A Roll and a Roll

After the installation of the storm door, which has been on the to-do list for ten years, I finally finished a wallpaper frieze in the guest room that I planned at least nine years ago. Like a lot of postponed projects, it was not difficult to do - it was getting started that was hard. That and, until recently, I didn't have $40 laying around to buy wallpaper. But hey, two items crossed off the long-term to do list! I'm on a roll.

Speaking of rolls, it took three full rolls of wallpaper to completed the project, and then I had to buy a fourth one and use only about three feet of it. But - silver lining, y'all - the wallpaper is flocked with a low relief pattern, so the leftover roll makes a nice clay texture tool (at least until it disintegrates from repeated dampness.)

It works best on a horizontal surface, So, I roll my slab first (remembering to roll in several different directions, and flip it over frequently while rolling, to evenly and thoroughly compress my slab.) Then I lay the wallpaper strip on the slab, and roll the pin over it. The relief is pretty shallow, so I need to roll firmly.

Then peel the wallpaper up....

Then cut the slab to size, and use it to build a cylinder.

The relief is quite shallow, as I said, so I might want to use some iron oxide to make it pop a bit if I am planning to use glaze on that area.

I've used the same 16" length of wallpaper to make 3 or 4 cylinders now, with no noticeable deterioration, so it looks like it will last a good long time. Lowe's sells these frieze rolls in many different patterns, about $10 a roll.

They make good wall decor, too.