20 Core Concepts
What does it mean?
Non-Woven
A non-woven backing is made by bonding fibers together with heat and pressure, rather than weaving or knitting them. Think of it as a very precise felt. It is dimensionally stable, which means it does not stretch or shrink when wet — making it the easiest substrate to hang and the easiest to remove when you want to redecorate.
Installation
Paste-the-Wall
Instead of pasting the back of each wallpaper strip, you spread adhesive directly onto the wall. The dry strip goes up and can be slid into position before it sticks. This method works only with non-woven wallcoverings and is significantly faster and less messy than traditional paste-the-paper installation.
Installation
Paste-the-Paper
The traditional method: you paste the back of each cut strip, fold it loosely (called "booking") to let the adhesive absorb, and then hang it. Required for many natural fiber, grasscloth, and fine paper wallcoverings whose backing would swell unevenly if paste were applied to the wall first.
Installation
Lee Jofa "Marion Print Indigo" — a paste-the-wall compatible non-woven product with a straight-match pattern repeat.
Strippable
A strippable wallcovering comes off the wall in one dry piece when you pull it from a corner. No soaking, no scraping, no mess. If you plan to redecorate in a few years, strippable is the feature to look for. Most modern non-woven wallcoverings are strippable.
Removal
Pattern Repeat
The vertical distance after which the pattern starts again. A 24-inch repeat means every 24 inches of wallpaper length is one complete design cycle. When calculating how many rolls you need, larger repeats mean more material waste — because each strip has to be cut at the right point in the pattern regardless of ceiling height.
Pattern
Drop Match
In a drop-match pattern, the design on the left edge of one strip does not align at the same height as the right edge of the adjacent strip. Instead, it drops — usually by half the repeat distance. This is the most common match type for floral, diagonal, and organic patterns. It requires more material than a straight match but creates a more naturalistic, less grid-like wall.
Pattern
Book Match
A hanging technique where every other strip is flipped before installation. The result mirrors the pattern at each seam, like the two facing pages of an open book. Required for grasscloth, seagrass, sisal, and many natural fiber wallcoverings to disguise the fact that the weave direction reverses slightly between rolls.
Installation
Lee Jofa "Chinese Lantern Coral" — a classic drop-match pattern requiring careful alignment at each strip seam.
Grasscloth
Natural plant fibers — jute, seagrass, sisal, or abaca — woven into a mat and laminated to a paper or non-woven backing. The defining characteristic is its organic texture: no two sections look identical, and color naturally varies between rolls. This is a feature, not a flaw. Grasscloth is not washable; it handles humidity gracefully but does not tolerate direct moisture or grease.
Material
Vinyl
Polyvinyl chloride applied as a face coating over a backing substrate. The most washable and durable category of wallcovering. Ranges from thin residential grades (scrubbable, good for bathrooms and kitchens) to heavy commercial Type II vinyl (used in hospitals and hotels). Vinyl is moisture-resistant but not breathable.
Material
Flock
Flock wallpaper has a raised, velvety surface created by embedding tiny fibers into an adhesive-printed pattern. The technique originated in 17th-century England and was used to mimic expensive silk cut velvet. Modern flock ranges from historically accurate reproductions to contemporary sculptural designs.
Material
Dye Lot
Every batch of wallcovering produced in a single print run has a dye lot number. Natural color variation between batches is normal and inevitable. Always order enough rolls from the same dye lot to complete your project — and add at least one extra roll for repairs. Mixing lots on a single wall will be visible.
Ordering
Groundworks "Brink Delft" — a screen-printed geometric pattern; each colorway is a separate dye lot.
Roll Length
How many linear yards (or meters) of wallcovering come in one roll. Standard single rolls in the US are approximately 11 yards (10 meters). European single rolls are often identical. Double rolls — the most common retail package — provide about 22 yards. Always check the product label: a "double roll" sold as a single priced unit is the norm, not a buy-one-get-one.
Ordering
Colorway
A single color version of a wallcovering pattern. The same design printed in sage green is a different colorway from the same design printed in charcoal. Each colorway has its own SKU and its own dye lot. When ordering, confirm you have the correct colorway number — not just the pattern name.
Pattern
Screen Print
A printing method where ink is forced through a fine mesh screen — one screen per color — onto the wallcovering substrate. Screen printing delivers dense, opaque color with sharp edges. The more colors in a design, the more screens required, which is why high-color-count screen-print wallcoverings command a premium price.
Production
Digital Print
A large-format inkjet process that prints directly onto wallcovering substrate. Unlike screen printing, digital has no setup costs and can produce an unlimited number of colors and gradients. It has revolutionized custom mural and small-run production. Most digital wallcovering today is printed on non-woven substrates and is paste-the-wall compatible.
Production
Mural
A single, non-repeating image designed to cover one specific wall surface. The artwork is divided into numbered panels (typically 2 to 8, depending on wall width) that must be hung in sequence. Unlike tiled wallcovering, a mural cannot be rearranged or trimmed on any edge without disrupting the composition.
Format
Arte International "Poona Cinnamon" — a digitally printed natural-look pattern on a paste-the-wall non-woven backing.
Pre-Pasted
Wallcovering with a dry adhesive coating already applied at the factory. You activate it by running each strip through a water tray or by dampening it with a sponge. Pre-pasted is convenient for DIY projects. Professional installers often apply additional adhesive to extend working time and improve adhesion on challenging surfaces.
Installation
Width
The horizontal dimension of the wallcovering roll in its trimmed state. US residential standard is typically 20.5 to 27 inches. European standard is 20.5 inches (52 cm). Commercial wide-width goods can reach 48 or 54 inches, reducing the number of seams on a large wall. Width, combined with roll length and repeat, determines how many rolls a project requires.
Specification
Memo Sample
A full-width cutting of a wallcovering — typically 8 to 18 inches long — sent to a designer or consumer before a purchase commitment. Memo samples show the true color, texture, and scale of the pattern in your actual space and lighting. Designer Wallcoverings ships memo samples at no charge.
Trade Practice