Dean of DH Painter & Decorator hangs lining paper and wallpaper in Greens Norton homes, 8.5 miles south-west of Northampton near Towcester. In the village's old stone cottages that means setting out from a plumb line, cross-lining uneven walls and picking papers that suit solid walls.
Why papering here starts with a plumb line
The cottages on High Street, Bengal Lane and Blakesley Hill were built by hand from coursed rubble, most of them between the late 1600s and the early 1800s. Their inside walls follow the stone. They bow, lean and change thickness from one end of a room to the other, corners are rarely square and ceiling lines dip where old timbers have settled. For wallpaper, the practical result is that nothing in the room can be used as a reference.
Dean drops a plumb line for the first length on every wall and works the pattern out from the focal point. In these cottages that is usually the chimney breast, since many have brick end stacks. Any drift in the pattern then ends up in the least visible corner, behind a door or in the angle of an alcove, instead of beside the window.
Lining paper on lime plaster and stone
Lime plaster over stone often has a soft, uneven surface with hollows and old patch repairs. A decorative paper hung straight onto that shows every bump in raking light from the small casement windows. Lining paper hung horizontally, known as cross-lining, evens out the surface and gives the finish paper a consistent base to stick to.
The paper you choose matters on a solid wall too. Vinyl-faced papers form a barrier that can trap moisture against an outside wall, which is where the lining lifts and mould starts. On the outer walls of the old cottages we suggest breathable papers: traditional pulp papers, or non-wovens with a paper face. Heavier vinyls are better kept to internal partitions, bathrooms in newer parts of the house and the village’s modern homes.
Picking a pattern for low, beamed rooms
| Feature of the room | What it means for the paper |
|---|---|
| Low ceilings in two-storey-and-attic ranges | Small-scale or random-match patterns hide a wavy ceiling line better than a large repeat |
| Beams crossing the ceiling or wall | Paper is trimmed to the timber by hand and kept off it |
| Two- and three-light casements in thick walls | Deep reveals take extra cutting and folding; plain or textured papers are easier to match round them |
| Sloping attic ceilings | A drop-match pattern rarely survives the slope; lining paper and paint is often the cleaner answer |
Stripes are the hardest paper to hang in an old cottage, because a true vertical line next to a leaning wall makes the lean obvious. If you have your heart set on a stripe, an internal partition, which is usually straighter, is the place for it.
Listed interiors and what’s under the old paper
Listing in Greens Norton mostly applies to homes, from the Blakesley Hill row to Bengal Manor, and it protects interiors as well as frontages. Papering over plain plaster counts as ordinary redecoration. Removing early papers, original linings or panelling to get there may not, so if a listed room has anything older than modern lining under the paint, ask West Northamptonshire Council before stripping. Rooms in 20th-century extensions and in the newer houses are simpler: flatter plaster, squarer corners and room for any paper type. Our main wallpaper hanging page covers stripping, sizing and hanging in more detail.
Covering Greens Norton from Northampton
We travel 8.5 miles south-west from Northampton to Greens Norton and to the hamlets of Caswell and Duncote. Where a row cottage has no rear access, the rolls, pasting table and steps come in through the front, and we set up in a room that isn’t being papered so the rest of the house stays usable. There is more about the village’s houses on our Greens Norton page.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
