Big mural wall is DONE, here is how...

My "Ode to Peonies and Girly Stuff" is done.  This went so fast because of the fact I overscaled it.  Less branches that way... I would be here for a week if I went the traditional route.  I also like my tradition a bit funky, so bigger was better in my case...


Many of you asked for a tutorial, and I am going to try my best. 
Some painting skills are necessary here, but overconfidence can work too.
I am a big believer in mindset, and if you think you can do it you can.  Really!

So here goes.  Here was the before. Wallpaper.  I'm impatient, so I just painted right over it.
No primer either. Bad Danika, I know. I am not a good role model because I suck at following rules.
But guess what? It worked!

Next I sketched out a design.  Go google your inspiration if you need to.

Next I sketched it freehand on the wall. If you are anal, make a grid.
I filled the branches in with a pale gray... you can do brown, whatever floats your boat.

I outlined the branches in a darker gray, and I used a wiggly hand for this to make the bark look rough.



Then I added leaves with a medium green, and filled the flower shapes with a light pink or white...

Once you get this far it is time to add details.  To do flowers first fill entire area with light pink...
Next brush in a darker pink for shadows...

Using a very light pink, add highlights and define the petals.
I suggest using some images of peonies for this. 

Keep adding until you are done and you have left enough shadow to create definition...



Next for a bird...
Sketch it in and then fill with the main colors, don't worry about making it perfect. You just want to lay color in. You will add highlights and details later.

 Add lighter tones on top to pick out the details...
And finally use a fine brush and some black to outline final details...

Add a lighter green to the leaves for highlights and then some darker for veins.
I also outlined my flowers to tie them into the rest of the mural, and added a bit more dark pink to the peonies.


 That is the best I can do for a tutorial.  Hope it helps and inspires!
xo Danika


45 comments:

Dina @ Honey + Fitz said...

I can't even deal with the fact that you HAND PAINTED that. It looks like the funkiest wallpaper ever except it's totally original to your house. So jealous of your mad skillz.

Tammy@InStitches said...

Holy Moly, that's awesome. Mine would look nothing like that, you are much more talented !

court. said...

A-MAZING!!!!! fastest project ever!

jandjhome said...

You are one talented lady. I love how it brightened up your whole room.

Cassie Bustamante said...

love it! totally lightened and brightened he entire space!

Ashley said...

Perfection, really. You have an insane amount of talent, Danika.

Annie Loveridge Interiors said...

It absolutely inspires but nothing could help my two left hands! I like to think my talent is in my eye. Oh well...Danika, it's so beautiful and happy and pretty and perfect. Love it. Annie x.

FROM THE RIGHT BANK said...

So when will you be coming over to do one at my house? GREAT JOB, Dalika!!!

FROM THE RIGHT BANK said...

Danika, not Dalika, obviously. That's what happens when I try to type too fast.....

rouge said...

So THAT'S how to do it! Start with the outline and add the details later. That's the perfect tutorial because I feel I can actually DO this thing now! Inspirational? Defs. Thank you so much.

And your wall looks fabalicious. Dare I say, even better than the pink kitchen.
PP

http://pimpmybricks.wordpress.com/

Lauren@BaylorSays... said...

Sweet pajamas, that is impressive. You are some kind of creative!!

It also looks absolutely beautiful.

Anonymous said...

It's gorgeous! I love how easy you make it sound. I wouldn't even attempt a project like this. You have to be an artist to do something that good!

bluehydrangea said...

Girl, you need your own TV show!! If you could bottle some of your talent and energy I would buy!!

Michelle | Remy and Me. said...

Absolutely gorgeous! It's the "icing on the cake" for that view of your room!

Angie@Echoes of Laughter said...

Stunning work! Girl...you have unbelievable talent! The whole vignette is so lovely!! Angie xo

Anonymous said...

That is GORGEOUS!!! I need you to bring you to Sweden to paint a bunch of stuff at my house there. Floors, walls everything!! So beautiful!

Holly Gruszka said...

This is knock it out of the park, grand slam, WOW! It's beautiful - a job well done!!!

Anonymous said...

Your tutorial should have been - "Be An Awesome Artist" - period. I could never free hand a bird on the wall and not have it be a disaster.

Lily said...

WOW ! That looks seriously amazing !! Really love it.

xxLily
goldandgray.com

MaviDeniz said...

that came out great! i love wall murals :)

................. said...

Um, totally speechless. I mean, wow! You are one talented lady. Hope you dont mind but will definitely have to share this on my blog. Xx

Aimee said...

Are you kidding me? You have amazing skillz!!! Great job!

Amanda said...

holy moly woman! I totally thought that was wallpaper and was waiting to read a wallpaper tutorial! Oh my gosh! It is AMAZING!! seriously! Kuddos to you!

Leah said...

crazy good!! looks incredible. also loved your chairs yesterday! thanks for all of your inspiration.

KellyM said...

I love how you got all David Bromsted on your wall. It's nothing short of HOT SOUP! Really beautiful. You don't live near Seattle do you...I'd invite you over :)

tarheel said...

that is crazy good.

Titti @ Shoestring Pavilion said...

Absolutely gorgeous! Love the scale and also the hanging light fixture! Way to go, you!

Elizabeth said...

Are you kidding right now? I cannot believe this - it is so gorgeous. You are super talented!
-e (modern24seven.blogspot.com)

lemondropdreams said...

I am DYING!! That is unbelievable! SO SO GORGEOUS and I love how bright the room looks!

My Interior Life said...

I truly appreciate your tutorial, but there is no way on God's green earth I could make anything even close to this (even with a lot of wine and belief in myself!:). Sissy was right you need a show. And if you need someone's wall to makeover, I will gladly offer mine up as a test case!

Melissa said...

Danika!!!!......OMG! That wall is outrageous!!! OMG! You are so talented and the detail and tutorial are amazing!! Oh and BTW, I received the piece of GiGi that you sent to me. Thank you so much. It really helps for me to determine what size will work on my vintage piece. I think I am going to have to go the custom size route though. I will be in touch soon and again, thank you so much! Melissa

Laura/Hayestone/Design Share said...

This is amazingly gorgeous!! Beautiful in every way...scale,color,subject matter. Love it! I just have one question...why don't you paint the air register grill in the upper corner the same yellow as the walls? Just curious....
Thanks for the tutorial!
~Laura
www.hayestone.blogspot.com

Danika Herrick said...

Thanks everyone! If I didn't have kids I would totally run off and paint your walls!
Laura- The vents on my list, its just they're a bitch to paint and I drip paint all over them, and I'm lazy about the boring details... need to find matching spray paint I think ;)

Jennifer @ Belclaire House said...

Girl this is amazing! You have mayjah skillz!

Lisa @ Lisa Moves said...

You did this in less than 48 hours?? That is unfreakingbelievable. It looks amazing.

Your chiang mai dragon wall for a client inspired me to attempt my own on a 36x48 canvas. I have been working on it sporadically for two months now, and will likely work on it for another year at this rate. Sigh.

It looks amazing.

Anonymous said...

Amazing!!! I love it!

Brandi@ Flights of Whimsy said...

Sooo beautiful! I suck at painting so I don't think my mind could win on this one but I can sure appreciate the work that goes into it. Looks amazing!

pve design said...

Love that you did it all by your self! :)
bravo!
pve

CL Designs said...

Love this! The scale is awesome - makes it fresh. Can I make a suggestion? Paint the heater and the vent cover the same yellow so they blend in. Also, the cords under the console caught my attention - I usually tape them to the back of the table and run them down one of the legs so they don't show as much. You don't want anything to distract from that gorgeous wall!

CL Designs said...

cripes, didn't read all the other posts - you'll paint those vents some day right? that's what I always say too - I won't tell you how long mine have been unpainted!

Samantha said...

Fabulous. You need a TV show.

Unknown said...

OK Danika - you are totally ridiculous. But I love it. And I'm inspired. Do you repaint your wall for every season?

LindsB said...

are you for real? This wall is stunning, what a work of art!!!

Milla said...

I must say that I'm extremely inspired by this post. Now I don't know about the hand painting part, but I do have a handy tracer that I can light up on the wall. If my sis and I attempt this I might come back and show you, yet if it doesn't look as good maybe not lol. Either way you have a new follower.

http://designpardeux

Brandie said...

This is amazing! One of my fav and beyond talented prof. Taught me this painting technique for oil painting and my whole art world opened up wish i learned this in high school because it is the best way to paint in my opinion. Beautiful job i love it beyond words but you are very lucky the wall paper worked well for you as a drywall finisher i have to say you lucked out i wouldnt recommend that method as it can turn out badly! Im so glad it didnt bubble or peel or show the seams which happens when you paint over it. Once its painted over and looks awful pretty much all you can do is skim it and hope i know all to well!

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