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House Beautiful’s 2026 Whole Home in Charleston featured wallpaper in several bathrooms, showing how pattern and surface texture can give small rooms a distinct design identity. The examples include a mauve moiré powder room, a botanical primary bath and a blue-brick gallery bath; the report describes design choices, not measured evidence that wallpaper makes rooms feel larger.
House Beautiful’s 2026 Whole Home in Charleston featured wallpaper as a defining element in several bathrooms, including a powder room and a primary bath. The designers used wallcoverings to add texture, pattern and local character to smaller spaces, offering practical inspiration for homeowners who want a compact bathroom to feel more considered without relying on additional floor area.
In a powder room, Mark Kennamer, founder and principal designer of his Birmingham, Alabama-based firm, carried the vanity’s soft pink color onto the walls and ceiling. A Zoffany mauve moiré wallcovering adds a slight shimmer and a wood-grain-like texture to the nearly monochromatic scheme. The effect, as described in the report, comes from variation in the surface as much as from color.
For the primary bathroom, Anissa Zajac of House Seven Design chose a botanical wallcovering by Sanderson. The print brings several colors from the room’s palette together, while its vertical lines echo the fluted vanity cabinetry. The design pairs a prominent pattern with details already present in the room rather than treating the wallpaper as an unrelated feature.
A third example comes from the gallery bath, where R&R Interior Design 365 used blue-brick wallpaper by Perennials, drawing on Charleston’s cobblestone streets for inspiration. The report says the wallcovering was intended to create a warm, intimate feel while bringing a sense of the city into the room. House Beautiful presents all three as examples from the same Whole Home project, not as a comparison of products or a test of how wallpaper performs over time.
How Pattern Gives Small Baths Identity
Bathrooms with limited floor area leave fewer ways to make a strong visual impression through furniture or layout. These Charleston examples show one design approach: use the walls to introduce surface, color and a clear point of view. A subtle, textured paper can add depth to a restrained palette; a larger botanical print can connect colors and architectural details; and a brick motif can suggest a local reference without using actual masonry.
That matters for readers planning a powder room or guest bath, where a distinctive finish can shape the room’s atmosphere without taking up usable space. But the examples are design guidance, not proof of a universal effect. Wallpaper does not automatically make a bathroom feel larger, and the outcome depends on the chosen pattern, lighting, room proportions and installation.
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Three Charleston Bathroom Approaches
House Beautiful’s report frames the bathrooms as part of its 2026 Whole Home in Charleston, a broader design project that includes rooms with different purposes and sizes. Its advice is that small spaces need not have their design details toned down simply because space is limited. The article focuses on how the participating designers used wallcoverings in three distinct schemes.
The examples range from tone-on-tone texture in Kennamer’s pink powder room to Zajac’s multicolored botanical pattern and R&R Interior Design 365’s blue-brick motif. They show varied applications rather than one prescribed style. The report names the designers and several wallpaper makers, but does not provide product specifications, prices, installation instructions or a full account of the bathrooms’ dimensions.
What the Design Examples Cannot Establish
The source describes the designers’ choices and intended atmosphere, but does not report independent measurements, homeowner feedback or long-term performance. It is not clear from the material how each wallcovering handles bathroom humidity, what preparation or protective finish was used, or whether the products are suitable for every bathroom location. Those details can vary by product and by how much moisture and ventilation a room has.
The report also does not claim that wallpaper physically enlarges a room. Its suggestion is more limited: wallcoverings can add visual character and texture. Readers considering a similar project would need to check the manufacturer’s care and use guidance and discuss installation conditions with a qualified installer when appropriate.
Checks Before Choosing Bathroom Wallpaper
For anyone planning a small-bath update, the next step is to match the design idea to the room’s conditions. Consider whether the goal is subtle texture, a coordinating print or a strong focal pattern, then compare samples with the vanity, tile and lighting. A sample viewed in the actual room can help show how its colors and surface read at different times of day.
Before purchase, confirm that the specific wallcovering is rated or recommended for the intended bathroom use, and follow its installation and maintenance instructions. Ask an installer about wall preparation, ventilation and placement, especially near areas exposed to direct water. House Beautiful’s examples offer visual inspiration; product suitability and durability remain questions for the chosen material and the conditions in the individual bathroom.
Key Questions
What did the designers use wallpaper for in the Charleston bathrooms?
They used it to add texture, pattern or a sense of place. The examples include mauve moiré in a powder room, a botanical print in the primary bath and blue-brick imagery in a gallery bath.
Does wallpaper make a small bathroom look bigger?
The report does not establish that wallpaper makes bathrooms look larger. It describes wallcoverings as a way to give smaller rooms visual character and depth; the perceived effect depends on the design and room.
Which designers are featured?
The report names Mark Kennamer, Anissa Zajac of House Seven Design, and the team at R&R Interior Design 365.
Can any wallpaper be used in a bathroom?
The source does not say that every wallcovering is suitable for bathroom conditions. Check the manufacturer’s use and care guidance for the product and consider the room’s moisture, ventilation and exposure to water.
Source: housebeautiful.com
