Look up!

OK, I have to admit, "one blustery day" (as "Pooh" would say) is enough!

My good friend Marsha (who is visiting from Omaha this week) and I are ready to find something fun to do on the other side of the door! According to the weather man things are looking up, so join me for a moment and let's "look up" too!

This tin ceiling is in the dining room of a home from the Grand Tour of Homes in Heath. It creates a cozy feel in an otherwise lofty room. In new construction today, the ceilings are getting higher and higher. I love the feeling of grandeur, however a dining room needs to be warm and inviting; an intimate place to share food and fellowship with family and friends. As decorators we accomplish this feeling of warmth and seclusion (in this case) by using a deep terracotta glaze over the tin. This color was used as the main accent color throughout the house.

The addition of carved molding spaced well below the crown molding and stained dark also helps to visually lower the ceiling. MEOW! You have a much more comfortable, cozy space that is enjoyable to be in.

So the only thing left to do is to set the table, invite over your best friend and "Excuse me, would you please pass the Grey Poupon!"


That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856

Hey Diddle Diddle

Brrr...It's can be so much fun to be frozen in occasionally! I did not post yesterday because we did not have Internet Service (due to the weather they say.) Being shut in the house is extra fun today, because my dear friend Marsha from Omaha is here visiting with me. We are doing all the "girl stuff" and we are also going to paint my guest room. Then I will get to share the pictures of our creation with you! Marsha is the artist that Murals & Design takes to assist with all the out of state murals.

If you refer to my post "Rooms to Grow", I mentioned that we do our share of "Hey Diddle Diddle", so the posted pictures today are an example of just that!

So off for some hot chocolate to sip as we create a cool room!


That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856

Shine on!

Contrary to popular belief, painting the focal wall different from the other three is OK. For a more monochromatic look like this bedroom, the base color on the focal wall was the same color. We used Sherwin Williams, Burlap in a satin finish.

The wall paper look was created by rolling metallic paint over an 18"x 18" stencil. Metallics are widely used for a lot of finishes. They can be used alone or mixed with wall paint or craft acrylics to create different looks.

The trick to using a stencil is to start in the middle of the wall. That way the corners of both sides of the wall will end with the same pattern. Also, something Murals & Design figured out the hard way is to use a water color pencil when marking the registration marks. They can be wiped away with a damp cloth and do not have to be retouched with the base paint!

Stenciling an entire wall is very labor intensive. This one took me two full days!

This bedroom is the master in one of the Grand Tour Of Homes that we did. Notice how the metallic is a nice contrast to the more rustic leather headboard. The metallic was brought out in some of the pillows in the bedding and carried to the mirror on the wall, then to the lamp on the opposing table. The flooring was a hand scraped wood in a dark stain also from Sherwin Williams in Jaccobean.

Don't be afraid to experiment with metallics. They can bring a glimmer to a Princess room, enhance a Contemporary, add a touch of class to a Traditional or some "bling" wherever you may need it.

So...shine on!

That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856

Reflections of you my Queen!

Ahh choo! Bless me! As you can probably tell, I am under the weather, but I still wanted to give you something to "reflect" upon today...

The pictures are of two bathrooms from the 2008 Grand Tour Of Homes in Heath that Murals & Design did in conjunction with Lee Interiors. I will be sharing many pictures from this tour in the future. We spent almost an entire year working on two of the four homes in the tour. Well, enough of that for now.

What's the first thing that we all do when we enter a bathroom? We look in the mirror. Some of us just glance and others stop to ask, "mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fairest of them all..." So, with that said, if you would like to make a small change, with a big impact, change the mirror!

The beautiful framing around these mirrors were done custom, (a service that Murals & Design offers) however, pre-made framed mirrors can be an option for those of us on a lesser budget. If you have two separate vanities in one bathroom, don't be afraid to add an oval frame with a rectangle. Create some interest and try not to be so "matchy, matchy" as we say!

So... who's the fairest of them all? "You, my Queen are the fairest of them all!"

That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856

The $2,400.00 chair!

This week, Lee and I have been working on Paislee Addison's room and it is looking quite scrumptious. I will post pictures once we are finished.

I don't claim to be the most colorful crayon in the box, but gee, this one takes the cake! Trying to find room in the budget to add a new chair to my living room, I paused when I came to the entry for A-1 Storage. Hmmmm... "what's in there that is so precious that I am paying $50.00 a month to store, and how long have I been doing this?" The answers are: some old camping gear, a tire for Rachel's Bug that we sold two years ago and two pink wing back chairs. The time frame is four years, times $50.00 per month and we come up with $2,400.00! Pick me up off of the floor! I could have a King Louis for that price!

Needless to say, the unit was closed and one of the chairs was shipped off to the wonderful upholsterer that Murals & Design uses. Notice in the picture how he was able to perfectly "book match" the pattern of the fabric on every part of the chair. The seat cushion can be turned over to reveal an ostrich quill leather seat for a different look.

Well, I am loving my new chair, but $2,400.00 worth? I don't think so, but when you add a precious "fur kid", the answer is, YES!

I had to add the second snapshot because I have two "fur kids" and would not want one to get jealous. Riley Jane (in the expensive chair) was named after my mother, and Riley's brother, in the fur collar, is Rubin James.

Now what else is in this budget that I am not aware of...


That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856

You CAN take it with you!

I know, the sentence in the title goes against all the we were taught and believe....but, Murals & Design has come up with a way to make that happen, at least when it comes to murals!

Have you heard the expression from your spouse "honey, we're moving again?" Are you a young couple living in an apartment, or a senior living in a retirement complex? You could even be a college student or a family who rents their home.

More than likely, all those who fall into the categories above have probably given up the thought of obtaining custom painted murals at this stage in their life. Most people who commission a mural from us have something in mind for the subject of the painting that is meaningful, specifically to them. Also, because of the investment made, they just can't bear the thought of leaving it behind.

Murals can be painted on canvas to be applied like wall paper then removed to take to Kalamazoo with you. The photo in this post is an example of another way that Murals & Design has created so you can "take it with you." We removed the beautiful picture frame doors and replaced them with smooth hollow core doors (very affordable) that we purchased from Home Depot. The original doors were stored in the attic and the new doors were painted with the precious daddy bunny, pushing his daughter on a swing, mural. Needless to say, after about a year in the nursery, the doors were loaded onto the moving van to make their trek from Arlington, Texas to St.Louis, Missouri.

This idea can also work for those of you who seem to stay in one place. When your child out grows the door mural, it could be stored and maybe handed down to a grandchild one day!


See, you CAN take it with you!



That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856

Change

Today we witness the Historic Inauguration of our new President. I am wondering how I, a decorator who finds change a challenging adventure, will be affected by the change that begins on this day?...

The photo is from the high school graduation sitting that we did with Jordan Horvath and the other is a snap shot done at Christmas in his uniform.

When Jordan was 10 years old, his mother and my dear friend of 23 years asked me to paint the United States flag flying proudly on his bed room wall with the inscription: "America, Land of the Free and Home of the Brave." Who would know that nine years later we would be waving goodbye as he left for boot camp with the United States Army to defend those very words.

"Aunt" Trudy has been privileged to be a part of Jordan's life from the day he was born. I made him the cutest little smocked knicker outfit when he was a toddler, and now he dons the uniform of a soldier.

Jordan will begin Air Borne training at Fort Benning soon. Our prayers and gratefulness will go with him.

So it seems that change, is life...


That's all for now but as always...


Have a colorful day!

Murals & Design
Trudy
972-814-5856