From the window to the walls, Eteannette Seymour loves this Glenmont dining room. “One of the most undervalued interior design elements is window treatments,” says the Saratoga-based designer behind the room’s remodel. “We worked with the wonderful team from local company Curtain and Carpet Concepts, and the beautiful pinch pleat curtains pull everything together.”
But while Seymour has a keen eye for details like sills, jambs and frames, less trained eyes are sure to focus on another design element entirely when walking into the room. “The wallpaper is definitely our swing-for-the-fences moment,” she says. “And everything else supports that in a steady way.” Seymour and her clients ended up selecting a print called Hydrangea Drape from the luxury design company Schumacher because its vertical lines make the room feel taller than it is.
Seymour is fully on board for the great wallpaper revival that kicked off shortly before Realtor Magazine declared that the trend was making a triumphant return in 2019. (The wallpaper market was valued at $2.3 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach $3.2 billion by 2031.) Her suggestions if you’re thinking about going big for the walls in your own home? Collect samples before ordering rolls—“scale, color and print can look very different from the online image”—and hire out the installation—it can be tricky to apply and you don’t want the outcome to be less than perfect.
And which rooms of your house are best suited for bold prints? Seymour says powder baths, children’s rooms and, obviously, dining rooms. “Formal dining rooms especially are a great place to use wallpaper because you want it to feel sophisticated yet fun and joyful,” she says. “You want your friends hanging around the table having one too many glasses of wine.”
