My murals are generally scenery or botanical—I love being able to put a colorful "garden" in places where real plants can't grow. If you have utility boxes, tanks, sheds, or narrow walkways those are all great places for a botanical mural.
I generally use outdoor enamel for my murals as it is opaque, works well on a variety of surfaces, and the colors hold up well in harsh weather. For some surfaces I will do prep work first: getting old paint off with a wire brush or pressure washer, sanding, sealing, priming, etc.
Click on an image to view it full-size in the browser. Information on commissioning a mural is at the bottom of the page.
This mural is visible from the driveway, sidewalk, and street. There are real canna lilies growing in front of the wall, but they are very short and don't always bloom. I modeled my painted flowers off of them so that they will blend together, even if the existing flowers get taller.
The existing paint was in bad shape. I knocked it off with a pressure washer and wire brush before applying two coats of white cement sealer. The mural went quickly once the prep work was done. It looks quite real even from the sidewalk.
This mural was painted in a confined space. The bedroom window used to open to plain concrete, and the narrow walkway did not lend itself to other types of decoration. The bougainvillea, lavender, sage, and terracotta pottery are cohesive with the landscaping in the house's front yard.
Bougainvillea is a plant with lots of small details: small leaves, long thorns, and brightly-colored bracts each with three small, white flowers. This type of detail is ideal for viewing up close.
This was my first outdoor mural! It is on my parents' propane tank. The tank sits in a section of the yard with tough soil where real plants don't grow. It was a learning experience. The mural is viewed from far away, so the variegation within some of the flowers isn't noticeable. But the flowers are still bright enough to be seen from the house. They are cheerful pop of color year round.
Please e-mail me katielouart@icloud.com. Include as much of the following info as possible so that I can give you an accurate estimate:
I am located in Fallbrook, CA. My comfort zone is between Carlsbad and San Clemente along the I-5, and between Temecula and Escondido along the I-15. If you are farther away that's alright! There will be a cost for gas and travel depending on how many days the mural takes.
Most murals take multiple days. If your mural is fairly small and simple and your surface is already clean, prepped, and located in an area with good ventilation, then I may be able to complete work in one day. Simple murals are generally ones that will be viewed from a distance, as those benefit from clear, large shapes that aren't cluttered by lots of detail.
Complicating factors will make the mural take longer. In particular, any type of cleaning or pressure washing will need to dry thoroughly before painting can begin. Any primer, sealer, or base coat will also need to dry before more paint is applied on top of it. Sometimes it can take multiple days for surfaces to dry between steps. Rain can also prevent outdoor work, and the surface may require multiple days to dry afterwards before it is ready to paint.
It is best to have murals painted during warmer months, or when your schedule is flexible.