Carter & Company Historic Wallpapers

I've had wallpaper on the brain lately for two reasons. First, I keep reading that wallpaper is a trend that is over. So done that you can stick a fork in it. Well, that seems really silly to me. It's like saying you're over fabric. I think that people either like wallpaper or they don't. And if you do like it, how can you ever be over it? Certain wallpaper prints and patterns perhaps, but wallpaper as a whole? Never.

The other reason for my wallpaper ruminations is because I've been working through a design problem. My bedroom walls have no crown molding. When I had my room papered, I unwisely took the paper all the way up to the ceiling. I'd like to make the excuse that I had a month to get my condo completely "done" before I moved in so I was rushed, but really it was because I just didn't think about it. After the paper was hung, though, I realized that it just doesn't look finished. I had been toying with the idea of adding crown molding, but then I reread Michael Greer's Inside Design and am now reconsidering my options. In his book, Greer mentions that in the absence of crown molding, a wallpaper border is a suitable option for finishing off the wall. Lord knows that there are lots of bad wallpaper borders out there, but if I can find a decent looking one, perhaps I'll go with this option.

So anyway, while searching for wallpaper borders, I found the website of Carter & Co. Historic Wallpapers based in Richmond, VA. The firm specializes in handprinted reproductions of historic wallpapers from the early 19th century to the early 20th. I was not familiar with Carter & Co. when I found their site, but I thought I would share some of their papers with you. For other options for historic wallpaper reproductions, don't forget about Adelphi Paper Hangings and Waterhouse Wallhangings.



A reproduction of an 1880s paper found at the James A. Garfield National Memorial Site in Mentor, OH.



Harvey Ashlar Wall based on a c. 1860s paper found in The Harvey House, Salinas, California.




Oriental Lattice Wallpaper, a reproduction of an 1880s paper used in the Cohen-Bray House, Oakland, CA.



Shooting Stars Ceiling Paper, c. 1880-1900, The Knight House, Silver Plume, Colorado.



Prowers House Border, 1860s, Prowers House, Boggsville, CO.



Etruscan Mosaic Frieze, 1880s-1900s, The Fallon Hotel, Columbia, CA.

Paper at top: A French Scenic wallpaper from the 1850s-60s from the Whitehall State Historic Site, Richmond, Kentucky.