I recently painted this safari themed nursery mural in a Chicago Suburban home. The parents wanted lots of animals (and 2 golden-doodles!) so their little guy would have lots of things to look at and learn to identify. The challenge was to paint animals that were realistic but not 'scary'. I did this by using soft colors, rounded edges and subtle details. Painting realistic 'eyes' can make an animal look almost too realistic so I purposely kept it a little more whimsical.
I loved painting this 'tone on tone' (grisaille) mural! I completed the 12' mural in 2 1/2 days and used only a few colors. I also added a couple of birds and the client's 'cat' for a bit of whimsy.
To see more of my murals and find links to my Etsy shop, please visit my website:
www.CeroneDesigns.com
If you live in the Chicago area and would like a quote on a mural,
please email me ([email protected]) or call (1-630-841-1960)
To get the 'Old World' rustic look - I first applied a rough coat of aquastone. After that dried, I glazed the whole hood. I also glazed the wood trim piece at the bottom of the hood.
I then hand painted a design (that I created), drew that onto the hood then painted with a cream color (to match her cabinets).
Finally, I used a little of the glaze mix to 'age' the white paint.
As you can see, the hood now looks like it has been there for (hundreds of??) years!
To get a better idea of the 'transformation', here is a photo of the before and after.
If you live in the Chicagoland area and are interested in a quote on decorative faux finish or mural, please call or email me! You can find contact information (or more examples of my work) by clicking on the link to my website.
Call 630-841-1960 or email [email protected]
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If you are interested in trying to do this finish yourself - here are the step by step instructions:
Products - 1 Gallon Aquastone (crushed marble) by Faux Effects, 2 quarts of Benjamin Moore Regal Select Paint (one in the dark glaze color and one in the white cabinet color), 1 quart of glaze, trowels, plaster tray, large and small brushes, buckets with lids, rags and a dry towel and gloves.
Step 1. Mix just enough paint with the aquastone to color it. Make sure it is lighter than the glaze - so that you can see depth when you glaze it. Tape and cover cabinets with plastic.Trowel on the stone. This is probably the hardest part, as you want it to cover all but not be too thick. You also want it fairly smooth but with some texture areas. Remove all tape, carefully. Do not let the stone dry on the tape.
Step 2. After your troweled stone has dried (at least 24 hours) - re-tape and cover with plastic. This part is very messy!! Now spray the area with water (or use a wet rag to apply, which is what I did). Brush the glaze over entire area that you are working on (like left side of hood). Work quickly! Then use another brush to blend in and a DRY towel to blot off. Try to do this one time and not go back to touch up as you can get a 'burn' mark - where you actually remove the glaze. Do each area (left, front, right) separately and dab off extra glaze on edges as needed.
Step 3. After glaze has dried (24 hours or more) - you can draw your design and hand paint. I used a white watercolor pencil and drew very lightly.
I suggest always doing a sample board but keep in mind that it's always much harder to do a large surface than a sample board. So, have all your equipment ready and be ready to work fast.
The little guy that sleeps in this nursery, just loves jungle animals! Mom has done a fantastic job of creating a sweet, relaxing safari nursery. The nursery is done in soft grays with touches of blue. The nursery mural gives a few pops of color and gives the young resident a lot to look at!
We decided to do 3 'baby' animals. There is a cute baby owl, young monkey (looking into crib) and adorable giraffe - munching on leaves of tree.
Yes - I think all of us wine drinkers will agree - Wine IS poetry! Having grown up with an Italian father, who thought a little Chianti with dinner, would be be fine for a 10 year old - I remember him trying to order wine for me in an Italian restaurant and then arguing with the waitress - about how I was 16 years old and definitely old enough to drink wine.
He must have been upset that I never liked wine when I was young (and what 10 year old does??) but now that I've matured way beyond 10 - I really can't eat a dish of pasta without a nice glass of red wine. Plus, there's nothing better than a cold glass of Riesling, on a hot summer day.
Maybe because of my love of wine - I've designed several wine prints - available in my Etsy shop.
You can even have your own custom designed Wine Label Print - with your name, location & year! These make fabulous housewarming and holiday gifts for the wine lover in your family.
To see my Wine Label Art Prints or my other watercolor reproductions, click here to go to my Etsy Shop.
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If you need a really cool custom, Handmade Wine Rack - check out Adlite Creations! They have gorgeous wine racks - many in dark woods but also some that are totally different than the usual wine racks seen in stores! Many hold bottles and glasses and many that are long and narrow - to fit any space.
To see Adlite's creations, click here to go to their Etsy Shop.
My customer wanted to 'liven up' her long hallway - so I painted a Trompe L'oeil Window, with wrought iron shutters, at the end of hall!
Below, are two more window murals (with white windows and shutters) that I painted in the same home. This is a large wall that is directly opposite their sofa in living room. Customer is delighted that she has a beautiful view to look out onto!
I spent most of the month of June, in my garage, painting 5 doors! Each door features a different 'scene' from beautiful Grand Haven, Michigan. The doors are: The Wooded Dunes (with 5 black squirrels), The Boardwalk, The Beach, The Pier (with iconic lighthouses) and The Channel (with Coast Guard Ship).
The doors will be installed in an upstairs hallway of an absolutely gorgeous cottage - which is on the bluff of Lake Michigan in Grand Haven, overlooking the dunes, boardwalk and beach - and is walking distance to the lighthouses. To keep some symmetry between the doors, I painted 'dune grass' in the bottom panel of each door.
NEW! Wine Label Art - Personalized with all your information.
These custom fine art prints are perfect for your wine cellar, bar, family room - or make the perfect gift for your favorite wine lover!
All of my wine label art prints feature a 'reproduction' of one of my watercolor paintings. The 2 prints shown in this post - feature my contemporary red wine print and my new Napa Valley vineyard landscape.
To see my Wine Label Art Prints or my other watercolor reproductions, click here to go to my Etsy Shop.
After many requests for original watercolor paintings - you can now buy any of my Etsy children's prints as a hand painted original - which will be painted and signed by myself. The watercolors will come on 9x12" 140lb. Arches watercolor paper and the price is $125.
To order an original watercolor or just check out my original children's art prints
(including jungle and farm animals, Paris, London & more!) - click the link below:
How to Brew Beer & Useless Beer Trivia - Wall Art for the Beer Lover!
With a beer label that can be personalized with beer lover's name, their beer name and even a location and date! (If I have room for all of that on label.)
My newest print, available in my Etsy Shop! This fun beer print makes a perfect gift for the beer lover.
This is a fine art giclée, printed on 100% cotton rag paper - with archival inks (that last over 100 years). Please visit my Etsy store to order or just look around!
Chevron is a great idea for an awesome baby boy's nursery - that will grow with him! It will last for years and be a great backdrop for boy's name (in wooden letters) or art.
Following, are step by step directions - telling 'how to' I painted this Chevron wall.
The first step is to make a plan! You basically need to measure the length and height of the wall and divide it (as close as possible) to even squares. In my example above, I had 16/11" marks going across the top and 8/10.87" marks going down the length of wall. After I calculated this, I used a level to make little 'X's - marking off squares on the whole wall. This sounds harder than it is, so don't be overwhelmed! Once you make the marks across the top, you can draw a level line down (from each mark) and then draw a vertical line, from each mark you have made on side of wall. And, Voila - you have squares!!
HELPFUL HINT: Use a (gray toned) watercolor pencil to draw your lines. Draw lightly. If you are doing this on a background with 'eggshell' finish, the watercolor pencil marks should easily wipe off (with damp paper towel) once you are done.
The next step is the most time consuming. You must now tape off all chevron stripes. You will need an old credit card to smooth out and tighten tape and to make sharp, pointed corners. Remember, you must tape on the outside of every Chevron stripe. You also need to have a perfect point (see pic below).
Once the wall is completely taped - run your credit card over all tape, to tighten the tape as much as possible. Then, lightly brush one coat of paint (feathering the edges) along all paint lines. After this dries, use a small roller to roll inside of lines. Then, go back and repaint all edges with a brush and roll a second coat.
Remove tape as you go along - after completing second coat. Note, I always remove paint as quickly as possible! If you leave the paint on for hours, it may pull off your paint when you remove it.
Final Note: When you remove tape, you will probably have a few spots where the darker paint has bleed through. You can then take a small flat artists brush and touch up (using your wall's base paint). If you don't have a real steady hand. Just wait til the next day and use a little tape wherever you need to touch up.
Both the dining room and foyer, below, were given life - with a bit of metallic bronze/black paint and some creativity! I stenciled the dining room (which is directly adjacent to foyer) with a large 'damask' style stencil - matching light fixtures. Then, above the door in the foyer, I hand painted the word HOME - adding scrolls - with same metallic paint.
To add a pop of color and give life to the niche above fireplace in 'open concept' living space -
I painted colorful, contemporary poppies. The background is painted and texturized in khaki, olive, green, gold tones and white.
I stenciled this large kitchen, using the 'Anna' Damask design from Cutting Edge Stencils. By using soft (non-opaque) stenciling technique - with a 'blue on blue' color palette - the kitchen has a 'vintage' feel.
This large Damask stencil design was the perfect decorating solution for this newly remodeled kitchen in older Elmhurst home. However - it was not easy - or fast! It took me 4 full days but was well worth the effort.
White Sand Beaches, Palm Trees and Lucious Green Waters make this a master bath where the owner can soak in the tub and dream about her great vacation to Cozumel and Tulum, Mexico. Using my client's vacation photos, I created her dream bathroom. This tropical mural includes beach chairs, a thatched hut, a para sail, the Tulum ruins and (most importantly!) the iguana that approached her tour group.
Customers had a 'real door knob' on wall next to sink, that they use to hang a hand towel on occasion. I painted this knob to be part of the door mural.
This Wine Cellar Mural was painted in a private residence in St. Charles, Illinois.
Wine casks, wine bottles, a 'half full' wine glass and a burning candle - with stairs leading to ??
Makes you think that the wine cellar owner is having a glass of his favorite Merlot and just 'ran upstairs' to get a little cheese and bread!
I faux finished whole wine cellar (including ceiling) and added 'broken out stones' and green moss - to give the cellar and authentic, warm, 'Old World' feel.
Affordable Backsplash Idea
Installing real tile can be a real chore. However, I can paint a stone backsplash for you that will look so real even a 'tile guy' will think it's real!
For more 'painted' backsplash examples, check out the examples on my web site
I'm a watercolor artist - painting in my country home studio in Elburn, IL.
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