Wallpaper

Wallpaper and paint remake a room faster than any piece of furniture, with a single weekend's work transforming how the space feels through colour and pattern alone. Our curated collection brings together British heritage paint brands, Scandinavian designer wallpapers, and hand-printed artisan patterns, each chosen to pair with the wider Heal's furniture range.

Measure the height of each wall in metres, multiply by the width, and add 10% for wastage. For a standard 4 by 4 metre room with 2.4m ceilings, four walls total roughly 38 square metres, requiring about seven 10-metre rolls at standard 53cm width. Always order an extra roll to cover future patch repairs, as wallpaper batch numbers vary year to year.

Vinyl-coated and washable wallpapers handle bathroom and kitchen humidity well, provided the room has reasonable ventilation. Avoid wallpaper directly above cooker hobs and behind sinks, where heat and splashes will degrade any paper over time. Dedicated bathroom papers carry specific rating marks and are worth checking for.

Matte paint absorbs light and hides wall imperfections, making it the standard for living rooms and bedrooms. Eggshell has a slight sheen and is more wipeable, suited to hallways and kitchens. Gloss is highly reflective, traditionally used on woodwork rather than walls. Modern 'soft sheen' and 'modern emulsion' finishes sit between matte and eggshell.

Wallpapering over existing paper is possible only if the underlying paper is fully adhered, smooth, and in good condition. More often, the better approach is to strip the existing paper back to plaster, make good any damage, and apply the new paper directly. Steam strippers do the job efficiently for a single afternoon's work.