Wallpaper Samples and Strike-Offs: Approving Custom Print

For a custom printed wallcovering, the right sample depends on the decision you are making. A material swatch helps you choose the base. An A4 wallpaper sample of your design on that base lets the client approve colour and texture. A full-scale strike-off confirms colour-critical or bespoke work before production. Most projects need the first two; colour-critical walls need all three.

This guide explains what each sample is for, how to request them from VÉLLANO, what to check before you sign one off, and how sampling fits into the production programme. Every design in the library can be sampled on every material, so the sample you approve is the one that gets printed.

Swatch, A4 sample or strike-off: which do you need?

The three samples answer different questions, and they come at different points in a project. Use the table to match the sample to the stage.

The A4 sample is the workhorse. A swatch set is useful early, but it cannot show how a design reads on that base. A strike-off is the final check, not a substitute for choosing the material properly.

A Novarelle abstract on a fine-textured base, where texture softens the edges of the print

Choose the material before you sample the design

The same artwork looks different on different bases. A pearl shimmer emboss catches light at an angle, a linen-weave emboss breaks up flat areas of colour, and a smooth matte paper shows the most detail. A sample is therefore only valid on the material you will actually specify. Approving an A4 cut on a paper-backed base and then ordering fabric-backed vinyl means the client signed off something they will not get.

Settle the material with three questions:

• Does the wall need a fire rating? If the space is a corridor, public route, healthcare or education area, or appears in a fire-engineering report, sample on Fabric Backed FR+ or DuraFlex FR, both classified B-s1,d0 (EN 13501-1) and ASTM E84 Class A. The fire ratings guide explains the classes.
• How wide is the wall? The Eco range prints up to 39 in, the fire-rated range up to 51 in, Canvas HD+ up to 57 in and the Luxe non-wovens up to 124 in. A wide wall with no visible joins points to a wide-width non-woven.
• What finish suits the room? Matte, fine texture, shimmer, canvas or woven: the Material Finder narrows it down and Compare shows materials side by side.

If you are still choosing between two or three bases, ask for the material swatch set first, then order A4 design samples on the one or two that remain.

How to request samples from VÉLLANO

There are two routes, and both send up to six A4 samples per request.

1. From the Spec Board. Save designs while you browse, set the material for each one, then choose Request Samples. The first six items on the board carry straight into the sample form.
2. From the Sample Request form. Add a design code (for example NOVAR10024) and a material, or add a plain material swatch. Tick the box to include the full material swatch set.

The form asks for your name, studio, email, WhatsApp number and delivery address, plus an optional project name and a "needed by" date. Fill in the date if the samples are going to a client presentation, so we can plan the cut. For a quick question first, WhatsApp the project desk on +60 12-917 9344.

Six samples is enough for most presentations: two or three designs, each on one or two shortlisted materials. If you need more, split the shortlist into rounds rather than sending the client twenty options.

A Palmera tropical mural: sample the area with the most important colour, not just any corner of the artwork

Colour-critical walls: Pantone, NCS and full-scale strike-offs

Screens are not colour references. Two monitors will show the same file differently, and a printed wallcovering is seen under the room's own lighting. When a palette must match a brand standard, a paint colour or an upholstery fabric, brief it with Pantone or NCS references, or send the physical paint or fabric sample.

VÉLLANO adjusts the artwork to the references and prints a strike-off: a section of the actual design at full scale on the specified material. Ask for one when:

• the wall carries a brand colour or logo;
• a library design has been recoloured to suit the scheme;
• the artwork is bespoke (photography, illustration, heritage archive or wayfinding graphics);
• scale matters, for example a leaf or figure that must land at a particular height.

For bespoke work the order is a digital proof on your elevation first, then the printed strike-off. If you are preparing the file yourself, read preparing artwork for wall printing and run it through the Artwork Checker before you ask for a strike-off.

What to check on a wallpaper sample

A sample is only useful if it is judged the way the wall will be seen. Use this checklist before the client signs.

Visualise first, then sample

Samples cost time, so shortlist on screen first. The Room Visualiser places a design in a room scene so you can show the client composition and scale before anything is cut. The Wall Calculator shows where the panel joins fall on each material, which can decide between a 51 in fire-rated base and a 124 in wide-width one. Once the client is happy with the picture, order A4 samples to settle colour and texture; that is the step a screen cannot do.

A Bambino mural visualised in a room before samples are ordered

Showroom sign-off, or samples by courier

Designers in the Klang Valley can see every design printed on every material at the VÉLLANO showroom, Lot 1509, Batu 8, Jalan Klang Lama, Petaling Jaya, and sign off a strike-off in person. It is often the fastest way to close a colour question.

For projects elsewhere in Malaysia, including Penang, Ipoh, Sabah and Sarawak, and regionally including Singapore, samples are sent to the delivery address on the request. Long distances make every round count, so send the material recommendation, the design shortlist and the colour references together, and we plan the project to need as few rounds of samples as possible.

Sign-off and the production date

Lead time depends on quantity, material and approvals, so VÉLLANO confirms the production and delivery date once the artwork and strike-off are approved. A late sample approval moves the date; it is worth building sample rounds into the programme from the start.

At sign-off, make sure the order matches the approved sample exactly: the same design code and colourway, the same material, and measured wall sizes for every elevation (the measuring guide explains what to send). The specification guide covers the rest of the schedule, and the glossary defines strike-off, print width and the other terms. For hotel projects, the hotel wallcovering guide sets out where sampling sits in a submission.