Heron wallpaper downstairs toilet, Stoke on Trent

What did the customer need?

The customer wanted their downstairs toilet turned from a tired, patchy room into a finished space with some character. They had chosen a Next wallpaper with grey herons and copper reeds, and wanted it as a feature wall behind the toilet. The other walls, the boxing and the woodwork needed repainting so the whole room looked fresh. It is a small room but a tall one, rising up to a sloping polycarbonate roof. That height made it a good fit for a bold, vertical pattern, and it also meant the papering needed careful planning.

What condition was it in?

The walls were tired, patchy and not ready for wallpaper. The old cream emulsion had uneven touch-ups and lighter patches where earlier repairs had been painted over. Behind the toilet there was a bare, discoloured area where the wall had been opened up for plumbing, and old screw holes and fixings were dotted around the room. There was also some faint brownish staining on the upper walls. None of this is unusual in a downstairs toilet, but it all needed sorting first, because wallpaper shows every bump and dip underneath it.

What preparation was needed?

The walls needed proper repair and preparation before any paper or paint went on. This was a Full redecoration rather than a Refresh, because the walls needed filling and making good, not just a new coat over the top.

Which paints and materials were used?

The feature wall is a Next wallpaper with a grey heron and copper reed design. The remaining walls are painted in a pale neutral that keeps the room light and lets the pattern stand out, and the window reveal, sill, boxing, skirting and door architrave are finished in white. The pattern runs full height, so I cut each drop to the angle of the sloping roof and trimmed it neatly around the round light fitting.

What was the result?

The downstairs toilet now looks like a finished, considered room rather than an afterthought. The heron wallpaper gives it real character, and the vertical pattern makes the most of the height up to the roof. The plain walls and white woodwork keep it bright, so the room doesn't feel closed in. Every join lines up, the cuts along the sloping roof are clean, and the paper sits neatly around the light. It is a small room, but it now makes a good first impression on guests.

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