Let’s talk about what we want to finish before this baby arrives. When we prepared for Clara’s arrival in our first house, we spent the nine months tackling a few remaining projects (mainly the full bathroom and the nursery) because much of the house was already done — the kitchen renovation was complete, the hardwood floors had been refinished, and we’d opened up some walls and closed off others. This time around, we’re expecting again but the new house is far less finished, so the goal is to get it to a clean, blank slate rather than a fully completed home.
I’m determined to remove the old wallpaper, replace dated carpeting, and get rid of the blue trim before the baby arrives. Over the next six months I’ll be chipping away at seven spaces:
- remove blue trim and wallpaper from the dining room
- finish removing the kitchen’s graph-paper wallpaper
- strip the blue wallpaper around the bathroom sink and tub
- rip up the worn carpet runner on the stairs (our new runners finally arrived after a long backorder)
- paint the blue trim in the office
- remove the old carpeting on the steps from the garage into the kitchen
We also have other updates on the radar — adding built-ins to the bedroom, improving the office, making a few guest room updates, and, of course, creating the nursery — but I’ll be thrilled to slowly eliminate the blue trim, peeling wallpaper, and old stair runners. Out with the old, in with the new… and a new baby to boot.
We’ve already crossed off the second item on the list thanks to several days spent battling the kitchen’s graph-paper wallpaper. Look at that clean wall now — wallpaper gone and ready for the next steps.
Every wallpaper project is a little different, so I usually try a different removal method each time. In the past I’ve tested boiling water and a steamer; the steamer has worked best so far. For this kitchen I used warm tap water mixed with Dr. Bronner’s soap — a milder, low-fragrance option that still helps cut through adhesive. Some people use a fabric softener mixture, but since my sense of smell and stomach are sensitive during pregnancy, I stuck with the less-fragranced soap.
I added about seven squirts of Dr. Bronner’s to a spray bottle, filled the rest with hot tap water (not boiling), sprayed the wallpaper wall, let it soak for three minutes, then started peeling. Large sections came off in big sheets — which is why I’ve avoided using a scoring tool so far. Scoring can break wallpaper into many small pieces, which creates more tedious work if the paper naturally peels off in larger sheets.
The best removal method depends on many factors: how strongly the wallpaper is adhered, the type of glue used, wall preparation under the paper, the wallpaper’s age, and how many layers there are. My recommendation is to try peeling without scoring first. If the paper won’t budge, then try scoring. In our case the wallpaper was likely applied around 30 years ago and the walls had been primed beforehand, which helped a lot.
I worked my way around the room, spraying, waiting a few minutes, and peeling. Large sections came down easily, but smaller, stubborn areas required a bit more attention. I tried a spackle knife once but it nicked the wall, so I stopped using it — I’d rather preserve the wall and remove paper carefully than speed up removal and have to repair dents later.
About three hours into the job I’d reached the desk area and needed a break. A few days later I caught another burst of energy and went back at it. The backsplash area was smaller and sometimes easier to peel, but in places the adhesive was thicker and left the paper backing stuck to the wall in a striped pattern.
To remove that stubborn backing I tried a new technique that worked incredibly well: pour as-hot-as-you-can-get-it tap water into a bowl with a few pumps of Dr. Bronner’s, dip a paper towel or rag into the solution, and dab it over the remaining backing on the wall. It soaks the backing more thoroughly than a spray bottle and makes large chunks peel off in single pieces.
In the end, it felt like peeling twice in some spots — first removing the paper pattern, then removing the backing — but when the dust settled we had a wallpaper-free kitchen. The room is still dark with faux-brick linoleum and an industrial light on the ceiling, but it’s a major step forward. Overall this took me roughly eight hours of work spread over a few days.
Next steps are to wipe the walls down with a vinegar-and-water spray to remove any residual adhesive and then paint. For the record, the steamer still seems to be the easiest and fastest method, but hot tap water with soap or boiling water are good, free alternatives to try first.
A quick checklist update:
- remove blue trim and wallpaper from the dining room
finish removing the kitchen’s graph-paper wallpaper- strip the bold blue wallpaper in the bathroom
- rip up the old carpet runner on the stairs (new runners arrived)
- paint the blue trim in the office
Now I’m eyeing the bathroom wallpaper next — a smaller space might give my arms a break — and the stair runner is definitely on its way out. Anyone else racing toward a deadline with a list of non-negotiable home projects? I’m excited to push through these tasks so we can move on to the fun part: the nursery.
Psst — Clara’s talking again, and as usual she’s cracking us up.