Nursery Mural

 The director of Children's Ministries at my church asked if I'd be able to do a little somethin' on the wall of our newly remodeled nursery and I was like, "For the wee ones? Totally."





I've had this idea floating around in my head about painting muted patterns on walls and making it a viable option for people who want the intrigue of cool wallpaper without the hassle of wallpaper installation. It worked a while ago when I painted my studio bathroom with big free-hand Chrysanthemums, and I thought It'd be awesome for a nursery.

My dream wall print for a home nursery? Madeline. I think little girls walking around in uniforms and wide brimmed hats playing and getting into mischief would be awesome and I'm hoping I get the chance to do it some day.

For this one, I'd basically be copying the patterns used to make the curtains lining the room. Thankfully, it was really cute. Who knew a rendering of the 2nd plague of the Egyptians could look so cheerful!

I had a feeling that if I just slapped the frogs on the wall it'd run the risk of looking a little severe, and laying down sky might read wrong so I broke up the almond colored walls with a little bug print painted in a lighter cafe-au-lait color. It's muted, but noticeable and cheery.

Here's a few photos that show how the whole thing went down:

detail: beige on beige insect pattern

laying out the grass

here come the frogs

all the frogs are blocked out

how about some clouds!

adding color to the insects

detail: halfway there . . .

detail: center of mural

detail: left side of mural

detail: far left (we have a jumper!)

adding color to foreground

eyeless frogs

detail: almost done

detail: 3/4 done

detail: still needs outlining

this is more like it!

This is a happy little group

"I like the one that's praising Jesus!"

the pattern makes a difference, no?

view from the left

Just fishing, nbd . . .

I almost didn't do the dot flight patterns, but I'm glad I did!

Happy place!

I'm pretty sure a baby will never cry in here again.