Shopping for wallpaper I’ve been wallpaper shopping online, looking for hallway paper. And I think I found it.→[More:]

Originally I wanted a cream with floral-like sprays of ochre or tan across it. I thought I’d keep the hallways very neutral in order to tie the house together.

This is more or less what I was looking for, though it’s a little dull.

After checking out a bunch of other collections on the web without finding quite was I was looking for, I checked out a damask selection to see if it might be a better look than what I originally thought would work. I rather liked this one. Not sure I like the gray in this one, but otherwise it’s rather nice.

And then I found this one, and even though it wasn’t at all what I thought I wanted, I think I’m in love.

It’s for the upper and lower hallways. The trim and banister will be cream, the ceiling ivory, the floors walnut. The light fixtures are to be stained glass and are a yellowy ivory and brown with a little red/rust. (I have one that I bought at a thrift shop for $15 that will go in the lower hall and have my eye on a coordinating new one at Home Depot for the upper hall. The front door will be a warm rich red outside, though I’d have the option of making the inside either red or ivory like the trim. There is to be a stair runner (actually two, with the second one on the attic stairs). The stair carpet will probably be a brown with just a little green and red in it. I'm thinking the hall will still be neutral enough to pull the house together.

To give you an idea of what the hallways have to connect, my living room (which I am nearly finished) is painted a robin's egg turquoise with cream trim while all the furnishings is in the brown/cream/rust range. The kitchen and attic are to be basically neutral - cream and wood tones. The bathroom is cream and spring green. My room is peach/apricot/cream/warm red. The other two bedrooms are to be, respectively: a pale turquoise and old rose; and olive green, lime and cranberry. I have classic/traditional taste and the house was built in 1912, so there are all kinds of old-style touches, such as 12" baseboards, antique metal vent grills, 9' ceilings, and plaster light fixture mouldings.

I've got the wallpaper sample set as my computer wallpaper at the moment so I can spend lots of time looking at it. I should also probably get a sample before I order what I need. But it's one of those cases when I loved it the moment I saw it, and usually I can trust those love at first sight instincts. When shopping, that is;-)