Why can I see light lines at the seams of my dark wallpaper?
Light lines at the seams of dark wallpaper are not a defect, but the visible base at the cut edges. We show you how to make the seams disappear without re-papering.
Almost all wallpapers, including high-quality ones, are not coloured through. The design is printed onto a light-coloured base of non-woven fabric or paper. This base is visible at the cut edges of the strips. With light wallpapers this is barely noticeable, but with dark wallpapers a fine light line can appear at the seams.
This is typical of the product and not a material or manufacturing defect. The wallpaper does not need to be removed.
Touching up the seams with the watercolour method
The professional solution is to touch up the seams as a final step. We have had very good results with the watercolour paint box method:
- Mix a shade of watercolour paint that roughly matches the base colour of the wallpaper.
- Apply the paint to the seam with a fine brush.
- Remove excess paint from the wallpaper with a damp cloth and dry the area with a dry cloth.
Please test the shade on an offcut first and check at the same time that the paint wipes off the wallpaper surface easily.
Before:
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After:
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Alternatives to watercolour paint
Instead of watercolour paint, you can also use heavily diluted emulsion paint, for example a little heavily diluted Farrow & Ball paint. Because the paint is so thin, it soaks into the absorbent cut edge and colours it, while it can easily be wiped off the wallpaper surface with a damp cloth.
Alternatively, you can trace the seam with a fine felt-tip pen or a fine, soft coloured pencil in a matching shade.
Even with multicoloured wallpapers, a single shade from the wallpaper’s colour range is enough. The individual nuances do not need to be recreated. The only aim is that the white no longer shows through.
Tip: A common decorators’ practice is to colour dark wallpapers along the cut edge before hanging. At MEINEWAND, however, we prefer to colour them after hanging.
Frequently asked questions
Is the light line a reason for a complaint?
No. The light base at the cut edge is typical of the product and not a material or manufacturing defect. After touching up, the line usually disappears completely.
What if the seam is actually open?
Then there is a gap between the strips. Touching up helps here too, but the seam can no longer be closed. Read more in Can I do anything about an open wallpaper seam?
Do I have to match every shade of a patterned wallpaper?
No. One shade from the wallpaper’s colour range is enough.