Farrow & Ball wallpaper

Farrow & Ball wallpaper comes out of a factory in Wimborne, Dorset, where every pattern is printed with the brand's own paint instead of printing ink. That one decision gives the paper its velvety matte surface and color with real depth.

On the flat painted drywall of an American room, you can see the difference right away. Ink sits on a wall like a picture. Paint on paper reads as part of the wall itself.

The history behind Farrow & Ball wallpaper

The company was founded in 1946 by John Farrow, a trained chemist, and Richard Maurice Ball, an engineer. The two met at a local clay pit and shared a passion for mixing rich colors. With a chemist at the start, color sat at the center of the business from the first day.

The wallpapers came later. They grew out of the same interest in pigment and finish, and each design is keyed to the Farrow & Ball color card. The result is a quiet British signature you can pick out from across a room.

How Farrow & Ball papers are made

In Dorset the paint goes onto the paper by open-trough and flatbed printing, techniques a printer needs months to master. Because the pattern is laid down in paint, the surface catches light in a softer, warmer way. You see the depth from the doorway and feel it under your hand.

Up close, the color looks dense and velvety rather than glossy. Each roll gets a fine sheen you can wipe, so the matte look holds up to daily life. Hand printing also leaves slight variations from one length to the next, and those small shifts are part of what Farrow & Ball papers trade on.

Signature Farrow & Ball wallpaper collections

The range moves from quiet botanical sprigs to outspoken graphic work, always matched to the brand's own color card. Below is a selection of the Farrow & Ball collections we carry.

• The Heritage Papers — three designs of vine leaves, sweet pea tendrils and Gothic architecture on light grounds
• The Purnon Papers — five flat designs in two colors, from bouquets on a symmetrical grid to small crosses

Where Farrow & Ball wallpaper works best

A powder room is a smart place to start. It is small, you pass through it, and a bold pattern can carry the whole space. Lotus wallpaper sets stylized lotus flowers with long curving petals in a large interlocking ogee, drawn in a flat line that recalls Art Nouveau. In the colorway pictured, metallic gold on dusty mauve pink glows against marble and brass.

An entryway or a home office wants rhythm along a narrow run of wall. Bamboo wallpaper sends loosely brushed stalks up the wall in steady columns, gold over dark navy, and leads the eye upward behind a shelf or console. In open-plan living, one papered wall behind the dining table marks off a zone without a single partition.

Dining rooms and libraries suit the deeper colorways, where the matte surface absorbs lamplight and the room closes in around the table. Hornbeam wallpaper packs trees with rounded, dotted canopies into staggered rows, pale sage and off-white on dark brown. In the room shown it runs above and below a dado rail with white woodwork, a natural fit for an older house with original trim. For a bedroom or a compact guest room, choose a lighter colorway; the matte finish never feels heavy, even in a tight space.

Not sure how a pattern will sit in your home? Upload a photo of your own wall to the Room Visualizer and see the design in place before you decide.

Hanging and caring for Farrow & Ball papers

Hand printing means the repeat needs care at every seam. Lay out the drops first, check the match, and hang the lengths in order. Small differences between rolls are normal, so buy for the whole room at once rather than topping up later.

Measure your actual walls instead of trusting a rule of thumb. A tall ceiling or a stairwell uses length much faster than a standard wall, and a large repeat adds waste at every drop. Our wallpaper calculator works out the quantity for you. Each roll we sell counts as one American double roll, and our guide to European rolls and double rolls shows how the two compare.

Care is simple. The fine sheen stands up to light marks, so a soft cloth, barely damp, is all you need. Skip harsh cleaning products.

Buy Farrow & Ball wallpaper at Selected Wallpapers

Selected Wallpapers is an official Farrow & Ball dealer. Prices are shown in USD on each product page, and every US order ships Delivered Duty Paid, with duties and taxes included, so nothing extra is due at your door. You'll find the details on our US shipping page.

A sample lets you judge color and texture in your own light, at breakfast and again under evening lamps. Torn between two colorways, or wondering how a pattern will sit with your paint and trim? Our team is glad to give you personal advice on Farrow & Ball papers.