Start With the Proportions of the Room

Pattern is one of the great gifts of an old house. Tall ceilings, generous windows and a bit of architectural confidence mean period rooms can carry designs that would overwhelm a modern box. But the pattern has to be pitched at the right scale, and that decision begins with the ceiling height rather than the colour you happen to love.

As a rough working rule, look at the height of the room and think about how many repeats you will actually see stacked above one another:

• Under 2.4 metres: keep motifs small and repeats short. Tiny sprigs, fine stripes, narrow trellis and delicate dots read as texture rather than noise.
• 2.4 to 2.8 metres (most Victorian terraces): mid-scale florals, small damasks and modest geometrics sit comfortably. A repeat of 20 to 40cm is usually safe.
• 2.8 to 3.2 metres (Georgian and grander Victorian rooms): you can go up to a 50 to 60cm repeat, and larger motifs finally look at home.
• Over 3.2 metres: generous damasks, broad trails and bold botanicals give the walls the presence they need. Small patterns can simply disappear.

Two further measurements matter. A picture rail or dado rail gives you a natural place to stop, and a paper that finishes neatly above or below one looks deliberate rather than cut short. And check the width of your room: in a narrow hall, a large repeat can feel like it is closing in, so favour something with an open background.

Choosing a Motif That Belongs

You do not have to be a purist about period accuracy, but matching the mood of the house pays dividends. Georgian rooms tend to suit something formal and architectural: classical urns, restrained stripes, delicate neoclassical swags, small-scale block prints. Victorian and Edwardian interiors take wonderfully to denser designs — trailing florals, Arts and Crafts-inspired stems, stylised damasks, and the slightly busier all-over patterns that originally filled parlours and hallways.

If you are unsure, look at what the house already tells you. Original cornices, ceiling roses and joinery will hint at how much decoration the room was built for. A plain, low-ceilinged service room will always feel happier with a quieter design than a formal drawing room with deep skirting boards and a bay window.

Working Out How Much Paper You Need

Pattern repeats eat paper, and this is where many projects come unstuck. A long repeat means more waste per drop, because every strip has to be cut so the motif lands in the same place. As a practical guide:

• Measure the full wall height, then add 10cm top and bottom for trimming.
• Divide the repeat into that figure and round up. A 2.6 metre wall with a 52cm repeat needs five repeats per drop, not four.
• Multiply by the number of drops, then add at least one extra roll for corners, awkward windows and future repairs.
• Order everything in one batch so the colour matches, and keep the spare roll in the loft.

Corners are rarely plumb in older houses, so expect to lose a little pattern matching as you turn each one. Lining the walls first gives a smoother surface, helps the paper sit flat over old plaster, and makes later removal considerably kinder.

Balancing Bold Prints With Plain Fabrics

This is the single most common mistake with patterned wallpaper: letting the pattern compete with everything else in the room. If the walls are busy, the furnishings should hold their tongue.

Choose upholstery in a plain weave — linen, wool, brushed cotton, a soft velvet — in a tone pulled straight from the paper. Curtains in a solid colour, or a plain fabric with a subtle texture, allow the walls to lead. Then add pattern back in small, controlled doses: a pair of cushions, a trimmed lampshade, a rug with a simple border. Three patterns in one room is plenty; four is a crowd.

If you want a patterned fabric as well, make sure the two designs differ in scale. A large floral on the wall with a small check on the sofa works beautifully; two medium florals will fight. Keeping the upholstery low and the wallpaper high also helps the eye separate them.

Keeping Woodwork and Trim Quiet

Paint is your best ally here. Strong wallpaper against bright white gloss skirting creates a hard, jarring line, particularly in older rooms with soft light. Instead, pick a colour from the paper's background — a chalky off-white, a muted stone, a soft grey-green — and use it on skirting boards, architraves, window frames and picture rails.

An eggshell finish is practical and period-appropriate: wipeable, slightly lower in sheen than gloss, and forgiving on old timber. If the room is dark, keep the ceiling a warm off-white rather than brilliant white so the pattern does not sit under a glare. Where you have a dado rail, a darker or more saturated paint below and wallpaper above gives a lovely grounded effect and reduces the amount of pattern you are hanging.

Hanging and Living With Pattern

Take your time over the first drop. Start in the least conspicuous corner, use a plumb line rather than trusting the room to be square, and check that the motif sits well against the ceiling line before you commit. Wipe paste off joinery as you go, and let the paper dry slowly with the heating low; drying too fast encourages seams to open.

Once it is up, live with it for a week before adding anything else. Pattern settles into a room surprisingly quickly, and you may find you need less furniture, less art and fewer accessories than you expected. Let the walls do the talking — that is precisely what these houses were built for.