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Should you subtract a window when buying wallpaper?
Published by Roll & Repeat
Plan the strips across the whole wall first. A window saves paper only where a strip can be shortened and a correctly matched offcut can cover the remaining area. Subtracting window area alone misses the full-height pieces that run beside the frame.
Draw the window onto a strip map
Sketch a 300 cm wall with a window from 100 to 200 cm measured from the left. Suppose 50 cm-wide strips start at the left edge. Seams fall at 50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 cm. In this ideal sketch only the two strips in the middle are completely interrupted by the opening. Their upper and lower pieces can be entered separately in the cutting list.
Now move the window 10 cm to the right. The columns from 100 to 150 and from 200 to 250 cm each contain a narrow full-height leg beside the frame. Only the 150 to 200 cm column is entirely interrupted. The size of the window has stayed the same while the cutting plan has changed.
Give the scraps three measurements
For each short piece, note the required width, the height including trim, and the position of a recognizable motif at its edge. Try the actual remnant against the adjacent strip. A 40 cm remnant is only a candidate for a 32 cm space. It becomes usable when its width and pattern also line up. Draw in any papered window reveals separately.
Choose the starting seam with the window in view
Compare two starting positions on paper. Moving the first seam may exchange a finger-width sliver beside the casing for a wider cut. Check the opposite end of the wall in the same sketch. For the order, count the full-height pieces and add only offcuts you can assign to a specific short position. Save a photo of the roll label with the final diagram.