Back in May, I used Farrow & Ball paint to transform a spare bedroom in my San Francisco apartment into a home office. (See A Room Finds Its Purpose in Farrow & Ball Paint.) I was delighted with the results, but wanted to add definition to the empty corner where the guest bed resides. When rumors of new Farrow & Ball Wallpapers surfaced, I devised the solution on the spot—a wraparound, wallpapered headboard would do the trick.
Photography by Kassie Borreson for Remodelista.
Above: I chose Farrow & Ball’s new Gable pattern for my office and guest bedroom; its maker was inspired by “a typically British sight—quaint country cottages, picket fences, and farmyard animals.” I liked the idea of adding a note of “old-worldliness” (to borrow a term from Farrow & Ball) to the otherwise simple space.
Above: The walls are painted in Farrow & Ball’s Shadow White with trim in Drop Cloth—two of the Nine New Colors released earlier this year. Farrow & Ball’s New 2016 Wallpapers—Gable, Arcade, and Enigma—were inspired by the 1940s, the decade in which the British company was founded.
Above: Gable’s farm scene depicts horses, cows, sheep, dogs, chickens, and songbirds, but no cats (luckily, I have two).
Above: To make the headboard, I had two panels of 3/4-inch plywood cut to size by a cabinetmaker. I then sanded and primed the panels and covered them in the paper using Farrow & Ball Wallpaper Paste; next, I hung the panels on the wall using steel French cleats.
Above: When the door is open, the office and guest room is in direct sight of the living room. In the foreground hangs a Zimbabwean basket from March in San Francisco.
Above: My pick, Gable 5407, is composed of Farrow & Ball paint color Off-Black on a background of Setting Plaster. It looks at home next to Shadow White walls and an Ikea Backvial bedspread (I picked the checkered print for a subtle farmhouse nod).
Above: I kept the bedding simple, letting the wallpaper take center stage (I used plain white sheets, a black linen cushion cover by Le Vestiaire de Jeanne from La Garçonne, and a Sanela cotton velvet cushion cover from Ikea).
Above: There’s so much to see in this design; after hours of installing the paper I was still spotting tiny details I hadn’t previously noticed.
Above: A bookcase of powder-coated steel doubles as a nightstand, and holds books, ceramics, and an art print by Maki Yamada from the Remodelista SF Market in a pale wood frame from Framebridge.
-Meredith Swinehart
Visit Farrow & Ball to learn more about the inspiration behind its three New Wallpapers. Browse the company’s Nine New Paint Colors released earlier this year and see all nine colors in Remodelista Editor Homes.
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