CREATE MURALS

(Without Painting The Walls!)

When we bought our first home, I wanted to paint murals in our daughter's room. 

But my husband wasn't very excited about doing something so 'permanent'.  

Determined to create a mural effect, I came up with an alternative that I think worked out

better than any painted murals - in more ways than one!  I call this method...

  "Foam De-Core"™ 

All responsibility for any puns found on our website undeniably goes to my mother (not for making them up, but for handing down a gene that renders a person utterly incapable of passing up an opportunity to make them!). 

A butterfly painted by two children - each had a 'half' of their own. 

How is this different

from a traditional mural?

• ANYONE can do it!  You don't have to be a great artist to achieve great results.

• Inexpensive (foam core board and nontoxic paints are the main 'ingredients').

• Practical / Not Permanent - Change it, re-arrange it, move it to a new home or apartment (it can be taken down and put up in minutes - with minimal impact to walls, which is ideal for renters; when we moved, it took only twenty minutes to decorate our daughter's new room!).

• Versatile / Personal – choose any designs / words / sayings imaginable!  Update themes and designs as kids grow and interests change. 

• Recyclable - paper products can be recycled but, before you do that, see if another child might enjoy making use of your old themes in his/her room.  

• A bonding experience – a project you can do WITH your children (kids of all ages can decide on what to create and paint every piece themselves – our toddler finger painted all the leaves and then sponge painted the entire trunk of a tree that went from floor to ceiling – very rewarding!).

• Inspirational / Educational - inspire pride and self-esteem as kids learn to take their ideas from thought to end result.  Provides an opportunity for children to make personal and creative contributions to their space.  And, because the made it, they are far more likely to respect it and treat it well.

• Vibrant – It’s amazing to see it all ‘come together.’   An individual piece can have you fearing the worst, but, when a collection of children’s art all comes together on the walls, it takes on an amazing new life, all-at-once 3-D, bold, whimsical and full of energy!

HOW TO MAKE "FOAM-DE-CORE MURALS:

Supplies:

Foam Core Boards (quantity depends on project – big designs, like trees, are done in sections and take more)

Exact-o Knife with ‘snap off’ blades (blades seem to dull quickly so this is a great way to go)

Craft Paint (paints with a sheen look and wear great - but you can always spray varnish over other paints)

Spray Varnish (if using a craft paint that dries ‘hard’ or ‘dull’ looking)

Sponges, paintbrushes, fingers or whatever you want to use to apply paint.

Hammer and ‘Tack Nails’ (any hardware or even drug stores with hardware items)

How To:

Decide on a Theme.  I recommend asking your children (instead of simply generating ideas for them).  Children will surprise you and they get so much out of seeing their ideas come to life on the wall!  Ask them what they want to see when they wake up in the morning.  You may find it challenges your own creativity – some of my first thoughts were…what?  How can I do that?!!  And, sure enough, there was a way. 

Another great idea is to cut frames out of foam core and use them for your child’s artwork (see photo).  Children can paint the frames used for their very own art!  And some of my favorite art comes from those blotchy preschool paintings – you know the ones!  They take forever to dry and are a mix of thick areas of potent color and areas that have barely been grazed by a dry brush.  I find, if you pick an area of one of these and cut it out (like cropping a photo), you can come up with really fabulous works of art!

DRAW shapes and letters.  Once you decide on a theme, draw out the pieces you plan to cut out of the foam core (I draw right onto the board but if you’re not into free-hand, you can trace off anything you like, as well).  Note, if you want to do a large item, like a tree, you can cut the trunk in sections, making sure they ‘line up’ when you tack them onto the wall.  In our house, we not only cut out shapes but we also cut out letters – to spell, “Home Sweet Home” or a child’s name, for instance.  Below are a few pictures of things our children have painted for their spaces. 

PARENTS ONLY – cut the foam core.  This is the most difficult aspect.  Be really careful with the blade!!!  Don’t let your children try it at all – it’s thick board and even a gal like me (no stranger to Exacto knives and glue guns!) has had a few close calls.  DO NOT CUT TOWARD YOUR BODY!  I hate to admit I was this stupid…but I did manage to slice a two inch gash in the thigh of my favorite pants…thankfully, I missed tearing my thigh open!).  I cannot stress the safety on this task enough.  Beyond this, putting your blade in at an angle when going around curves seems to be easier.  Go slow, practice and you’ll find what works for you.  The rest of the project is easy as pie!

PAINT the shapes / letters.  Set the kids up at a craft table and let them go at it!  If they are small, use sponges and fingers – even babies can be involved!  And, if you’re the kind of person who tends toward perfection, this is a great opportunity / project to allow yourself to ‘let go’ and to give your kids the gift of painting without restrictions of staying in lines, not mixing colors, etc.  Don’t be alarmed if any given piece looks messy or strange.  I promise you, when it all goes up and is put together on the walls, it comes to life in a way that is nothing short of stunning!  So let go, have fun, get messy and enjoy the pride and self esteem you are inspiring in your children!

Varnish.  If you used paints that may chip off or look dry / flat, you may want to spray varnish the pieces in a well ventilated area, before you put them up on the wall.  Remember to wait until they don’t smell like varnish before decorating.

Tack the pieces to the wall.  With a hammer and a packet of small tack nails (you can find these just about anywhere - at local drug stores even), tack the pieces to the wall.  The nails I prefer to use have a flat head, about 1/8” in diameter.  They hold the work flush to the wall and can be removed without damaging the pieces, later. 

We hope you have as much fun decorating with your kids as we have! 

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All projects described on this website are for private, noncommercial use only.  No rights for commercial use are given or implied.