Barb, my nephew found something called TSP substitute. He got it at Loews or HD. Also, try Simple Green. We were amazed the things it cleaned.
All the painters that I got estimates from said if the paper is sticking to the wall,you can paint over it.

Thank you Kathy, I'll check on the substitute.
I wish it was that easy to just paint over the wallpaper but it is coming off in places and most of the seams are curling, so is must come down to look good.

Hey Barb, I am getting ready to start on my hall bath as well. I've been looking at that popcorn ceiling and trying to think up reasons not to take it down, LOL. I'm just kidding myself though, it's got to go. I don't have wallpaper to deal with, but the wall texture is late 60s to early 70s so I'm going to have to sand it. Then primer everything cause *they* used the highest shine paint they could find on the walls :). LOL, I've already redone the master bath, but this one....with it's sky blue 70s counter top and tile in the bath area has really been daunting to start on.

By the way.....this all started out as an innocent trip to Lowe's to buy a new medicine cabinet for that bathroom....sigh. Good luck with yours. I'm SURE that I won't be getting the help that you are so I'm not going to push to get it done quickly....just take my time and do it as I can.

I'm sure yours will be lovely and when you finish you will be going in there, just to look at it now and then :).

Kristi

Barb -- I took down all of my paper a few years ago and like you, didn't want to use the recommended chemicals. I rented a steamer at HD and that worked well. You have to perforate the paper first (there's a tool for that) so the steam can get behind it. Good luck!

Update, We got all the wallpaper down, Scraped off popcorn on ceiling. Got the texure on most of all the walls and ceiling is done. Painted where the light fixture goes and now we can work by more light. Will be working on the tile pattern this weekend.
It's getting there and I'm so ready to have the mess cleaned up and bathroom done.

Barb

It seems a little late for this, but possibly future info. I've had pretty good luck with wall paper by just peeling the top vinyl (or whatever) layer (look for a piece that is peeling and go from there) and then spraying the paper and glue part with water. Wait about 2 mins and it just comes right up with a scraper.
Now, about the popcorn ceiling. Can't help there. I have it too. I guess it was the thing to do back when this house was built (80's).

Popcorn ceilings are still being done, just with less foam pellets than before. They are still a royal pain in the fanny.

Wall papers and pastes vary, so there is no one method to recommend for easiest removal. However, some papers are dry stripable, and some are not. If you have one that is not, then you can use a special tool that pokes tiny holes through the surface, and then steam the paper, and the steam penetrates the holes, allowing you to easily strip the paper off.

With a steamer and large sponges, you can wash down the paste after it has been softened by the steamer. There may also be a pre-paste on the surface, that is not steamable, but it can be painted over, without any later problems.

Did you ever get the popcorn ceiling scraped? Is that all you had to do to get it smooth?

Barb - We've been in our house for almost 14 years now and the wallpaper in our master bath was starting to peel itself off over the shower area. This has bugged me for quite some time now, so I gave it a pull and it peeled right off. I grabbed the other corner and peeled another piece off. Pretty soon, I was peeling wallpaper off our bathroom walls and when I was about 1/3 done, I thought I'd better let my husband know what I was doing. I finished peeling all the paper off last Friday and we went and bought drywall mud and spatula to smooth out the spots where it tore the drywall a little bit (very little of it tore), primer, ceiling paint and wall paint. We decided to go with the granite paint by Valspar at Lowe's and also purchased the little bag of glitter. Once the walls were primed, smoothed and dry we applied the first coat of the granite paint. It looked like crap and we were worried. The instructions had us using a 1.25" nap roller and it got a bit heavy. Anyway, the second coat was to be applied using a 4" brush using random X strokes. We did that and it looks absolutely beautiful! The color is called smokey quartz and it looks like a sandy beach - a very tranquil look. Oh, and it took us two gallons of that paint, so it was not an inexpensive job since each gallon cost $40 each, but it was worth the effort and expense. We also replaced the two strip light fixtures with new ones that are the "oil rubbed bronze" finish. They look great against the new paint finish. Now our next purchases will be to replaced the faucets in the sinks and tub and the handle cover in the shower that are all "gold" - very outdated. The shower stall is also trimmed in gold, but we'll have to wait on that expense since it will all need to be replaced. So, what I'm saying is I really do understand all the work you're doing. In the end you will have a sense of accomplishment because you did the work. And, if you find you have wallpaper that is not coming off easily, I found that hair conditioner worked in softening it. The paper has to be scored or torn away so it will soak into the underside of the paper, but it does work. I had a bottle of the leave-in conditioner by Infusium and put that into a spray bottle and sprayed it on and let it sit for a couple minutes. It really helped with those tough spots - which in my bathroom was along the corner behind the door.