Elitis wallpaper

Elitis wallpaper comes from Toulouse, where Patrice Marraud des Grottes founded the French house in 1988. From the start, the brand has worked from one idea: a wall should have depth, not just a pattern printed on a flat surface.

The result is a surface that changes as light moves across it. You notice the sheen at one hour and the structure at another, and you want to reach out and touch the wall.

The story behind Elitis wallpaper

The name refers to the Greek poet Odysseas Elytis, and that poetic streak runs through the collections. Elitis was one of the first houses to bring the look of woven natural fiber to the wall on a large scale. Many people still know the brand for its raffia look.

Over the years the brand became a reference in the higher end of the market. It has its own space in Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris and showrooms in New York and Berlin, among other cities. The common thread has not changed: tactile surfaces instead of a flat print.

Materials and textures of Elitis wallcovering

An Elitis wallcovering is about light meeting structure. The collections take on the look of raffia, woven cloth, leaf metal and silk with a soft sheen, so a painted wall starts to read like textile. On smooth drywall that hides nothing, you see the difference at first glance.

Some designs borrow from animal skins. Galuchat reads as shagreen, a dense field of tiny raised grains in reddish brown on a dark ground. Big Croco works at the opposite scale, with large crocodile scales in deep navy teal and a glossy finish that picks up every lamp in the room. Anguille lines up fine horizontal ridges of eel skin in vertical panels of brown, bronze and gold, almost like patchwork.

Signature Elitis wallpaper collections

Below is a selection of the Elitis wallpaper collections we carry. Each one starts from texture and takes it in its own direction: color, sheen, landscape or the hand of a painter. To carry a wall into drapery, cushions or upholstery, have a look at the Elitis fabrics as well.

• Cartagena — fine vertical stripes where color bleeds, fades and runs into the next shade
• Alliages — textile-looking walls with a metallic glint, from pale gray-blue to olive bronze
• Gestes — visible brushstrokes in mauve, pink, gold and copper, often with a soft sheen
• Soie Végétale — a natural texture that reads like fine silk fabric on the wall
• Origine — weaves and fibers in cream, pale yellow, taupe and anthracite, with no motif
• Ecume — seabed sand layers, swaying reeds and stacked shells in bronze, cream and beige
• Lanzarote — horizontal lines like layers in a rock face, drawn from the volcanic island
• Pamir — fine horizontal streaks like raw silk, in taupe, olive, mustard, ocher and gold

Where Elitis wallpaper works best

American rooms are built from large, unbroken planes of drywall, and tall ceilings leave a lot of wall in view. A woven or ridged surface breaks up that expanse without adding a single motif. On a stair wall or in a double-height entryway, light runs down the wall and catches the texture differently at the top than at the bottom.

In a powder room nothing competes with the wall, so a bold design like Big Croco can carry the whole space. In a dining room, a design with a metallic sheen catches the light of an evening meal. In a bedroom, the wall behind the bed suits a calm weave from Origine or Pamir. In an open plan, choose one plane, such as the chimney breast or the dining end, and leave the rest painted. Gold and brass tones sit warmly against traditional millwork, while soft ecru or deep charcoal suits a loft.

Texture and sheen never fully come across on a screen. With the Room Visualizer you can place a design on a photo of your own wall and see how its structure and color work in your light.

Hanging and caring for Elitis wallcovering

Many Elitis designs have a pattern repeat to match from strip to strip. The plain textures depend more on how the strips sit side by side. In some Pamir designs, the seams between strips differ softly in tone, and that is part of the design. Order everything for one room at once so all rolls come from the same batch.

Much of the range has a washable surface that wipes clean and handles daily traffic, which makes it a good choice for hallways and powder rooms. For textured and natural-looking designs, we recommend working with a professional wallpaper hanger.

Elitis comes in European rolls, which are measured differently from the American double roll. Read how European rolls compare to American double rolls, then use the wallpaper calculator to work out how many rolls your wall needs.

Buy Elitis wallpaper at Selected Wallpapers

Selected Wallpapers is an official Elitis dealer. Prices for Elitis in the US are on request. Send us the designs you have in mind, and you receive a quote in USD with shipping, duties and taxes included, so nothing is left to pay at the door. Read how it works on our US shipping page.

Weighing two colorways, or wondering how a texture reads under recessed lighting? Write or call our team. You get personal advice from people who know the range and can help you find the collection that suits your room.