Yesterday, with a deep breath, I steeled my courage and embarked on a new project. Removing the disgusting, nicotine stained wallpaper from the first floor bathroom. Early picking at the fringes behind the door informed me that I would be confronting just one layer of paper and that it was glued to drywall, not plaster. Drywall that was installed when the bathroom was "modernized" sometime probably in the 70s. I was dubious. Drywall and wallpaper are strange bedfellows when the drywall isn't primed with a coat of paint. Courage.
Far be it from me to suggest that anyone who would glue wallpaper directly to unpainted drywall is stupid. That would be an insult to stupid people everywhere. Instead I'll just say that I got lucky. In the places where the wallpaper was attached to unpainted drywall the paper gave up without much of a fuss leaving the drywall intact. At least this was the case behind the door.
Out in the open, another matter. Removing the nicotine stained paper revealed an unexpected second layer in another, darker design. See mention in previous post about projects taking five times longer then expected. The good news? The drywall had been primed with a coat of paint so, for the most part, removal of the second layer was a repeat of the first. The walls need a few patching repairs from picture hooks and such, but it appears we'll be applying a coat of fresh primer soon.
Top: removal of the first layer. Bottom: revealing the second layer... SURPRISE!
1 comment:
If you want to come over and remove the two layers of hideous mauve swag-gy, flowery wallpaper border that were applied to unpainted drywall in our bedroom, I would, like, not stop you. I might even pay you in shiraz and treats from Stone Oven. I'm just saying.
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