The quality of Laura Ashley wallpaper often gets talked about on the Decorators Forum UK for a few reasons. Most professional tradesmen hate the stuff! I’m going to give you my own personal review, having hung the wallpaper on countless occasions.
The Laura Ashley Designs
There’s no questioning that Laura Ashley Wallpaper screams luxury, making it a popular choice amongst homeowners. The sleek, timeless patterns and colours do complement a lot of homes and it is easy to see why they are so popular. Not just that, but a Laura Ashley outlet will also be able to give you a cleverly worked out colour scheme for each paper, including the paint and soft furnishings to complete the room. This gives someone with very little idea about interior design a definite advantage.
The Shop
The Laura Ashley shop has plenty of helpful staff who are well trained, there is a nice feel to the shop and it has bags of choice. There is a huge range of home furnishings under one roof, from curtain poles, cushions, paint, paper, rugs, you name it! All overpriced in my honest opinion and the weekly sales are a little bit insulting. The paint they sell is low-quality too.
The Quality of the Wallpaper
This is where my review takes a turn unfortunately. As previously mentioned, a lot of decorators hate Laura Ashley and that is for a good reason! The quality of most of their wallpapers is shocking! Very thin with little soak time and you must use their own starchy paste. The paper tears and creases easily in your hands and you can mark it just by laying the stuff on a pasting table. You can’t over handle it either, or for that matter, wipe down with a damp cloth or the pattern literally comes off in your hands! I believe Laura Ashley herself was kicked down the stairs by a qualified decorator, who then went on to get a knighthood. There’s also a rumour she killed Napoleon Bonaparte, but that was never proven. But seriously, the best advice I can give you is stay well away!!
That said, you can get some nicer Laura Ashley wallpapers. Look out for the “paste-the-wall” papers. These are non-woven and will not mark, or rip as easily as the other Laura Ashley papers.
It’s still thin, so make sure your walls are well prepped, or lined. However, it is a lot easier to apply and the seams look better. I don’t mind using Laura Ashley non-woven at all. It’s their standard pulp paper I hate.
Tips for Hanging Laura Ashley
If you must hang the stuff, you can follow a few quick tips to help you achieve the desired finish;
First off, line your walls before installing the finish paper. This will soak up the excess paste, plus there is less chance of your seams opening.
Do not oversoak your paper. Paste one piece at a time, wait for 2 or 3 minutes, then get it on the wall. Any longer and the wallpaper will turn to mush in your hands.
Use their own paste and go easy on it. You need something starchy that dries slowly for Laura Ashley.
Don’t over handle the wallpaper and don’t panic. The paper will not look mint while you’re hanging it, but the worst thing you can do is mess about with it. Paste it, throw it at the wall, cut it, then crack on with your next drop. You can’t wipe excess paste off the front with a heavy hand, you’ve just got to hope it dies out.
I hope this blog prevents you from hanging yourself in frustration
Blog written by Mike Gregory – Professional Painter, Decorator and Blogger.
you are a god
Thank you for your comment….
I wish i had seen this thread before having Laura Ashley paper hung i our bedroom. Despite the best efforts of the decorator the quality of the finish is appalling and the paper is awful! Such a shame. Anyone hanging on to a major closing down sale bargain as I was (£3 a roll) just bin it. It absolutely is not worth the time or effor. Shows every surface imperfection on the wall and is gapping at every seam. 🙁
A good review on such awful crap paper/ tissue paper!
Should charge double bubble to hang that toilet paper.
25 years ago I did my whole house in Laura Ashley and had no problems, BUT since then the quality has been on a downward spiral. They used to do some lovely vinyls but now it is nearly all poor quality surface printed. I did my hall about ten years ago and I pride myself on having good joins. I’ve done my own wallpapering since my twenties and I’m now 69. I was so disappointed when the paper shrank and showed gaps. It is such a pity that the quality is so poor as the designs are so beautiful. I am now redecorating the house and it is so disappointing to see beautiful Laura Ashley designs but have to choose something else instead, such as Osborne, simply because the quality of Laura Ashley is so poor.
Just been hanging it- only on.one wall- thankfully. I have hanged it before and it is still really poor quality. Last time I’ll be persuaded to hang it.
” I believe Laura Ashley herself was kicked down the stairs by a qualified decorator, who then went on to get a knighthood.”
What an utterly disgraceful comment.
Perhaps you’ve never had someone close to you who has died of a tragic accident. If you had, I doubt you would regard it as a suitable subject for a sick joke.
thank you for your comment Karen
I have just decorated my hallway in Laura Ashley Elderwood wallpaper. Beautiful design and just the right colour I was looking for. Awful paper to hang! At £46 per role, I am so disappointed, I could cry!
The paper is very awkward to handle, creases easily, poor quality and shrinks once it is dried. I have done my whole hallway in this and bearing in mind it is a small, gally type hallway (old Victorian property) it just looks absolutely awful!
Between every length, I now have a uniformed half a millimetre gap!
Stay away from Laura Ashley is what my advice is, feeling very cheated into thinking it would be good quality.
Dog shit brand. It’s honestly a miracle they are still a solvent business