Photograph by Anne Matheis
Ever struggle with a paint roller—dripping paint all over your walls, carpet and clothes? Have you cursed at a roll of wallpaper just because the seams wouldn’t match up? Well, Proctor & Gamble has solved all of those wall-redecorating woes with its brand new Bella & Birch Designer Wall Finish, debuting in select St. Louis area Lowe’s and Home Depot stores this month.
Why are we so lucky, you ponder? P&G’s market research found St. Louisans have a particularly high interest in interior design and do-it-yourself projects. So they came here to launch Bella & Birch. It comes in dry, pre-painted rolls available in four patterns and 64 colors. The smaller dispenser looks like a high-tech Scotch tape dispenser; the larger is a bit longer than a three-hole punch and has its own built-in level. Putting it up consists of three easy steps: apply, smooth, reveal—and it’s simple enough for even the most home remodeling- reluctant. First you apply the product from the applicator. Then take a small plastic ruler-like tool and smooth out any air bubbles or bumps. Finally, pull off the protective film layer to reveal your finished wall.
Bella & Birch doesn’t come cheap. The 64-foot-long rolls are sold in three sizes and prices: 12-inch Designer Rolls for $64.99 each, 6-inch Accenter Rolls for $32.99 and a twin pack of 2-inch Detailer Rolls for $21.99. The Bella & Birch Design Kit costs $49.99, and can be reused. But the DIY factor isn’t even the best part.
“If you make a mistake, you can fix it—but you can’t make a mistake,” says Gigi Steadman, a designer with Frank Patton Interiors. The product is designed to overlap, so you don’t have to worry about matching seams … or stopping mid-job to answer the phone, go out to lunch or run to get the kids. It can be used in bathrooms because (unlike regular papers) it won’t crack or peel. Also unlike wallpaper, you can patch right over scuffs and/or the artistic renderings of your youngest heir or heiress. And if you do get tired of it, you can simply paint or wallpaper over it.
In June and July, P&G had Bella & Birch up for display in a St. Charles showhouse built by Fischer & Frichtel. Designer CJ Knapp of Edwin Pepper Interiors coordinated the project locally. She enlisted the help of a number of fellow designers, including Debbie Donnelly of Donnelly Interiors, Kay Ferrar and Sonja Willman of Sonja Willman Design, Tracy Rudolph of Dau Home Furnishings and Steadman. Each worked her own magic with the new product. Blumeyer trimmed it into a border, mimicking the look of stacked dentil molding; Knapp cut out pieces to create a tree replete with bird inhabitants. “I saw Holly and Sonya’s rooms and began thinking about the Fiori pattern,” Knapp says. “It looks natural, like birch bark.”
But if it didn’t and the effect fell short of fabulous, no problem. She could have just Bella & Birch-ed right over it.
