What’s On Your Walls?

Today, we’re excited to introduce a guest blog by Jennifer Prugh Visosky, the owner of local interior design firm Grace Home Design. We’ve long been fans of Jennifer’s funky, fresh style in a variety of Jackson Hole residential projects. In our “A Home in Tune” Dream Home piece from the 2015 issue, we covered an extensive remodel she completed in partnership with Jackson Hole Contracting. In that home, fantastic wallpaper selection made a big impact. To learn more, we asked Jennifer to weigh in with tips and snippets from her portfolio. The message? Don’t fear introducing new textures to your home designs. It just might bring the music of your room to life.

In the mountains, there is an odd, yet understandable, aversion to wallpaper. Perhaps designers don’t want to offend the “majestic views,” or maybe they feel that pattern and texture will overwhelm log walls and reclaimed wood floors.

The truth? Wallpaper is perfect in the mountains, and (when done properly) it actually compliments all of the beauty outside our front doors.

Think about it. The outdoors are a riot of color. Mother Nature isn’t drab and brown, she’s bright, fresh and a little garish—greens, reds, yellows, purples and blues mixed with texture and grit. When we want to “bring the outdoors in,” wallpaper just makes sense.

Of course, you don’t want a wall of dark, moody blooms next to a wall of windows looking out onto the Tetons, but a feather pattern in a powder room? Yes please. Or how about a bedroom with a headboard wall of flowers?

The key is choosing a pattern that is reminiscent of your surroundings. You don’t want palm trees in Jackson or aspen trees in Key West. But whimsical, colorful, bold? As long as the pattern or texture or color makes sense, run with it.

The only other rule? Create calm among the patterns by pulling out some of the colors for accents, furniture and lighting to create a classic, yet thought-provoking balance.

Here Are a Few Examples of Mountain-Appropriate Wallpaper

Headboard Wall
This master suite is a study in balance—girly without veering too close to “man repeller” sweet. The depth of the acid-green floral Elitis “Opulence” wallpaper requires that the rest of the room be steeped in calm with solid fabrics and layered neutrals. A dusty pink herringbone wool daybed keeps the room from floating away on pastels, fluffy pillows, and dainty furniture.

Wallpaper in a Powder Room
This exceptional feather paper from Elitis makes the powder room a complete showstopper. Not only is the color palette spot on for a mountain home, the pattern is a bold twist on traditional mountain design. I love using wallpaper in powder rooms because it transforms a potentially dull space into a jewel box.

Grown Up Little Girl’s Room
The two patterns in this space are a combination of metallic and cream, and a mottled pattern of bright pinks and yellows on a cream background. Again, the motif nods to mountain neutrals, with a delicate splash of color…kind of like a Wyoming meadow dotted with bright flowers. With so much pattern in the space, we kept everything else simple and neutral with a couple of pops of bright pink to bring out the color in the walls.

My Favorite Resources
With all of the advances in printing technology today, there are endless possibilities for wild designs, super vibrant colors and 3-D texture. This is truly artwork for your walls. Here are a few of my favorite new resources that will make you reconsider wallpaper.

Elitis: Excellent patterns, colors and innovative ideas.

Wall & Deco: Love using their outdoor wallpaper for bringing pattern to a bathroom or outside space.

Flat Vernacular: Truly some of the best patterns in the business with witty and often humorous prints.

Your 4 Walls: This company designs great papers with a lot of texture and more neutral colors. If you are looking for understated, this is the place to shop.

Flavor Paper: Edgy, urban and very artistic. This company has some really outstanding patterns that you won’t find anywhere else.

About Grace Home Design & Life’s Too Short For Beige

Life’s Too Short for Beige is a fresh, feisty, audacious resource for vibrant, colorful, playful living. It’s a place to ignite your passion for design, get you excited about discovering new ideas and then show you how to infuse these ideas into your own homes.

Grace Home Design is the brainchild of Jackson Hole interior designer Jennifer Prugh Visosky.

Interested in guest posting on the Homestead Blog? Contact us!