Wallpaper and Wallcoverings - I just am lost NOW!

Hi,
I am new at this- I have torn down the wallpaper in the bathroom and I was going to paint. I have made a mess. Not one small piece but ALL of the backing to the sheetrock has come off. My walls look like they are covered in brown paper bags. I called a pro DESPERATE for help. He said to completely replace the wallboards with new sheetrock. This was supposed to be a weekend project with less than a $100.00 investment. I do not have the skill to replace sheetrock and I can't afford a contractor to rip out my whole bathroom and start fresh. I am in tears and hubby is mad. What can I do? I have read some posts about this bridging material and I am wondering is this thick enough to fix my mistakes? I don't know if this is due to the walls not being primed or my ignorance on how to remove the wallpaper (which was beyond hideous). I thought it could look no worse but was I wrong. I found a beautiful grasscloth that would go oh so perfect with the palmtree motif but can it be used in a bathroom? I need something thick and something that can hide many imperfections, this can not be a fourteen step process either. I know how to paint that is basically it. :wall: HELPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I BEG YOU!
Olivialen
PS- Going to store today to look at this bridging stuff and hopefully an inexpensive solution to my problem. Any advice quick would be much appreciated!

Well, I'm confused. Did this pro come and look at the walls, or just make a suggestion based on what you told him? If you take down the backing to the sheetrock, you are left with a crumbling gray mess.
Further, the "brown paper bags" sounds like the backing of the wallpaper.

Did you gouge the walls at all?

How hard was it to take the paper off? What did you use?

The man come out to see if he could rewallpaper, he said he has been doing it for about 20 years. He told me that the sheetrock was not primed properly, or left to cure and that the wallpaper was put on directly on top of the sheetrock after it was put up and that is what caused this to happen. I assumed I had done something terribly wrong but it said that this is not uncommon to see in older homes.He did say that usually he had seen it only in spots though not the full wall like mine had done.I told him that I did not know or I would have stopped before I had done this much damage. I used water and a scrape tool. The brown is not paper backing but it is underneath the plaster (white) part of the sheetrock. It was very easy to come off, it did not require hardly any scraping, just to get it started. It come down in sheets, but took the top part of the wall with it. Yea, it is gouged out in some places but because it just ripped down like it did.No force was needed, my seven year old could pull it off. Yesterday I went to seek help.I went to a local wallpaper store and talked with the owner there who seemed to have a knowledge about these problems. She suggested that I respackle the real rough parts of the wall where the sheetrock didn't come off in full and then sand down. She then suggested I buy some stuff that you use to paint over the brown fuzzy stuff to seal and repair it. It is used to repair damaged sheetrock and it is suposed to seal it down. Then she suggested I use a new type of wallpaper that is torn in pieces then applied in a layered look.Paper Illusions is the name of it. She said there is no skill required to acheive this look that my kids could do it.I told her that was good - I have no skills.She said it was good cause it helps to camo the areas that did not come out so well, that the uneven walls won't be so apparent. She showed me a wall that it had been applied to in the store. It looked okay.This is not the original look I wanted, but at this point I will try anything. I can't replace sheetrock and I can't hire a contractor. So really what are my choices? Have you ever heard of this tear and paste style paper? If so and you have used it, what results did you get? Thanks for the quick reply, I need the help. I did buy some spackle, sandpaper, putty knife, and some tape to repair some of this but have not started yet. This is a major mess. :eek:
Thanks,
Olivialen

No, I've never heard of that type of paper.

What you ran into is very common in new houses. People want to hang paper but don't want to do it themselves. So the hire someone. Most of those people charge 50-60% of what should be charged to do the job right. Homeowners don't know the difference the extra work makes and are happy to pay the lesser price. What is missed? The prep work. Who pays in the long run? People like you that want to change it.

I have spoke to a man that said he can skim the walls and ceiling for me for around $50 (we have the popcorn ceiling in this bathroom with no ventilation so it is also coming down). He said once he does this I can sand them slightly and then I can proceed with prep work to apply my wallpaper. I have decided to let him do this and that way will have somewhat of a clean slate to work with. Thank the Lord I have no more rooms that have wallpaper to remove. Thanks for the replys.
Olivia
:)