August 07, 2004

• There's these old fashioned hooks that you can get that hang off the moulding near the top of the wall, and you hang pictures 'n shit from them.
• Doesn't the shit, like, drop off?
• No.
• Will this still work considering that the molding is only about 1/2 inch thick and it's not unlikely that there'll be an earthquake?
• More seriously, what comes to mind are strips of wallpaper (narrow ones, say a few inches across) - I think they're called racing stripes. You can add them at regular intervals on the walls to add a bit of color. Another alternative, if your room isn't very tiny, are curtains. Put up a couple of hooks at the top, lay a curtain rod, and hook up ceiling-to-floor length curtains. One cheap way, instead of buying actual curtains, would be to buy cloth, then get those curtain rings that have clips. You can then clip the cloth to the curtain rings. (I've seen them in Ikea, not sure if they're sold elsewhere). Weigh down the bottom of the curtains so they hang more straight. Would that work?
• a narrow wooden molding running about a foot below the (high) ceiling Nos called it. It's a "picture rail".
• Will this still work considering that the molding is only about 1/2 inch thick and it's not unlikely that there'll be an earthquake? Sometimes you have to cut your losses and run. Leave that woman and her crumbling heap-o-deathtrap.
• word.
• If the crumbly walls can take tape/adhesive, maybe a rasterbized version of an image you like? I haven't used it myself yet, but examples in the gallery look like interesting wall decorations made with black & white printers.
• You can also buy plastic picture hooks that stick to the wall but, when you're done, can be removed by stretching the sticky stuff until it drops away. They're made by 3M here in NZ.
• Here they are.
• Oooh... those are good! I'm getting some for my dorm room!
• Just pay close attention to the weight limits on the different hooks. *avoids looking at spot where glass-covered print used to hang*
• Your landlady's asleep at the wheel - as long as you haven't got a red door, and you want to paint it goddamn black, she should be hip to the fact that tenants who paint are tenants who stick around. I paint anyway. My damage deposit is dick compared to hating my surroundings. Offer to paint it back to soul-sucking white before you move out - put it in writing if she gets hinky.
• I stripped all the white paint off the beautiful native timber doors in one of the student flats I lived in. The landlord thanked me. YMMV.
• About the 3M hooks - the largest hold up to 5lb, and I swear by them. Wall curtains are an excellent idea - they are even better than just colour as they add texture as well. My roommate and I used curtains at all the doorways to warm up our living room (and to create a little more privacy into the bedrooms, so that we don't have to keep the doors shut all the time). Also, if you really like them, you can take them to the next place, unlike wallpaper. I hate landlords that refuse to let you improve. We once had wall to wall carpetting in an apartment where we lived for years, and we had to rip it out when we left because we knew that even if we left it the landlord would throw it in the garbage. It would be so much nicer if you could do things to improve the place, and know that at least the next tenant could enjoy it.
• Before despairing, Cali, know that plaster itself is a very simple material to mend, provided it's only superfical damage of the sort to be expected from picture hooks and small brads or such. And if the walls are white, you're really in the most advantageous position you could be to effect repairs to it yourself. Plaster is basically white. I have known people to patch plaster (and drywall) with bizarre substances like white toothpaste, but a small sack of real plaster costs little and all you need is to add is water. (Fun stuff to work with, just be aware it heats up a bit -- don't be startled by its warming. Let it set and forget it.) Apply it with either fingers or a tool like a butterknife or a pallete knife. Depending on the extent of the damage. Anyhow, don't let the fact the walls are plaster intimidate you. If possible, avoid getting into major or time-consuming projects unless you are confident you will be able to carry them off fairly simply. Meanwhile, think bold colourful rugs, consider bright fabric on tables or other flat surfaces, put in tall bookcases, standing shelves or folding screens. Big splotches of bright colour go over well in white rooms -- so you can make the most of it. Be bold and lavish, white-walls are lots of fun, really. Oh, in older buildings, there a thing sometimes encountered called 'rotten plaster': characterized by powdering and easy crumbling away from underlying wall structure. If by any chance the walls are like this, they need to be re-done by an expert -- don't mess with 'em further yourself. Caused by water/moisture damage -- so small areas may be found in bathrooms or near kitchen sinks -- be extra-cuatious in such places.
• I go with the 3M hooks, myself. PY, that rasterbater link is awesome! Can't wait to try it!
• Thanks everyone! These are all really great suggestions, I'll probably try a combination of all of them. Apart from the moving out ones, that is.
• I've got the same picture-rail thing in my apartment and it works fine. You can hang just about anything from them- large framed paintings (heavy), lightweight textiles, even stereo speakers (seriously.) Your foamcore-mounted poster is no problem. If you are worried about stuff coming down in an earthquake, stick some museum putty to the back of whatever you are hanging and it will stick to the wall and won't swing around, and the museum putty will come right off the wall without damaging anything. Just don't hang anything heavy over sleeping areas. Those 3M hook thingies work well too.
• With the 3M hooks, just make sure it's a good surface to put them on. I put two on the back of the bathroom door for towels, and even though it was well within the weight limit, they both came off the door, taking huge pieces of the paint with them. Sigh. And on another bathroom door, we couldn't get it back off again like they said it would. Maybe the lesson is just to not use them in bathrooms. You could also try the blue sticky-tack stuff, it works okay on plaster so long as it's something very light, like an unframed poster, you're putting up.
• That's strange livii (the 3m hooks coming off) - I've had good luck in our bathroom (behind the door). Could it have been the pressure on the paint? About blue-tack - Just be sure to buy the good blutack - the cheap stuff will stain your posters with grease.