Making the walls your own

With wallpaper enjoying a revival, the choice of classic or new designs is certainly vast but there’s another option that could make your walls special - choosing your own images to create unique papers.

It’s affordable and easy because one of the most notable wallpaper trends right now is for bespoke designs, with companies using cutting-edge technology to create high-quality wallpaper based on a picture or item you’ve fallen in love with, a compilation of beloved family photos or just one striking holiday snap for a mural.

What better use for those beautiful photos which in most cases never graduate to an album and instead spend an eternity stored on a computer or mobile?

“Having your photos made into wallpaper is an innovative and lovely way of using them,” says Victoria Wayland-Smith of Life On A Wall, which turns photo collections into collage-style wallpaper.

A choice of three design formats (classic, random and grid) are currently available, starting from £80 per square metre.

Creating the paper takes around two to three weeks. Customers simply submit their hi-res photos via the website, and will be sent a proof of the design to approve before it’s printed.

“People are taking more photos than they used to and my job is organising people’s photographs for them - primarily into photo-books. The wallpaper concept was a natural extension of this,” says Wayland-Smith.

“Photographs are so precious and evoke so special many memories that people are looking at different ways to get them off of their computer and display them, and digital printing gives us so many more opportunities than we’ve had in the past.”

Swedish company Photowall also produces unique wallpaper and wall murals. Customers can either upload their own image to the site, or choose from the website’s catalogue, which includes iconic skylines, tropical paradise scenes, maps and much more.

Prices vary from £26 to £37 per square metre, and completed wallpaper will usually be shipped to the customer within a week of their order being placed.

UK design and print specialist Space Innovation offers a range of bespoke print and wallpaper/murals services, which includes bringing vintage designs back to life.

This could be a vintage wallpaper design no longer in production, or the cover of a book, or even the print on a fabric - the possibilities are endless.

Another supplier, Mr Perswall, has a Nostalgia collection designed to trigger memories as well as a pop design range featuring 20th century style icons including Bridget Bardot, Sean Connery, Bob Dylan and Jackie Onassis.

Alternatively, the company can transform old letters, beautiful lace, favourite record sleeves, photos or children’s drawings into a memorable wall covering.