The new face of wallpaper

Coming soon to a home near you -- big, bold and beautiful wallpaper patterns that let you make a statement about just about anything.

These large-scale and often colorful patterns are not only fun and bold but a great way to bring another design element into a room, says Marlaina Teich of Marlaina Teich Designs in Merrick.

There are ways to make these brash and bold new designs work in even the most conservative interior. Teich is using a navy paisley wallpaper on the top half of walls in a dining room in Melville, with the bottom half toned down with paneling. "It complements it, plus you have another texture with it," she says. Since part of the dining room is visible from the foyer, the color on the walls outside that room work with colors in the dining room. "So you get a jolt of fun, pattern and vibrancy from seeing the crazy wallpaper, but it's not overwhelming for the people living there," Teich says.

Years ago, people were traumatized by "flocks on foil," says Keith Baltimore of Baltimore Design Group in Port Washington, referring to raised velvet patterns on metallic foil wallpaper. "We use bold paper more now because it makes such a great statement. You can be really gutsy with one wall of paper. It can stimulate a design."

Bold wallpapers are popular now because "people get tired of the same old, same old," Teich says. "The patterns and texture add so much more excitement and personality. It can get very boring to have painted walls everywhere."

One popular new design is the strongly vertical "Woods" pattern, part of the Contemporary II collection made by Cole & Son, the English company that draws on antique, hand-carved wood printing blocks that it re-imagines in contemporary colors. The pattern, which comes in several colors, is popular in washrooms and mudrooms because people feel comfortable experimenting in small spaces.

The Woods pattern is popular because of the linear, hand-drawn element, says Nancy LaCalamita of Twice as Nice Interiors in East Islip. "It's fun and whimsical, and works in modern or traditional looks."

Other popular bold papers include metallics, often on the top half of a wall, while the bottom half is tiled, and damask-style patterns. And even your grandmother's wallpaper is making an appearance again, Baltimore says, though the scale today is larger than when the flocked wall covering was standard on drawing room walls.

Today's flocks are a twist on a classic, LaCalamita says. "They've changed the pattern so it's modern looking, made it larger, and the metallics are bolder," she says.

Wallpaper can last 15 years, so consider how your tastes might change when you're picking a pattern. "You don't ever want to look at a room and say, 'Oh, that was done in 1995 or 2011,' " LaCalamita says.

Wallpapers are finding happy landings in bathrooms, powder rooms, foyers, formal living rooms and dining rooms, as well as on an accent wall in a larger room like the family room, Teich says. Have fun with it, but don't use bold paper on more than one wall in a large family room, she cautions. "You don't want to overdo it," she says.

Wallpaper can have a big impact in a small room with today's deep, saturated colors. Keep the color scheme monochromatic, Teich suggests. "When you do something that has a lot of impact, a color scheme or a pattern, then stay with a monochromatic color scheme so it doesn't overwhelm your eye."

Fabric accents can be part of that color scheme, adding in texture and a different finish.

"Make a big statement in your paper. Then, think about the artwork and make sure it complements the wallpaper. Choose something simple that won't fight with it," Teich says.

If the wallpaper is loud, do neutral furnishings so they don't compete, Teich says. "It cools it down a little bit."

GO MONOCHROMATIC

When designing a room with a strong pattern on the walls, Merrick designer Marlaina Teich considers the overall impact and keeps it monochromatic. "When I do something that has a lot of impact, either a color scheme or a pattern, then I stay with a monochromatic color scheme so it doesn't overwhelm the eye." In this room at the Mill Neck Manor show house in 2008, the matching drapery fabric has texture and a different finish than the wallpaper, but it's the same color scheme. She uses the large mirror to help bounce light around and open up the space.

GEOMETRIC FOR AN UPLIFT

Building a room that was a retreat was the key for Mary Middlemiss and Nancy LaCalamita of Twice as Nice Interiors in East Islip in selecting this Kravet geometric wallpaper. Their clients, surgeon Dr. Andrew and Michelle Chilicki, wanted a room where they could relax. "They're a young couple with children, so we wanted something that would be a sanctuary and uplift the room, but not make it busy." The chaise longue in front of the windows lets the couple relax and look out over the Head of the Harbor in St. James, while the Italian linen curtains let in lots of light. The geometric pattern and visual texture in the paper adds another dimension to the room, yet doesn't overwhelm. "People have to feel the paper to make sure it's not linen," Middlemiss said. New, darker wood furniture and a silk and wool blend rug in gray and ivory will further create a sanctuary when they are in place.

THINK BIG

Designers from Twice as Nice Interiors in East Islip accomplished their goal of pushing the envelope when they chose this surreal wallpaper for a woman's dressing room at last year's designer show house at Caumsett State Historic Park in Huntington. "We wanted to think outside the box," says Mary Middlemiss, half of the sister design team at Twice As Nice. "The response was incredible. It made people realize you can do great things in a small space when you pick the right elements." This wallpaper pattern, Tema e Variazioni, is from Cole & Son's Fornasetti collection of 14 wallpaper designs adapted from the archives of Italian artist Piero Fornasetti, who is known for his surreal works and craftsmanship. It's an example of the "wild, out-there wallpaper styles," says Nancy LaCalamita, the other half of the design team of sisters.

AIM HIGH

It's easy to update a space and make it feel more modern by bringing in a large-patterned wallpaper, Teich says. "You can change the feel of the space relatively inexpensively," she says, even if it's a tone-on-tone pattern in a neutral color. In this bathroom at the 2009 Mansions and Millionaires show house in Brookville, she used a retro-looking classic trellis design done in an overscale proportion to give a fresh look to an old-school pattern atop existing classic white subway tiles on the bottom half of the wall. "When you bring the pattern up high, it brings your eye up and makes the space seem taller," she says.

BALANCE IT

"When you use a bold pattern, the size of the pattern matters," says Port Washington designer Keith Baltimore. "If it's a big pattern, you have to compensate. It needs something to hold in that paper." Here, in this Atlantic Beach bathroom, the black and white of the floor balances the black and white pattern in the wallpaper. If everything else is a solid, then the wallpaper pattern takes over. Adding another pattern makes for a more cohesive design, he says.