Our Dining Wallpaper

Our dining room is far from finished but I had to show you a sneak peek of our new dining room wallpaper (here’s the original inspo if you recall). I wish I could say I was embracing progress over perfection, although if you follow me on TikTok (which you totally should…please!) you’d think I had, but it’s mostly because I’m too excited to not share it right away. I’ve also gotten a lot of questions about how to choose a dining wallpaper, and while I’m by no means an expert, I thought I’d share some tips that helped us here too. And since we’re a ways away from being able to host any dinner parties, I figured a progress shot it is. I was going to save our dining room for last in terms of priorities for decorating our new house. I figured it would get used the least since we have an eat-in kitchen and family room that are really the heart of the home. But I’ve started using our dining room quite a bit to work in and it’s at the front of the house right off the front entrance, so when people come in that way, it gets quite a bit of visibility. Plus, I pass it every day on my way up the stairs. But really, there was a very large chandelier in the dining room that we didn’t love and was bugging us, and then I found a wallpaper I loved so much I had to use it. Plus, we found an antique dining room table at an estate sale auction for $50 and figured we had a starting point, which is more than I can say for the rest of the house. But let’s be serious, really, it was the wallpaper.

I saw this Brunschwig and Fils wallpaper used in a few different places on Pinterest and Instagram and I fell in love. From bedrooms to powder rooms to breakfast rooms, no matter where it was hanging, I couldn’t stop pinning/saving/screenshotting it. I knew I wanted it in one room in my house. And I guess that’s what I would say is my number one tip for how to choose a dining wallpaper: Find a print you love and can’t stop thinking about. Of course wallpaper isn’t cheap and it makes a statement so you also want to go with something that you will not just love now but in five years too (I redecorate too often to commit to ten years). So I’d avoid anything trendy and opt for something you think will stand the test of time and not feel like it’s part of a design trend you just jumped on. I have mulled over this paper for over a year, so I knew it was something I would love for years to come. With that said, you can always redecorate! Part of the reason to use wallpaper is to make a statement and have fun with it. I think dining rooms are great spaces to do just that and you can invest a bit more in the paper because they just don’t get used as often and you can, in theory, ban your kids from using the room, so you don’t have to worry as much about them getting ruined. Plus, so many of us use our dining rooms as offices and wallpaper can make a great backdrop.

When choosing a dining room wallpaper, I recommend choosing a colorway that works with the other rooms in your house or at least any that open to/from the dining room. We’re not going to match every room in our house, but since our dining room is on one side of our entrance and our living room is on the other, I’m going to stick to the same color family and bring blues into each (my favorite color). Think also about the other furniture, too. I like starting with the wallpaper, but realistically, sometimes we’ll have a table we inherited or a sideboard from a previous home that we are going to use and need to choose a paper with those pieces in mind. So unless you’re starting from scratch, it’s a good idea to think about what else you know will be in the room. I decided to go more classic and versatile with our furniture and make the statement and investment with the wallpaper. That way, if we move again (which knowing me, we will), the furniture can work in our new space and then we can choose a different wallpaper and look for our next dining room. I love how that way the wallpaper can really set the tone too. If you want a more traditional paper, it can be nice to bring in a few modern touches to keep the room feeling fresh, like a modern chandelier or table. Or vice versa.

We chose a print that has a bit less color for our dining room because I felt like I would get less sick of it down the road, and I liked the idea of pulling out the subtle blue in the paper with paint and eventually window treatments and upholstery for our chairs. We also considered the room as a whole. The table is more traditional so the paper compliments it but doesn’t feel too chintzy so you don’t feel like you’re eating at your mother-in-laws. We added in a modern chandelier and more modern chairs for contrast. I still need to find a sideboard (I may do a grasscloth) and a rug (I think I may do sisal again but open to any recs). If you’re not feeling a print, I love how a grasscloth can add texture and be incredibly versatile so it’s a great option as well. We have a medium sized or average sized dining room I would say, so we chose a medium scale print. But you want to consider the size of the room when picking a print. A large print may not work in a smaller space and a tiny print may feel overwhelming in a gigantic room. Order samples to get a feel.

Nothing genius here, but I hope that helps you figure out how to choose a dining wallpaper. And hope you liked this sneak peek. I’m so excited about this space, I now want to host something even though the rest of the house is far from ready to be shown. But maybe that’s the point? You just have people over and enjoy the house and not worry about everything being perfect? Also, how do we feel about the blue? It was a bit out of my comfort zone and wasn’t sure about the color, but I think I like it?

Here are some more wallpapers I love for dining rooms: