The wallpaper guides / 03
Black and white botanical wallpaper: five picks and where they work
Black and white botanical wallpaper works best on one wall you see from a doorway: an entry, a powder room without a shower, or the wall behind a bed. Our five picks are Peony floral and Palm for bold, dense pattern, Floral garden and Scandinavian floral nursery for lighter line drawing, and Art Deco arch for a graphic counterpoint. Paint the trim white or black, keep wood and brass for warmth, and order a $15 sample before you order panels. A 5-foot entry wall on an 8-foot ceiling takes 2 panels, $240.
1. Five black and white botanicals.
All five are black on white, printed on peel-and-stick panels 30 inches wide, in nine heights from 48 to 192 inches. They differ in how much black reaches the wall.
- Peony floral: black peonies and fine leafy stems in a dense repeat. The boldest pick, with the most black on the wall.
- Palm: black palm fronds and fine sketched foliage. Large leaves and plenty of movement, for a wall you want people to notice.
- Floral garden: line-drawn flowers and leafy stems on a full white ground. Lighter than Peony floral, and it reads as a drawing more than a print.
- Scandinavian floral nursery: small line-drawn flowers spaced across white. The most open pattern here; it sits in our kids range but works in any room.
- Art Deco arch: nested black arches in a crisp repeat. Not a botanical, but the same black and white, and the one to choose if florals feel too soft for the room.
2. Where high contrast works.
Black on white is the strongest contrast a wallpaper can have, so it does best in rooms you pass through or a wall you look at from across the room.
- Entry. The wall facing the front door, or the wall behind a console or bench. You see it for a few seconds at a time, which is where a bold pattern like Peony floral or Palm pays off.
- Powder room. A small room you spend a minute at a time in, so a bold wall never gets tiring. Paper the wall behind the vanity. We have not tested our panels in humid rooms, so choose a powder room without a shower or bath.
- One bedroom wall. The wall behind the bed, so the pattern sits behind you rather than in your eyeline when you lie down. A lighter repeat like Floral garden or Scandinavian floral nursery keeps the room calm.
In each case, paper one wall and keep the others plain. Two black and white walls in a small room start to compete.
3. Pairing with trim and furniture.
| Room | Trim and paint | Furniture and finishes | Designs to sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | White trim, or black doors for a sharper look | A wood or black metal bench, a round mirror, a woven runner | Peony floral, Palm |
| Powder room | Black or deep charcoal trim and door | Brass or black fixtures, a white sink, a wood-framed mirror | Palm, Art Deco arch |
| Bedroom | Bright white trim and ceiling | Oak or walnut, white bedding, a black lamp or frame | Floral garden, Scandinavian floral nursery |
- Match the white. Hold the sample against your trim. A cool white trim next to a warmer white ground makes one of them look dingy.
- Add one warm material. Wood, brass, rattan or leather keeps black and white from feeling cold.
- Keep other pattern small. Solid textiles, or a thin stripe, next to the wall. A second floral in the room fights the first.
4. Plan the wall.
Divide the wall width in inches by 30 and round up for the panel count. Add 4 inches to the wall height for trim and alignment, then choose the shortest panel height that covers it.
| Wall | Panels across | Panel height | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry, 5 ft wide, 8 ft high (60 × 96 in) | 60 ÷ 30 = 2 | 108 in | 2 × $120 = $240 |
| Bedroom, 10 ft wide, 8 ft high (120 × 96 in) | 120 ÷ 30 = 4 | 108 in | 4 × $120 = $480 |
Prices are before tax, with free US shipping. Every panel is printed to order, and typical door-to-door time in the US is about one week; our shipping policy has the details. Our guide to how many wallpaper panels you need has a chart for walls 6 to 14 feet wide, and accent wall ideas for small spaces covers walls that take two to four panels.
5. Start with a $15 sample.
Black and white looks simple on a screen, but the white ground can read warm or cool next to your trim, and a dense repeat looks busier on the wall than in a photo. Order a sample of each finalist from our samples page, or straight from a design: Peony floral sample, Palm sample, Floral garden sample or Art Deco arch sample. Each is $15 with free US shipping.
- Tape the samples on the wall you plan to paper, next to the trim.
- Look at them in daylight and again in the evening under your own bulbs.
- Step back to the doorway and decide whether you want the pattern to lead or recede.
Ordering your wall after the sample? Use code SAMPLE15 for $15 off orders of $300 or more (one use per customer).
Questions
Is black and white floral wallpaper too busy for a small room?
Not on one wall. High contrast makes a small room feel deliberate when the pattern stays on a single wall and the other walls, trim and ceiling stay plain. Pick a lighter, more open repeat like Floral garden or Scandinavian floral nursery if you want the wall to recede, and a denser one like Peony floral if you want it to be the first thing you see.
Which wall should get black and white botanical wallpaper?
A wall you see from a doorway and do not stand close to all day: the wall facing the front door, the wall behind a powder room vanity, or the wall behind a bed. Avoid a wall broken up by several doors, where the pattern gets cut into strips.
How many panels do I need?
WallJoy panels are 30 inches wide, so divide the wall width in inches by 30 and round up. A 5-foot entry wall on an 8-foot ceiling takes 2 108-inch panels, $240, and a 10-foot bedroom wall takes 4, $480, for any of the five designs in this guide.
Can I put it in a powder room?
We have not tested our panels in humid rooms, so keep to a powder room without a shower or bath, and to the wall behind the vanity rather than a wall that gets splashed. Order a sample and look at it in the room's light before you order panels.
How long does delivery take?
Every panel is printed to order, and typical door-to-door time in the US is about one week. Shipping is free in the US, for panels and for $15 samples.