11 Wallpaper Alternatives That Bring Life to Your Dull Room

If you are considering revamping your home and giving your walls a new lease on life, you’ve probably considered wallpaper as one of your options.

In the long run, however, it isn’t very practical.

After you choose a wallpaper, it’s hard to go back, leaving those who like to shake things up often looking for wallpaper alternatives.

If that’s you, read on to learn more about some different choices you could make instead of using wallpaper.

Wallpaper Alternatives

Here are 11 wallpaper alternatives that can help bring new life to your dull room:

1. Stencils

One of the most versatile and easiest ways to change your dull, boring walls is to stencil them.

It could take a lot of time, but the results are worth it.

There are so many designs to choose from, so you are not limited to something printed in a store.

Furthermore, these can be applied to any kind of drywall.

You can buy stencils in various patterns and colors depending on the appearance of your furniture and room.

You are free to stencil all four of the walls in your room or just put them on one wall.

You could also use stencils in similar shades of colors but in different patterns across the walls to make a more diverse-looking room.

Because it is so time-consuming no matter what you do, if you can get a few people to help you out, you can probably get it done more quickly.

If you do it alone, you may have to do it for several hours a day.

If you want to save some time, you could take advantage of the convenience of a stencil roller.

This is a kind of paint roller that can help you get things done swiftly, but it can be difficult since you have to try and make everything line up perfectly.

2. Fabric

Fabric can provide a nice change of pace, especially compared to wallpaper.

You can cover the whole wall in the same type of fabric or instead use different patches on different areas for a varied look.

It is usually best to do this with neutral color schemes as well as simple patterns instead of choosing bold colors and dramatic patterns.

To make it easier for you to apply, you could use liquid starch to ensure effortless application to the walls.

The result that you end up with is quite striking, and unless someone is standing very close to it, it may not even look like fabric.

Instead, it will just look like smart, artistic, or even expensive wallpaper.

From time to time, if you decide that you want something new, you can easily replace it with something else.

You can find all types of tapestries that you can stretch across the wall or walls, too, and pin them up over the existing fabric, making it even easier for you to change things.

They could also be tacked to a moveable panel if you’d prefer to make it even easier to change later.

Either way, it is recommended you find a tapestry or a kind of cover for a bed that is big enough to cover a large area.

3. Book Pages

Book pages are a unique way to cover up your walls. The older and more faded they are, the better.

It will offer a vintage look to the room, one that is difficult to replicate with store-bought wallpaper rolls.

During different times of the day in your home, the natural light will make the space seem quite ethereal.

It is a process that is not at all expensive, nor does it require that many tools.

Overall, it is a low-effort way to cover your walls with something that isn’t cookie-cutter wallpaper while still showing your personality.

4. Chalkboards

Using chalkboards to cover your walls is both a creative and practical thing to do.

You can turn the entire wall into a custom chalkboard or use as many large chalkboard panels as you want.

You can draw on the chalkboards, encourage friends and family to draw on them, write some of your favorite quotes or even keep a to-do list.

Whatever you put on them, you can easily remove them since you just have to wipe the chalk away and write again.

5. Old Maps

Old maps are a unique alternative to wallpaper, especially if you love to travel.

If you don’t have any old maps lying around the house, you can go to a secondhand store or visit eBay to purchase some in bulk or print some yourself.

Whatever way you choose, you can be sure that your room will look artistic and unique.

These maps can be marked with places where you have been, places you would like to see, places that are meaningful to you in some way, or anything else to make them reflective of you and who you are.

6. Washi Tape

Washi tape will let you make colorful, simple lines all over the wall.

Though it doesn’t have to be washi tape specifically that you use, some other kinds of tape, such as painter’s tape, don’t look the artistic way you need them to look like a wall decoration.

Washi tape usually comes with designs and other decorative prints on them, such as colorful repetitive lines or straightforward diagonal lines that look nice when layered beside one another.

Washi tape allows you to maintain a uniform feel to the space while taping up the wall.

It is best to create a larger pattern that is well-measured out across the wall instead of covering the entire wall in washi tape from end to end.

If you do this throughout the whole room, there is a chance it will become overwhelming visually.

For this reason, it is usually thought to be best to use it on accent walls.

7. Sheet Music

Lovers of music are sure to love having sheet music to cover a wall.

You can look for sheet music that is simply black and white or get some art prints of more colorfully designed alternatives.

If you find old sheet music, it may give off the same yellowed effect as vintage book pages as well.

You can put sheet music up for your favorite songs, songs that are classics, or sheet music that simply looks satisfying.

You can spruce up the look of the black and white sheet music with splashes of paint by flicking it on using bristle brushes or a toothbrush.

There’s no limit to how you can arrange or decorate the walls with sheet music.

8. Framed Prints

One of the most popular ways by which you can decorate the walls these days is using framed prints, such as paintings or photos.

It is an easy, fun way to not only decorate your walls but to express yourself and your interests while giving your room plenty of personalities.

You can use frames all in the same color or mix and match them to offer a varied appearance.

As for the prints themselves, you could opt for fandom art prints, movie posters you love, painting prints that speak to you, or literally anything else.

Quotes and song lyrics are another great way to decorate your home through art prints.

Choose an image online, print it out, and frame it to make it even more convenient for you to get a good assortment of images for the project.

9. Wall Decals

Another great alternative to covering your walls with something that isn’t wallpaper is the use of wall decals.

They tend to be temporary and, therefore, can be pulled off at will and re-applied with new ones whenever the mood hits.

Wall decals can help you keep your home feeling fresh and new without having to paint or redecorate entirely.

They are a good choice for accent walls, as they don’t have to take up an entire wall if that is your preference.

You can create designs on one wall to offset the solid colors and other simple features on the other walls.

However, keep in mind that because these wall decals are indeed temporary, there will be a lot of labor and time that will be needed to put them on the wall in the first place and then take them down again.

This can be especially time-consuming during the application, as you will need to make sure they are properly lined up and have no air bubbles that will be trapped beneath them and the wall.

This can create an unsightly appearance.

You could shop for decals that display specific images or art pieces in a high resolution for you to stick to the whole wall if you want to cover the entire wall.

Otherwise, it is not recommended to shroud an entire room in various pieces of decals.

10. Write on Your Walls

If you have handwriting that you are proud of and a steady hand to write with, adding your own unique handwriting to the walls is always a good choice.

You can put up your favorite book passage, song lyrics, or quotes that are important to you. You can start in the top left corner and write to the right.

As you go, move down to the next line and carry on just like you would on a sheet of paper.

If you run out of things to say from one book passage or song, you can simply continue to a different part of the book or include a passage from a different one.

If you are more artistic or creatively inclined, you can also draw something on the wall by hand.

While you can do this in full color, it is generally considered better to use a single color and create outlines of various shapes.

11. Wall Tiles

Wall tiles are excellent for decorating bathrooms or kitchens, especially due to the moisture content, but they look awesome in any area of the home when done right.

All kinds of tiles are easy to clean, and the types of tiles out there are quite varied and versatile.

You can get tile stickers that can attach to the wall with the same level of ease as decals, making them a simple project that won’t take up all that much time.

Since they can be removed at will, you can change the look of the tiles whenever you like.

Final Thoughts

Wallpaper has decreased in popularity over the last few years, mostly because many people consider it overdone.

It can also be challenging to apply and remove, making it a time-consuming endeavor all around.

Fortunately, there are many different wallpaper alternatives for you to choose from, so you can find the one that works best for you.

Above, we have listed several ways for you to change up the look of your space with no wallpaper needed.