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Easy "Old World" Ceiling Murals With Exciting New Stencils |
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Written by Victoria Larsen
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The "5th Wall" element is the long forgotten ceilings of our
homes. Look up to a great decorating surface and incorporate
your ceilings in to your decorating scheme to create an elegance
you never dreamed of.
With coffered and recessed tray ceilings being offered in more
and more newly built homes of today's markets, the interest in
ceiling decorating is booming with home owners now in search of
new and interesting ways to dress up these wonderfully
architectural areas and create interest and detail on plain
ceilings.
Even the most drab room suddenly becomes one of grandeur with a
ceiling mural. To have a professional create a ceiling mural for
you would cost literally thousands of dollars, but the average
home owner can now do it themselves with little expense and
absolutely no experience.
Painting the ceiling a different color is one thing and yes, it
does add interest, but take it a step further by using stencils
to replicate the overhead murals of fine homes and mansions.
New "perspective correct" stencils have hit the market that
allow the home owner to create mural elements such as trees,
columns, balustrades and even hanging grapes that literally
appear to be towering above you.
As easy to use as any other stencil design, these new stencils
are fashioned to be used on the ceiling rather than the wall and
consist of overlays that create authentic, "hand painted"
appearing designs.
Overlays are simply parts of the design cut in to different
stencils and very easy to use. The stencils are numbered as to
their order of use. The registration holes (found on all the
overlays) of the #1 stencil are traced on to the ceiling or wall
in erasable pencil. The first overlay is stenciled then removed.
The registration holes of the #2 stencil are lined up with the
pencil tracing which aligns the stencil perfectly. It is then
stenciled and removed. This procedure is followed with any
overlays required to complete the design.
Stencil adhesive sprays are inexpensive at your local craft
store and allow the stencil to stick to the ceiling without the
use of tape which makes it a breeze to stencil over your head.
I just finished a ceiling mural where I began by marking off a
15x8 foot rectangle in pencil on the ceiling. Of course, you can
make yours any size you choose. I then painted the inside of the
rectangle in pale blue to mimic the sky. I stenciled a ceiling
mural balustrade stencil around the inside edges of the
rectangle, repeating it partially around each side and opposite
corners. I then stenciled a ceiling mural urn stencil on top of
the balustrade which made it appear to be literally sitting on
the rail cap of the balustrade.
I couldn't believe how realistic the whole design seemed when I
was finished. I will later be stenciling vines coming from the
pot and winding down around the single balusters to finish the
design.
It is not necessary to completely fill a ceiling with designs to
get the effect of a mural. A single simple design such as the
balustrade, urn or even a single tree can be repeated in ways
that fill the space and create a unique mural.
For instance, use the balustrade to completely surround the
ceiling or repeat it only 3-4 times to create a "spot" ceiling
mural in one corner of the room.
As with any mural, more elements can be added at any time.
Murals are typically an on-going process that is a labor of love
done over time.
To find stencils for ceiling murals, simply search "Ceiling
Mural Stencil" on any of the search engine for sites that offer
these great new designs.
© Victoria Larsen 2007
About the Author:
Victoria Larsen is a professional wall stencil designer and
interior specialist. Her products and ideas have been featured
in Better Homes and Gardens, Women's Day, Craft Trends, Creating
Keepsakes, Rubber Stampin Retailer and Memory Maker magazines
and The Wall Street Journal. Visit Victoria on line at VictoriaLarsen.com
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