wall stencils – EcoSalon

Amazing DIY Wall Decor Murals You Don’t Have to be an Artist to Create

Jen Wallace — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 08:00:30 +0000

Add DIY wall decor to create instant drama in any room.

Looking to add drama to your home decor? Consider creating DIY wall decor like wall murals. DIY murals can be an inexpensive way to add excitement to any room in your home. And if you think creating a mural is only the purview of established and accomplished artists, think again. While some projects might be better left up to the professionals, many diy wall decor ideas are simple enough for us regular folks to create.

9 DIY Wall Decor Murals for Inspiration

Before getting started, here are some tips for creating DIY wall decor murals for non-artists:

Make sure to clean your wall before getting started. You don’t want all your hard work to be for naught.
The pros make sure to gather all the necessary supplies before getting started.
Choose your project carefully. Not all mural projects are created equal and some might just be too difficult for inexperienced muralists. Make sure you don’t bite off more than you can accomplish with your skills and budget.
Even accomplished muralists use some technique to transfer their image onto the wall. Your two options are the grid method or using a projector. The grid method is more challenging and involves creating a grid on the wall and a grid on your image, which is used as a guide to freehand your image on the wall. The projector method is much simpler and a better choice for beginners. Projectors can be expensive to purchase, so your best bet is to try and borrow one. With this method, you can can use any type of projector to project your image onto the wall and trace the outline in pencil.
Besides painting, there are some other ways to create murals. For example, using creating an image using over-sized photo printing and creating a repeating pattern from washi tape are two alternative wall art ideas.
Finally, sometimes you don’t actually need to do the work of a mural to get the look of one. Consider using wall decals, which you can purchase at many do-it-yourself stores, on Etsy and from other online shops.

Related on EcoSalon

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11 (More!) Super Easy DIY Wall Art Ideas for the Creative Home

9 Stunning DIY Wall Art Projects That Won’t Break the Bank

Top Image: michellechristina

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Wall Stencils Are The New Paint: Where to Buy, How to DIY

Jen Wallace — Sat, 23 Nov 2013 08:08:04 +0000

In case you didn’t know, painted wall stenciling is the new paint—and the new wallpaper. Wall stencils are the latest rage in the home design world because it’s a fairly easy and inexpensive way to create custom wall treatments in your home.

And in case you are wondering just what wall stenciling is, it is what it sounds like—using a template or stencil to paint a design, pattern or words on walls. It’s a great way to create one-of-a-kind artistic wallpaper-like designs without having to be an artist or having to commit to wallpaper–just purchase the stencil you like, affix it the wall and paint away for a creative and unique space. Of course, using wall stencils are a little more complicated than that, but the guide below explains how it works.

Where to Buy Wall Stencils

First of all, where can one purchase wall stencils? They are pretty much available at all your home improvement stores, but one of our favorite place to look for wall stencils is on Etsy.

Two other great resources are:

Royal Design Studio

Cutting Edge Stencils

You just might get lost looking at all the unbelievable options on both of these sites!

How to Apply Wall Stencils

Image: Cutting Edge Stencils

There is somewhat of a learning curve to painting with stencils, but it’s not anything you wouldn’t be able to pick up quickly. Just don’t expect to be perfect with your first attempt, and give yourself some practice time.

Here are some great tutorials for how to paint using wall stencils:

How to Use Wall Stencils

Image: Cutting Edge Stencils

Painting with wall stencils allows for so much creativity and so many options, the sky is really the limit.

Stencil an accent wall.
Use stencils on your furniture (the seat bottom of a wooden chair, a headboard, etc.).
Create an all-over stenciled wall.
Add corner accents to a room.
Create a framed piece of artwork by stenciling a portion of your wall and adding a frame to it.
For something completely different stencil the ceiling OR the floor.

Top Image: Royal Design Studio

Related on EcoSalon:

DIY Creative Wallpaper Decorating Ideas: Wallpaper Everywhere But Walls

Color Trend in Home Decorating: Yellow is the New Black

The post Wall Stencils Are The New Paint: Where to Buy, How to DIY appeared first on EcoSalon.

12 DIY-Able Wall Stencils

K. Emily Bond — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 18:07:49 +0000

Wall stencils are all the rage right now, and why not? They’re 99.9% dummy proof.

If you’ve ever tried to DIY and failed miserably, applying a wall stencil is a sure fire way to give your crafty self an ego boost. Look at this woman, care of Cutting Edge Stencils.

That looks totally DIY-able, doesn’t it? From what I can tell, she:

1.) Purchased a set of stencils from people that actually know what they’re doing, i.e. Cutting Edge or Stencil 1. (To ensure success, splurge on the more expensive pre-cut ones. Otherwise you’re going to have to use an actual craft knife.)

2.) Applied a base color, patiently allowing it to dry overnight (FYI, impatience has felled every DIY project I’ve ever attempted.)

3.) Measured (like, with a ruler or tape measure, imagine that!) the wall to determine how many times the stencil should be repeated. Here’s another tip: don’t guess-timate. Try marking each spot with a pencil.

4.) Attached the stencil to the wall.

5.) Poured a small amount of paint – not all of it – into a saucer.

6.) Picked up a small roller and painted.

If you can master the six steps above, just imagine the possibilities. You could stencil yourself an aviary:

A harem straight out of Marrakech:

A butterfly zoo:

Perhaps even a real zoo, not that butterflies in and of themselves aren’t thrilling:

A disco for your baby:

A half-price chandelier:

A diner:

A coat rack:

You could even stencil a (bath)Room of Your Own: