Bunting does more for a room than almost any other party decoration. A few metres of flags turns a plain lounge into a birthday venue, a hallway into a welcome line, a spare bedroom into something worth photographing. The problem, if you rent or you have just finished painting, is the fixing. Every staple, nail and screw is a small argument with your deposit or your fresh skirting boards. The good news is that bunting is light. That single fact opens up a whole set of methods that would never hold a shelf but will happily hold a garland for a weekend. Here are the ones that work.
Spend thirty seconds thinking about what you are sticking to. Painted plasterboard, matt emulsion, silk, wallpaper, brick, tile and wood all behave differently. Adhesive hooks are happiest on smooth, clean, sealed surfaces; they struggle on textured wallpaper, brick and anything dusty. Wallpaper is the cautious one, because many tapes and hooks will lift the paper's surface when they come off, so test behind a sofa or inside a cupboard first. If the wall was painted recently, give it time to cure before sticking anything to it. Fresh paint can stay soft for days or longer, and the guidance on the tin is the one to follow. When in doubt, choose a method that grips something other than paint: a frame, a rail, a rod, a piece of furniture.
This is the default for most rentals, and for good reason. A hook rated for a light load, applied properly, comes away with a gentle pull and no mark. The trick is in the application, not the hook.
Never rip. Hold the wall with one hand, then pull the tab slowly straight down, stretching it rather than yanking. If the strip resists, warm it briefly with a hairdryer on a low setting to soften the adhesive. Residue usually comes off with a little oil on a cloth; test on a hidden patch first.
Heat and humidity are the enemies here. A hook above a radiator or in a steamy bathroom may give up sooner than you expect. For those spots, use a different method.
A tension rod wedged between two walls, inside a doorway, a window reveal or an alcove needs no fixings at all, and it is the neatest way to run bunting across a room. Choose a rod with rubber feet so it does not scuff paint, and check that you are pressing against something solid rather than a hollow partition that flexes. Dry-fit it, extend it, then tighten. Drape the bunting over the rod, or clip it on for a tidier line. In a recess or between two bookcases, a tension rod also does double duty as a photo backdrop.
Older rentals often have picture rails, and they are made for this. Rail hooks slip over the top edge and hold a surprising amount without touching the wall. Use them to hang a string line, then attach bunting with small clips, ribbon loops, or by simply draping it over. Where there is no rail, look for curtain poles, existing hooks, door hinges, cupboard handles, banister rails and shelf edges, all of which are free anchor points. A loop of ribbon over a handle is often the fastest fix in the house.
Rather than attaching bunting to the wall at ten separate points, attach one line at two. Run a length of twine, thin ribbon or fishing line from one anchor to another, such as a curtain pole to a bookcase or a doorframe to a wardrobe, and clip or tie the bunting to that line. Two adhesive hooks then do the work of a dozen, and if one fails, the whole line drops neatly instead of leaving flags scattered across the floor. Fishing line is nearly invisible, which is useful when you want the bunting to appear to float. Keep the line taut: a sagging string drags the flags into an unflattering curve.
Sometimes the best answer is not to touch the wall at all. Worth keeping in your kit:
None of these need a single hole, and most can be assembled in under five minutes.
Take the bunting down the day after the party if you can. Adhesive left in place for weeks is much harder to remove cleanly, especially in warm rooms. Work slowly, in the reverse of the order you put it up, and keep the strips and hooks in a bag for next time. Wipe any residue with a soft cloth and a little warm soapy water, checking first in a hidden spot. If a mark does appear, a light touch beats a hard scrub every time, because aggressive rubbing damages paint far more than the adhesive ever did. And if you are unsure how a particular wall will react, the safest test is always the smallest one, somewhere nobody will ever look.
Photo: Ravi Kant / Pexels
