The kitchen is the room where wallpaper decisions require the most technical consideration. It is also the room where a well-chosen wallpaper has the most dramatic effect — transforming a purely functional space into one that feels genuinely designed. The two concerns that most often prevent people from wallpapering their kitchen — moisture and heat — are both manageable with the correct substrate and placement strategy. The concern that should actually be primary — choosing a design that will work at the close viewing distances of the kitchen — is the one that receives least attention.
We manufacture wallpaper for kitchen applications across Australia and internationally from our Central Coast of New South Wales facility. The guidance below addresses both the technical requirements and the design principles for kitchen wallpaper that lasts and looks exceptional.
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Where to Wallpaper in a Kitchen
The recommendation: The wall behind the kitchen table or dining area, the wall adjacent to the bench (not behind the hob or sink), and the wall facing the kitchen from the living area in open-plan layouts.
Avoid: The wall directly behind the hob — heat, grease, and steam will compromise any wallpaper within 50cm of an active cooking surface. The wall behind the sink for the same reason. Any surface that receives direct water splash.
The most successful kitchen wallpaper installations treat the dining area as a distinct zone within the kitchen. The wall that the table sits against, or that faces the table, becomes the wallpaper feature — creating the visual separation between cooking and dining that good open-plan design requires.
Substrate Selection for Kitchens
Our Paste the Wall Smooth non-woven substrate is the correct specification for kitchen applications. Non-woven is dimensionally stable in variable humidity conditions and can be gently wiped clean with a barely damp cloth. The woven linen and natural fibre options are not appropriate for kitchens — they absorb moisture and cannot be cleaned without damage.
For kitchen areas with higher-than-average humidity (kitchens without adequate mechanical ventilation, galley kitchens where cooking steam distributes widely), a moisture-resistant wallpaper adhesive applied over a primed surface is the correct installation approach. Consult our installation guide for adhesive specifications.
Pattern and Colour for Kitchen Spaces
Kitchens benefit from patterns that are readable at the closer viewing distances typical of the space. A botanical print that works beautifully in a living room viewed from 3–4 metres may be too detailed and busy when seen from 1–1.5 metres at the kitchen table. Larger-scale patterns — oversized botanical motifs, bold geometric forms, panoramic landscape murals — read better at close range.
Colour in the kitchen must account for the artificial lighting used during meal preparation and evening dining. Warm-toned designs (ochre grounds, terracotta backgrounds, warm cream) are forgiving under warm artificial light and look excellent in the morning natural light typical of north-facing Australian kitchens. Cool-toned designs can look flat or institutional under warm artificial light.
Materials
- Benchtop: The kitchen benchtop is visible simultaneously with the wallpaper and must relate to it tonally. Stone benchtops with warm veining suit botanical and heritage designs. Concrete and raw materials suit more graphic and geometric patterns.
- Cabinetry: White and off-white cabinetry is the most versatile backdrop for kitchen wallpaper — it recedes and allows the wallpaper to dominate. Coloured cabinetry requires careful coordination with the wallpaper palette.
- Splashback: Tiles or stone behind the hob and sink should complement the wallpaper without competing. Neutral, large-format tiles in a tone from the wallpaper palette create coherence.
Designer Tips
- Order the $4.99 sample (48cm × 40cm) and tape it to the kitchen wall you intend to wallpaper. Assess it over a full day of cooking — the steam and light changes through a normal day will tell you more than any showroom viewing.
- Custom sizing to your exact wall dimensions ensures no awkward joins or leftover offcuts. Production takes 4 business days. All import duties paid globally on wallpaper orders. We ship to over 40 countries.
- In kitchens where the wallpapered wall is adjacent to the splashback zone, ensure a clear visual boundary — a horizontal tile or timber ledge separating the wallpaper zone from the moisture zone creates both a design feature and a practical barrier.
Browse our full wallpaper collection, explore peel and stick options for rental kitchens, or read our wall preparation guide before installation.






