True confession. I love wallpaper, but I'm intimidated by it. As faux finishes have fallen from fashion, wallpaper is experiencing a great renaissance. Sumptuous, colorful patterns abound: flocked damasks, retro prints, hand-blocked patterns, even rolls imprinted with acid-etched magnolia leaves. (See Wednesday's Homestyle section in Home + Garden for a peek at a handful of cool new patterns.) The beads in this cool Ronald Redding design "Gypsy," pictured, are made from recycled windshield glass and metallic inks. Not my mother's wallpaper (which was tan and black plaid and covered our kitchen walls; very au courant in the early '70s for small-town western North Dakota). But while the choices have never been better, and removal of these next-generation papers has never been easier, I'm still stymied (and scarred from the experience of pasting the nursery walls with oversized turquoise gingham checks almost 15 years ago). How much pattern is too much? Doing one wall is alleged to make a statement (and I fear what it's saying is, this chick has no taste). How have you avoided letting wallpaper be your Waterloo? And what are your tips for matching patterns? Meanwhile, check out this homage to wall decor: a dried moss pattern covering the interior walls of the home of oki sato, whose Tokyo firm, Nendo, specializes in architecture, interiors, product, graphic, furniture and event design. The design*sponge blog credits the design to Japanese artist Asami Kiyokawa, Oki's wife. Now that's a wall covering.
