxurious finish when painting anaglyptic wall coverings is to use layers of color. Start with a background color. Once it dries, sponge or lightly brush on another color, highlighting the raised areas. Color choices depend on how deep a contrast you wish to achieve. Another benefit of anaglyptic wall covering is that it can easily be repainted when updating home decor.

This uniquely textured wallpaper from the Victorian era adds charm and style to any room. Because it is paintable and comes in many beautiful styles, it is perfect for faux finishes, such as mimicking a hammered tin ceiling or creating a mock tin backsplash. These looks are achieved with metallic paints. Anaglypta wallpaper is also frequently used to imitate stone or as a less expensive way to achieve the feel of intricately carved moldings. Other favorite uses include mimicking wainscoting and creating unique craft projects. The possibilities are virtually endless.

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »

02/05/2007 by conrad.

Today we are asking a relatively easy wallpaper question. Does anybody know What is Anaglypta Wallpaper?

Please send all your wallpaper answers to quiz@conceptcoverings.co.uk

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | 1 Comment »

22/12/2006 by conrad.

Earlier on in the week, we put an article online about Flock Wallpaper. Loads of people sent texts and emails with the right answer. Did you get it right??? The answer is -

In days gone past when sheep were sheared, farmers kept the fine shavings (not the wool) and sent them to mills that dyed the shavings. They were generally dyed red in colour. Wallpaper was printed using only a glue where the pattern needed to be. The shavings were shaken over the sticky glue using a shaker table. The shavings stuck to the wallpaper only were the glue was. The excess shavings were removed and you were left with a “wooly” pattern were the glue was applied. Because the product came from sheep, it was named Flock Wallpaper. Well done to all who got it right Especially Sarah Wilson from Alderley.

“Why be a sheep when you can be a Shepherd ?”

Posted in Fun Stuff | Print | No Comments »