Making a good first impression with your church building also goes beyond the key areas we’ve discussed in recent blogs. Small details can make a good first impression with guests too. For example, here are some ideas for incorporating different wall coverings into your church design.
The Pros and Cons of Vinyl Wall Coverings
Obviously, paint is the most common wall finish—and we’ll cover that in a moment. But you could also consider vinyl wall covering, especially in children’s areas. You can see the theme created at Archbold Evangelical in the children’s corridor with printed vinyl wall covering. There are some considerations with vinyl, however. It will protect your walls, which is helpful. But it costs more than paint, and it is more expensive to replace. This means you’ll have to think about the cost you could incur down the road in replacing the vinyl or repairing the walls once the vinyl wallpaper is removed, so you can replace with paint.
Using Paint Colors to Make a Good First Impression in Your Church Building
Paint color schemes are often used to draw attention to certain areas of your church design. In this first image from the Dayspring Church café, you can see how the warm orange color draws your eye to the café itself with accents colors to create more interest. 
In this second photo from Dayspring, it’s clear that they’ve tied the two spaces together by using orange again for one of the walls in the fireside room.
In this third image, from Blue Grass Church, they’ve used paint to set off an alcove as if it were an entirely separate room. The photos in this image tell the story of the church’s history. This makes the alcove serve as part of their church vision for ministry—set aside just through the 
smart use of paint colors.
Incorporating Stone and Metal into Your Church Design
Finally, in this image from Grace Gathering, you see the use of natural elements like stone to create an accent area in a large room. There’s also a stone fireplace in the second Dayspring image above. In both cases, that natural element helps people feel connected and calm, which is helpful in getting guests to feel more comfortable in your church building.
Notice also in this Grace Gathering space that the top segment of the wall is covered with corrugated metal. You might think that would make a large room louder, but it’s an acoustic feature that is perforated, so it doesn’t cause an increase in sound levels. Instead, the metal allows the sound to go through it to be absorbed in the acoustic material behind it.
A few wall covering decisions can make a big difference in how a space appears to guests who are visiting your church building for the first time. Thoughtful incorporation of different types of wall coverings into your church design can enhance your church vision for ministry and makes a good first impression on guests. To learn more about how other aspects of church design can make a big difference, check out our free i3 webinar series.