Wall coverings are an ideal party decoration, because they can transform a room. The way you cover your walls and what you use to do it will depend on many factors, including the theme and color scheme of your party, the condition and size of your walls, and your budget. Whatever wall covering you choose, you will be amazed at how different your room looks once it's up.

Fabric is used as a decorative wall covering for all types of events. Panels of fabric can be hung from the top of your walls with nails or a staple gun, but this will leave marks. Alternatively, you can use glue dots or removable adhesive strips to hang lightweight fabric. Another option is to paint the walls with starch, then apply panels of fabric to the walls as if they were wallpaper. The starch won't damage the walls and cleans off easily.

Another way to cover your walls is to use streamers or ribbons. To do this, measure the height of the walls, from floor to ceiling, then cut many pieces of streamers or ribbon to those measurements. Stand on a chair or stepladder and tape the streamers or ribbons side by side to the top of the walls. If you don't want the tape to show, use double-sided tape. If you don't want to use tape on your walls, use wall-safe sticky tack. If your party has a theme or color scheme, buy streamers or ribbons to match.

The look of any wall can be dramatically altered with lighting. If you're hiring a disc jockey for your party, ask if he offers a lighting package. Many do. Otherwise, you can flood the walls yourself using colorful PAR light cans. They can be pricey, so you may want to rent them from a party rental store.

Other options include balloons, wall scenes, wall decals and posters. You could also use fabric curtains, beaded curtains or doorway beads. Whatever wall covering you choose, try to match the style and color of your wall covering to the style and colors of your party.