HOW TO MEASURE FOR WIDE WIDTH WALLPAPERS

We often get asked how much wallpaper, or how much wallpaper do I need? Or even how many rolls or how many rolls of wallpaper do I need?, and this can all depend on a number of factors:

a) The size of the room. 
b) The width of the wallpaper. 
c) The size of the vertical pattern repeat if any.

This is guide on how to measure for wide with wallpapers, we do have another guide on guide on estimating wallpaper quantities which deals with standard width and roll sizes.

This example uses wallpaper wide, or more often referred to as wide width wallpaper, which are generally sold by the meter (like fabric) and this guide will hopefully help you calculate the amount you need to order.

In this guide we are using a Lewis and Wood Wallpaper Jasper Peony which is 135 cm wide and sold by the meter, with a 104.5cm pattern repeat.

You can however still apply the same approach to a wallpaper that is 90cm wide or a 100cm wide, and with or without a vertical pattern repeat.

What is covered in this guide is the following:

1. How to calculate the number of drops to cover a wall.
2. Number of repeats per drop of wallpaper.
3. Final drop length.
4. Final meterage for a wall.
5. Final meterage for a room.
6. Extra Wallpaper tips.

1. How to calculate the number of drops of wallpaper to cover a wall:  

• You will need to measure the width of the wall and divide it by the width of the wallpaper. In this example we are using a Lewis & Wood Jasper Peony, which is 135cm wide and sold by the meter.


• So, to cover a wall measuring 450cm wide you will need to divide 450cm by 135cm. 450 / 135 = 3.34 then round this up to the nearest figure ie. 4  

Therefore 4 drops of wallpaper are needed to cover this wall.

2. Number of repeats per drop of Wide Wallpaper: 

You will need to measure the height of the wall and divide it by the vertical repeat of the wallpaper.

In the example below the wall is 248cm high and Jasper Peony wallpaper has a vertical repeat of 104.5cm.

To calculate the number of repeats per drop of wall paper you will need to divide 248cm by 104.5cm.

So, the number of repeats needed per drop will be 248cm divided by 104.5cm = 2.38

If the design is a half drop repeat you will need to round up this figure to the nearest half of a repeat i.e. 2.5 in the example above.

However, if the number of repeats came to 2.78 you would round this figure up to 3.

Note if the design is a straight repeat or sometimes referred to as straight pattern match you will need to round this up to the nearest round whole number i.e. 3.

3. Final drop length: 

To calculate the final drop length, you will need to multiply the number of repeats by the vertical repeat of the design.

So in this example the drop lengths you will need to cut will be 2.5 x 104.5 = 261.25 (262cm )

4. Final meterage per wall for Wide Wallpaper: 

To calculate the final meterage for the wall you will need to multiply the number of drops (step 1) by the final drop length (step 3).

So, in this example the final meterage to cover the wall will be 4 drops x 262cm = 10.48 metres.

5. How to estimate Wide Wallpaper for a whole room:

Imagine the room flat-packed as in the diagram, ignoring doors and windows (unless very large picture windows).

In the diagram there are 4 walls making a total of 15.94m (4.5 metres x 2 + 3.47 metres x 2) Therefore divide 15.94m by 135cm (width of paper) = 11.81 rounded up to 12 drops required to paper this room.

So, in this example the final meterage to cover all 4 walls will be 12 drops x 262cm = 31.44 metres.

6. Extra tips:

We recommend ordering one extra repeat to allow for choice in positioning the design on the wall.

We also recommend adding one extra drop {or two if a large job) to allow for accident and error.

When hanging HALF DROP wallpaper’s you can economise by changing the order in which you cut the drops.

When rounding up number of repeats in a drop to a half number e.g. 2.5, 3.5 you will cut the drops for a room IN SEQUENCE 1,2,3,4 etc.

When rounding up number of repeats in a drop to a round number e.g. 3, 4, 5 it is more economical to cut drops ALTERNATELY i.e. 1,3,5,7 followed by 2,4,6,8 ...

If you are looking for a How To Hang Wide Width Wallpaper Video guide then click on that link to watch a video from Lewis and Wood. 

Please note the information is provided as a guide to help you make informed choices, we would always recommend you seek the help and advice of a qualified professional decorator as we cannot be held responsible for any errors or miscalculations following this guide.