My Finished Entryway

So on facebook I have been showing photos of my latest wallpaper removal project.  It was a bear.  It seemed like a pretty small space, the entryway.  But it isn't.  At all.  And, one layer of wallpaper would not be removed.  So I had a lesson in oil priming.  I am really happy with the finished space.  I could have fixed a few more spots (especially on or near the ceiling).  But who looks up?  (Please don't.)

Before.  A cool textured wallpaper with flowers.  (I also did the space just further inside, around the pantry and bathroom doors.  It had a different textured wallpaper).  The wallpaper was dingy and I had ripped a part of it coming around when I did the kitchen removal almost a year ago.  It was time for a refresh. Under the pantry wall was nothing but a painted surface.  Easy removal.  Under the bathroom side was the painted grasscloth (which goes to show that wallpaper can successfully cover almost anything if it is textured enough!).  Torturous to remove.  Almost killed my fingers.  And did kill my wallpaper steamer.  Had to pause in work to wait for Amazon to deliver another.    

The underlayer.  This paper was on the sheetrock and not going anywhere.  

I had to do SO much patching.  My whole house was/is covered in dust from all the sanding I had to do.  

The oil priming.  I had to do so much patching it took me about 4 days longer than I thought to get to the priming stage.  Oil primer is supposed to keep the wallpaper from bubbling.  I would only use this if your wallpaper (like mine) is very thin, paperlike, and installed directly on the sheetrock.  In all other cases, remove wallpaper to get the best paint job.   

Looks pretty good, right?  I also used oil based texturizer in the can with the pro tip.  Highly recommend it!  (Stinky, but awesome and quick drying!)

So I painted on a flat red (BARN by Martha Stewart).  Then I stenciled over it with a semi-gloss of the same color.  If you stare at it long enough, you will see some mistakes.  But I LOVE the look.  I am so happy.  I feel like it is a nod to the texture and pattern of wallpaper, but MUCH easier to change if I want to at some point.  

TADA!