Wallpaper border frames
Wallpaper border frames are an alternative way of adding interest to a wall surface. You can use them to ‘outline’ a wall, or to create panels, or even to ‘frame’ paintings and pictures. The trickiest aspect of making a border frame is mitre joining the pattern in each corner, and you’ll find that some designs will be far more suitable to making this join than others. The following sequence shows how to make a mitre join when creating a wallpaper border frame.
| 1. Use a pencil, tape measure, and spirit level, Â to mark the edges of your frame on the wall. The technique for actually applying the wallpaper border is no different to normal, so here, I’m just going to concentrate on the wallpaper frame corners. |  |
| 2. Cut your first length of border to slightly longer than required, paste and apply to the wall, following your pencil guideline. Try to ensure that a main element of the pattern is as close to the corner as possible – in this case, a green diamond. Do not trim the paper to size at this stage. |  |
| 3. Allow your next length to overlap the first, matching the pattern as closely as possible. Once positioned, using a straight edge and sharp knife (Stanley knife), cut diagonally down through the overlap as shown, by the red dotted line. |  |
| 4. You may then remove the excess sections of paper, in this example, the excess of the vertical section of border can immediately be slipped out the way and discarded. |  |
| 5. To remove the excess on the horizontal length, peel back the vertical length slightly, and then simply slip the trimmed excess of the horizontal length out of the way, and discard. You may then smooth the vertical length back in position to reveal a perfect mitred join. Continue on, using the same principles and techniques in the other three corners. |  |
Wallpaper border frame tips
- Borders normally require a pre-mixed border adhesive for application. Check manufacturer’s guidelines and pay particular attention to soaking time recommendations. More on this in my guide – ‘Hanging a wallpaper border’.
- In order to get the best corner joins, you may need to experiment with the size of your frame so as to ensure that you can create suitable joining areas in each corner. With the above design, it is fairly simple to measure out a frame in order to keep a diamond positioned precisely in each corner. With floral patterns, this may become more difficult, again depending on the exact design. Therefore, take a little preparation time, measuring the size of pattern repeats on your border, and experimenting with ‘dry’ lengths to see what will provide the most aesthetically pleasing finish.
