Does the overlap show as a ridge?

A fabric overlap of half an inch is one layer of thin fabric over another; from a step back it is invisible, and up close it reads as a seam, which every wallpaper has. Rolling it lightly keeps it flat.

Can I butt peel-and-stick panels instead of overlapping?

You can, and it looks cleaner on day one. The risk is a hairline gap opening as the fabric settles. If you butt them, keep the offcuts and the spare panel, and check the seams after a week.

How wide are the panels?

Peel-and-stick fabric prints on 24-inch panels, non-woven on 29.9-inch panels, Type II vinyl on 54-inch panels. The calculator on every design page shows how many your wall takes and where the seams fall.

Overlap or butt joint: how do wallpaper panels meet at the seam?

Two ways, and the label on each panel says which. Peel-and-stick fabric overlaps: the next panel lays over the previous one by a set amount, printed on the label, and the pattern continues across because the print includes that strip twice. Non-woven paste-the-wall butts: the edges touch without overlapping, and the seam all but disappears because the material does not shrink or stretch on the wall.

Why fabric overlaps and non-woven does not

Peel-and-stick is a woven or knitted fabric with adhesive on the back. It moves a fraction as it is handled and as it settles on the wall, and a butted seam can open into a hairline gap a day later. An overlap keeps the seam closed whatever the fabric does.

Non-woven is a paper-like sheet that neither expands with paste nor shrinks as it dries, which is what makes paste-the-wall hanging possible in the first place. Its edges can be butted tight, and a seam roller closes them.

Making an overlap invisible

Hang the panels in order, left to right, so each new panel lays over the previous one. Overlaps that face away from the main window cast no shadow line.
Match the pattern across the overlap by sliding the new panel while the top foot is stuck; the print on the overlap strip is identical to the strip beneath it.
Roll the seam once, lightly. Pressing hard squeezes adhesive out and polishes the surface, which shows in raking light.
A double cut, where both layers are cut through the overlap with a straightedge and the offcuts removed, gives a butted look on fabric. It is a professional installer's step, and a spare panel is the insurance for it.

What our labels say

Every panel is labelled with its number, its width and height, the bleed at top and bottom, and the overlap it carries onto its neighbour. Peel-and-stick fabric panels carry a half-inch overlap; non-woven and Type II vinyl panels carry none and are hung edge to edge. The hanging sheet that comes with the shipping email repeats this for the whole wall.

Questions people ask

Does the overlap show as a ridge?: A fabric overlap of half an inch is one layer of thin fabric over another; from a step back it is invisible, and up close it reads as a seam, which every wallpaper has. Rolling it lightly keeps it flat.
Can I butt peel-and-stick panels instead of overlapping?: You can, and it looks cleaner on day one. The risk is a hairline gap opening as the fabric settles. If you butt them, keep the offcuts and the spare panel, and check the seams after a week.
How wide are the panels?: Peel-and-stick fabric prints on 24-inch panels, non-woven on 29.9-inch panels, Type II vinyl on 54-inch panels. The calculator on every design page shows how many your wall takes and where the seams fall.

See how a wall is laid out

Updated 2026-09-15. Written by the Inchwall team, Sacramento.