All About Grasscloth
Tips on working with grasscloth wall coverings, one of Robert Frank's favorite materials.
As a Pasadena interior designer, we found that grasscloth wall coverings work perfectly in a wide range of interiors, from traditional to contemporary, allowing us to layer in texture and rich color. Grasscloth wall coverings are one of our favorite materials, adding another level of natural beauty, texture, and depth into our interior design projects. Grasscloth varies from other types of wallpaper in the complex framework of all-natural materials that makes up the wall covering.
Grasscloth is an umbrella term commonly used to describe wallcovering made from hand-woven strands of natural fibers on an unpasted rice paper backing. The fibers include hemp, jute, sisal, cork, reed, sea grass, arrowroot grass, bamboo, and raffia; each material having its own unique texture and style. These materials are usually woven together through a complicated process using thin cotton threads and sea grass strands, both of which are fastened to a lightweight backing, usually made of rice paper. This makes the material very lightweight and delicate, which is why it is not suggested that you use it in a high traffic or high humidity location.
Grasscloth wall coverings are one of our favorite materials, adding another level of natural beauty, texture, and depth into our interior design projects. Grasscloth has recently come back into the spotlight in part because it’s natural and eco-friendly.
In specifying grasscloth in our projects, we always educate our clients that grasscloth is a natural material. So, it's impossible to match one piece of grasscloth to another and, therefore, there may be noticeable seams between panels. Imperfections and slight variations of color are inherent in natural materials, but that is part of what makes the finished product so unique and beautiful.
Grasscloth has different dimensions than standard wallpaper because the sheets are generally wider. A double roll of grasscloth measures 36 inches wide by 24 feet long. Most paper wall coverings have standard double roll widths of 21 and 27 inches.
Generally grasscloth cannot be washed or wiped. Instead, the wallcovering should be vacuumed to remove dust or dirt. Some grasscloth fiber types are more forgiving than others, but in general, it is highly susceptible to water marks after making contact with water. Because most grasscloth papers are very textural, a professional wallpaper hanger can usually seamlessly patch a damaged or stained area.
Some of our resources for specifying grasscloth in our projects includes:
Phillip Jeffries - Offering an extensive selection of grasscloth wallcoverings as well as useful tools, such as yardage calculators and photo examples of installed materials;
F. Schumacher & Company - Offers a great collection of solid and printed grassclosth wallcoverings;
Winfield Thybony - Specializes in solid, patterned, and printed grasscloths;
Thibaut - An extensive collection of fabrics and wallcoverings, including solid and printed grasscloth wallcoverings.
Robert Frank Interiors is a full-service interior designer located in Pasadena, California. We work in collaboration with our clients to create beautiful interior spaces that reflect our clients' lifestyles and personalities.