So you just bought a new house with nice freshly painted walls. But your teenage son or daughter wants to start slapping posters and selfies on the wall with tape or some other fastening device that you just know will chip the paint when they inevitably change their mind and pull the pictures off the wall in a few weeks or months.
Regular tape will remove a layer of paint off the walls. It just works that way! Especially if you leave the tape off the wall longer than a few days or weeks. What can you do instead?
Enter washi tape.
Washi tape is a Japanese product made from plant material with colorful designs and patterns. It’s sold in small rolls that are 3 mm, 8 mm and 15 mm wide and 15′ in length and can be torn by hand since it’s made from paper. Washi tape will normally come off painted walls without damage but may leave tape residue.
Now it’s widely available in the west and is used for arts, crafts and sticking photos and other objects on bedroom walls among other uses. It’s sold in small rolls for craft purposes but does help stick items to walls and other objects.
Let’s delve into how you can use washi tape and what to expect when you (or your kids more likely) use it in place of regular tape on your walls and throughout your home.
Does washi tape remove paint from walls?
Washi tape will generally remove easily from a painted wall and will normally not remove paint.
Regular tape is made from materials like petroleum products, silicone rubber, polymers, solvents and other chemicals. Modern Sellotape is made from cellulose and glue from natural products.
Washi tape is made from paper – from plant or shrub-based materials – and the adhesive is low tack adhesive and while strong enough to stick, will easily remove from walls and other surfaces more often than not.
So while the tape is referred to in Japan as simply masking tape, it’s very different from the wide and yellowish masking tape we generally buy in the west.
Does washi tape leave residue when removed?
Depending on the brand, some washi tape can leave a sticky residue on the wall after it’s removed. It also depends on how long the washi tape was on the wall. The longer it’s left up, the more likely to leave a residue.
When you have tape residue left on the wall, you can use a commercial product like Goo Gone to gently remove it.
You can also gently remove the residue with some warm water and soap but be careful not to end up removing paint particularly if you used a cheap paint or the paint job is from years ago.
Can you write on washi tape?
Since washi tape is made from paper, you can write on it with pen or marker. Washi tape often comes with various designs and patterns on it so you might not want to write anything on it and stick with the supplied pattern.
Some washi paper is lighter in shade with less or no designs and can more easily be written on or otherwise marked up.
Does washi tape stick to textured walls?
Washi tape will generally stick to textured walls but unlike regular tape, will not permanently stick.
Washi tape is really for design and crafts and will stick to walls but unlike tape it won’t be permanent and be difficult to pull off.
Of course the brand of washi tape can matter too. Not every product or company produces the same level of quality. Some better quality brands of washi tape will adhere better than inferior products.
Final thoughts
Washi tape is a good alternative to masking or Sellotape when you want to stick something to a wall but aren’t interested in risking paint being torn away when you remove the tape. Washi tape has a lower tack adhesive than regular tape but is still strong enough to hold items on a wall.
Washi tape can also be used for numerous arts and crafts as shown above and with plenty of designs to choose from, you can add color and style to many projects around the home or for school.
While we focused on talking about using washi tape on walls, the truth is you can use washi tape for many other tasks that don’t involve paint or walls.
You can also use washi tape for things like:
- Arts and crafts
- Journaling
- Scrapbooking
- Stickers
- Planners
- Books
- Calendars
- Custom cards
- Vision board supplies
- Bible journals
- Home décor
- Party invitations
- Gift wrapping
If you can’t find washi tape to purchase, look for wall safe tape instead. It’s commonly made with an adhesive similar to what is used on post it notes and while not as strong as tape, using it will reduce the likelihood that it will remove paint from walls.