Every housewife knows that the kitchen needs wallpaper that is easy to care for. After all, during cleaning you have to use detergents and sometimes a brush. They should tolerate high humidity well and not absorb odors. The requirements are quite strict and not many types of wallpaper meet them. Therefore, choosing wallpaper for the kitchen, taking into account the material, is not very difficult. But choosing a color scheme and pattern is much more difficult.
When choosing wallpaper for the kitchen, you need to take many requirements into account
What types of wallpaper are suitable for the kitchen?
If gluing is planned in close proximity to the work area, then it is better to choose washable options. This characteristic has a special marking.
When choosing wallpaper (not only for the kitchen, but also for any other room in the house), you need to pay attention to the markings indicating the degree of strength, resistance to ultraviolet radiation, humidity, etc.
For example, a factor such as resistance to fading may be important for a kitchen with south-facing windows. And knowing how to apply glue will prevent damage to the material.
Refuse smooth fabric in favor of textured and embossed ones. This way it will be possible to hide small bumps and uneven walls, and textured options look more interesting and more expensive.
Wallpaper can also be glued in the kitchen work area, protected with transparent glass.
They can have different composition, quality and decorative properties. Consequently, the price may differ depending on these characteristics. Let's consider the advantages and disadvantages of each type.
See also advice from a process engineer on choosing wallpaper materials:
Vinyl
Their main advantage is density and high decorative qualities. Thanks to the top layer, they can realistically imitate the texture of natural materials, loaves, and decorative plaster.
They glue easily and quickly, hiding minor imperfections in the form of unevenness and small bumps. Subject to installation technology, proper dexterity and skill when gluing, they form a beautiful, seamless coating with almost invisible joints.
The vinyl coating provides additional protection to the non-woven base. This fabric can be washed even with household chemicals.
Their disadvantage is that they are impermeable to vapor. To prevent the appearance of fungus and mold, it is necessary to regularly ventilate the room and ensure good ventilation.
The vinyl foam covering can be painted. Due to their strength, they can withstand even several layers of paint. But, if the coating had a relief surface, then after the fourth or fifth coloring all the charm of the original texture will be lost. However, this will also apply to other materials for wall decoration.
Non-woven
Non-woven wallpaper without a vinyl coating is less durable, more difficult to maintain, and does not withstand wet cleaning. But they are cheaper than vinyl, which is their main advantage.
Gluing non-woven fabric is a little easier than vinyl, since the material is not so thick and heavy. But with the proper experience and the presence of an assistant, in reality this drawback practically does not matter.
Non-woven ones are inferior to vinyl ones in decorative capabilities. The choice of complex textures among non-woven fabrics is smaller.
Choose non-woven wallpaper instead of vinyl when you need to save money, if the ventilation in the kitchen area is poor, and also if the covering will be at a sufficient distance from the kitchen work area.
Fiberglass and fiberglass
The main advantage of glass wallpaper is its natural composition and strength. They are difficult to scratch or tear, and they are many times stronger than even expensive vinyl ones.
Texture of glass wallpaper
Most often, glass wallpaper is purchased for painting, since this material can withstand up to 10 layers of paint.
This coating is environmentally friendly and breathable due to its composition, which reduces the risk of fungal growth.
If this is such an excellent option in all respects, why is it rarely used in decoration compared to the same non-woven ones? In the assortment of construction hypermarkets, glass wallpapers occupy a small share, since the budget for the purchase of materials (canvas + paint) is higher, and there is more hassle with finishing. It is also worth considering that paint consumption will be higher than for covering plastered walls.
Not every base is suitable for gluing fiberglass. The walls must be perfectly smooth, otherwise the canvas will crack and lag behind. Another important drawback is the complex and troublesome gluing process. When cutting fiberglass, prickly microparticles may be released, so you cannot do without protective equipment and precautions. In addition, due to its density, the canvas may not fit well into corners.
In general, the high price justifies all the positive performance properties of the material. If a child draws on a wall with felt-tip pens, painting over the young artist’s “creations” will be easier and cheaper than re-painting the entire kitchen. You can minimize the main drawback - gluing - by hiring a specialist who will do this unpleasant stage of repair for you.
Silkscreen printing
Wallpaper with silk-screen printing is one of the varieties of vinyl, but their production technology is somewhat different.
The vinyl layer is applied to a non-woven base using hot stamping, which increases the strength and wear resistance of the fabric. In addition, a special manufacturing technology allows you to apply designs and ornaments with beautiful, voluminous tints and a glow effect.
Floral, tropical patterns on such a canvas look more impressive and expressive. Decorative properties are their main advantage.
The embossed fabric is easy to clean, does not attract dirt, and does not fade in the sun. The price per roll will be slightly higher than for options made of smooth or foamed vinyl.
For painting
You can paint different types of wallpaper (fiberglass, non-woven fabric, vinyl, etc.), but the question is different - why buy such options if it is much easier and cheaper to purchase ready-made canvases in the color you need?
- The first significant reason is protection against cracks. In a new building, it is wiser to paint wallpaper rather than plaster walls. The new house shrinks and the cracked plaster will have to be repainted. The cracks will be hidden under the wallpaper.
- A budget remodel and a quick way to update your kitchen. If a child drew on the walls, or you accidentally splashed iodine, brilliant green or anything else that can no longer be washed off.
- Possibility of precise color selection to suit your taste. Or when a special, complex shade is needed.
You can paint the canvas with slate paint.
- More pronounced ornament. Paintable wallpaper is often purchased precisely because of its pronounced textured surface, since the paint beautifully highlights the relief.
Not all wallpaper is suitable for painting. If you are looking for exactly these, then pay attention to the corresponding markings on the rolls.
In 5 different interior styles
Having considered the types and types of wallpaper, you should also think about their compliance with the style of the room. How to choose wallpaper for the kitchen so that it fits harmoniously into the kitchen interior and matches the color scheme and kitchen furniture.
Country
Are you tired of the high-rise buildings of the metropolis, having returned home, you really want to plunge into comfort and a simple village atmosphere? Then you should stick to country style. Its main characteristics are natural tones, naturalness and simplicity , so preference is given to warm tones.
Wallpaper for a country-style kitchen is characterized by a predominance of natural shades: beige, soft pink, crimson, terracotta, green, yellow. The best option may be a coating whose pattern resembles natural materials, such as stone, wood; they will complement wooden kitchen furniture well.
High tech
This style of kitchen design is characterized by simplicity, minimalism and at the same time functionality and practicality. As a rule, the walls of such a kitchen are painted, but if you still prefer wallpaper, then your choice should be a textured wall covering with a large texture.
A high-tech kitchen requires the use of cool tones: blue, blue, silver...
Modern
This is probably one of the most popular styles used in kitchen design today, because it opens up a wide field for the implementation of design ideas. Bright and rich colors are not excluded here, and yet preference is given to warm tones and shades.
The silk covering with fancy fabric inserts looks great. Even such a contrasting combination of black and white furniture with black and white wallpaper will give the kitchen originality and originality. It is in the Art Nouveau style that you have the opportunity to fully express your imagination.
10 photos Kitchen in modern style
What is the first thing you need to remember when creating a modern kitchen?
Wallpaper with flowers in Art Nouveau style
What wallpaper is best for a modern style kitchen? Thus, wallpaper with large geometric shapes or bright stripes will look organic and will give the kitchen space more relevance. Experts recommend the mandatory presence of upper fillets and lower skirting boards.
Classical
As statistics confirm, among the variety of options for arranging kitchen premises, the majority of residents of our country give their preference to the classic style. At all times, classics remain classics without losing their relevance.
Decorating the kitchen with wallpaper is the best option in this case. The wall covering is distinguished by a laconic and discreet pattern, often with light horizontal stripes, but the use of wallpaper with large and bright patterns is not typical for the classical style.
14 photos Kitchen in the style of modern classics
How to follow fashion and preserve traditions - decorate your kitchen in a modern classic style
Retro
This type of kitchen decoration is at the peak of popularity today. Wallpaper can contain drawings of household items, landscapes, scenes from life, as well as patterns, etc. A good addition to this wall covering will be some decorative items - an old family photo in a vintage frame, a lamp in the form of a kerosene lamp. This wallpaper gives a special warmth to the kitchen.
Having decided to change the wallpaper in the kitchen, first of all, you should answer one question - will the new wallpaper be an addition, a background for furniture and accessories, or do you want, having old furniture, to update the kitchen space. It is in the latter case that the emphasis is on the wallpaper - the main highlight. It is also worth taking care of fittings and cute accessories and trinkets that match the furniture and wall coverings.
Finally, I would like to add that correctly selected wallpaper will make your evening tea parties feel homely, and the kitchen itself will become a source of your pride.
What wallpaper is not suitable for the kitchen?
The least suitable options for wall decoration in the kitchen may be the following types:
- paper
If glued next to a stove, they will quickly become unusable due to regular exposure to steam;
But there may be exceptions: if you glue them NOT close to the kitchen work area, they will last no less than in a less traveled area of the house.
- textile
. Textiles near the kitchen work area quickly absorb grease, dirt and odors. In such an aggressive environment, the coating will quickly lose its appearance, and after a short period of time, the expensive and once beautiful coating will have to be torn off and thrown away;
A compromise is textile fabrics in the kitchen-living room or dining room, glued as far as possible from the kitchen work area.
- liquid wallpaper
. They may fall off under the influence of steam or direct contact with water.
As in the previous case, an exception can be made for liquid wallpaper in the kitchen-living room, subject to distance from the kitchen work area.
- velor
_ Their base can be paper or non-woven, but the main drawback lies precisely in the properties of the finishing coating - a soft velor coating, which will quickly become unusable from exposure to steam, grease and dirt.
As you probably noted, wallpaper that does not come into close contact with the cooking area does not experience any supernatural stress or contamination. Therefore, even paper and textile fabrics can be glued in the kitchen, kitchen-dining room or kitchen-living room, where they are not regularly exposed to steam.
Washable
When choosing wallpaper for the kitchen, you should take into account many nuances so that you don’t have to do renovations next year, because it is in this room that life flows most actively, food is prepared, dishes are washed, breakfasts, lunches and dinners are held. Therefore, the material for wall decoration must certainly be moisture resistant. There are two types here:
- washable wallpaper for the kitchen. This wall covering allows you to withstand wet cleaning using detergents specially designed for this. pictured is washable vinyl wallpaper for the kitchen
- super washable wallpaper for the kitchen. In this case, you can safely not only wipe the walls with a damp cloth, use chemicals, but also clean their coating with a brush.
Important characteristics should also include their vapor permeability . During the cooking process, steam enters the wall covering and the higher the vapor permeability of the wallpaper, the faster it will dry, preventing the formation of excessive humidity in the room.
How long the wallpaper will last largely depends on such a quality indicator as the density of the material . Moreover, the denser the structure of the material, the fewer pores it contains, where dirt accumulates over time, which is no longer possible to remove.
When considering the design of wallpaper for the kitchen, the best option would be to choose a light-resistant option . Such wall covering can preserve the fresh and attractive appearance of the room for a longer period and will allow you to rearrange the furniture without further repairs. And of course, the best option for the kitchen would be wallpaper that can withstand repeated staining.
But paper wallpaper is completely unsuitable for the kitchen, just like wallpaper made from linen, bamboo, and cotton. This type of wall covering is as impressive as it is impractical. Kitchen odors and residue are quickly absorbed, and the need to replace them will arise very soon. You should not purchase embossed, embossed, corrugated options for the kitchen.
We recommend that you familiarize yourself with this video, which briefly provides basic information on how to choose wallpaper:
Photo
Some photos of what it might look like in reality.
in the photo there is a kitchen design with combined wallpaper
photo of a kitchen with liquid wallpaper
in the photo there is washable wallpaper for the kitchen intaglio printing
To make it beautiful, we advise you to read more about our tips.
Wallpaper for a white kitchen
A white kitchen is the ideal base for experimenting with wallpaper design. Depending on the style, you can choose neutral, light or with a pale, unobtrusive pattern - in this case, the interior is more likely to be monochrome and calm, or bright and bold, plain or with ornaments.
Photo wallpaper
Photo wallpaper is a quick and easy way to highlight a certain area of the kitchen-dining room, kitchen-living room and diversify the design.
The approach to choosing colors and patterns is the same as when choosing regular wallpaper.
The material for photo wallpaper is the same as for regular wallpaper, and the installation technology, in addition to gluing with special glue, also involves self-adhesive options.
Read more about choosing photo wallpaper for the kitchen in our separate article >> read.
Functionality
First of all, wallpaper for rooms like the kitchen should be washable. They do not absorb moisture and do not accumulate fat. They are easy to wipe clean if dirty. Washable wallpaper for the kitchen is made from non-woven fabric, fiberglass and vinyl.
Those interested can pay attention to the wallpaper for painting. This is convenient for those who like to frequently change the design of the room. Such wall coverings can be painted several times. Use latex paint or other water-based compounds. You can paint many types of non-woven models, fiberglass wallpaper, as well as some paper ones.
It is worth knowing that each type of wallpaper should use its own special paint. Requirements are indicated on the packaging.
Options for a small kitchen
The modest size of the kitchen imposes certain restrictions on the choice of wallpaper.
In a small space, you should abandon options with large, voluminous patterns and 3D designs, colorful photo wallpapers and wallpaper in acidic, flashy shades.
The most win-win option for a small kitchen is plain wallpaper in neutral, pastel, cream, light shades - milky, white, gray-beige, light gray. In this case, the decoration serves as a background, and paintings, framed photographs, wall clocks, writing boards, etc. can act as decorations.
Light, pale shades when decorating the walls of a small kitchen are always a good option. But it is not prohibited to use both bright and dark shades in moderation.
You can make one of the walls in a small kitchen an accent wall by choosing wallpaper with an unobtrusive pattern or a fine pattern. For example, in a Provence-style kitchen, you can paste a canvas with a small flower on one of the walls, and in a Scandinavian interior, a good option would be wallpaper with a small geometric pattern in yellow, blue, and red tones on one of the walls.
How to choose a color
If the wallpaper in the kitchen is only part of a global renovation with a complete replacement of the furnishings, then you need to choose based on general recommendations. If you already have a kitchen set and an apron, then the choice is limited. It is necessary to find a color that will harmoniously combine with the existing design. The easiest way to do this is based on the color compatibility table. Designers use it when designing interiors.
Color circle. In one sector there are colors that are ideally compatible
Each sector contains colors that are considered ideal in combination. These are all colors of the same range. But you can also combine it with different shades of another color group, it’s important to know which one. Several types of such combinations have been defined, they are shown in the diagram below.
Group combination rules
Each of the sectors can be used with any shade according to these principles. For example, a green kitchen set. You can choose the shade of the wallpaper from two sectors on the sides, the opposite, complementary or any other system. But keep in mind that all other colors present in the design of the room must also fit into this scheme. So it's not as simple as it seems.
There is no white, gray and black in these diagrams. They go with any colors. Another thing is that there shouldn’t be a lot of black in the interior. In limited quantities, it perfectly emphasizes nearby colors, but if you go over it a little, it creates a depressing atmosphere. In general, dark kitchens are a rare option; such interiors “press” too aggressively.
When thinking about what color to choose wallpaper for the kitchen, do not forget about the psychological impact. Thus, orange, egg-yellow and green herbs increase appetite. Blue and white - on the contrary, they reduce it. This fact is best taken into account when designing the kitchen interior.
Review of fashion collections and trends
The Pantone Color Institute annually announces the main color trends for the upcoming season. In 2022, the following colors are recognized as relevant:
- citric;
- golden orange;
- coral;
- shade of raspberry sherbet;
- menthol;
- bright green.
Definitely, these fashionable shades will be reflected in the wallpaper design.
As for fashionable patterns and designs, the trends of past seasons continue.
Graphic prints, floral, plant and tropical motifs, complex textures, including those imitating natural materials and concrete, watercolor patterns, and terrazzo-style prints are still relevant.
