New Home#

First day#

We are not moving in as there is a little bit of house work that we want to do before, but today is the start of our new Home. This will be a small series of some of the work we are doing, problems we face and future plans. Enjoy.

Prepping the walls for a new look#

I spent the better part of the day in the kitchen removing tile and wallpaper. I have only learned now that most of it is scattered across the ground, that wallpaper or raufasertapete is common and popular in Germany, unlike the US. It is not necessarily a problem as the paper looked like it needed to at least be replaced, but I’m always tickled by after the fact learning. Now that I’m looking at the exposed wall/plaster and reading about the benefits of wallpaper vs just a paint layer I may have to consider putting up some wallpaper.

Why wallpaper?#

A lot of homes are built with stone/brickers and covered in some amount of plaster. That’s great for creating long lasting sturdy structures but each wall is like it’s own “custom” job. Plastering is not always smooth and even if it was initially smooth, time is always a disproving factor. Paint does not do so well on uneven surfaces. That’s not to say it’s impossible or that you can’t make the surface smooth to paint, but there is an added factor to consider. Wallpaper is the solution in a few different ways. It is easy to install on plaster, hides uneveness relatively well, painting a layer on top is no problem and it is durable. Coming from the US my experience with wallpaper is that it is an inferior way to have a room decorated and can lead to problems later when you want to change it. How true that is, is subjective, but the point is, seeing the options and general popularity in Germany is giving me second thoughts.

Future decision in the making#

Whether I want to smooth the walls with some plaster or put up some new wallpaper has yet to be finalized. Whichever choice I make though I still have to remove and clean the old, so I’ll stay busy while I think about it.