Posted on: March 16, 2007
Quick-Change Crowd Embraces ‘Do-It-Again’ Design
By Timothy R. Schulte
CTW Features
Image courtesy blik
The walls are no longer a forbidden design frontier for renters, commitmentphobes and precociously creative kids.
Peel-and-stick wall art and graphics are giving room dwellers the freedom to transform their walls – over and over if their hearts desire – without the permanence of paint or wallpaper.
Wall stickers – think of them as temporary tattoos for a room – provide maximum dramatic impact with a minimum investment in time and money. For kids accustomed to personalizing their bodies, iPods, phones, skis and lockers with colorful tattoos, wrappers, skins, stickers or decals, the walls of a room are merely an enticingly large canvas for personal expression. “The whole idea behind it was the younger generations. When it comes to decorating, they don’t even consider wallpaper,” says Paula Berberian, creative services manager for WallPops, a line of repositionable vinyl wall art by Brewster Wallcovering Co., Randolph, Mass.
Unlike paint or wallpaper, removable graphics are perfect for trying out a new designs or patterns, such as dots or stripes, says Scott Flora, a co-founder of blik, Venica, Calif., another producer of adhesive wall graphics.
“Simply adding a few colorful graphics affects not just the wall but the space and environment in which you live,” Flora says.
Image courtesy Dvider
Both blik and WallPops skew young. WallPops was developed for the tween, teen and young-adults markets, says Berberian. Blik has a line of removable decals, blikids, which features whimsically designed animals and objects perfect for a nursery or kid’s room. The kid’s room, says Flora, is the one room in the house most open to discussion in terms of design, so mixing and matching with peel-and-stick art is an easy way to try out a few designs.
But it’s not all child’s play.
Berberian says a second-generation line of WallPops is in the works for adults. The peel-and-sticks will feature a new palette, die cuts and more sophisticated patterns. Many of blik’s graphics are inspired by artists and designers, such as Keith Haring and Charles and Ray Eames, perfect for a grown-up crowd.
“It’s a nice way to help inspire what we do and bring a different voice to the table,” Flora says. “We try to give people the opportunity to use their creativity in their own space.”
