Hey you lot, hope you’re all good.
So as you may know, I love a good statement wall, especially a hand-painted mural, i love
the freedom of painting on the massive canvas of a wall creating something on a much bigger
scale than usual.
But sometimes it can get a bit fiddly, a bit overwhelming, translating a small image or
an original sketch into a much bigger size.
So i thought i’d share with you an easy way to create a stunning, impressive bit of
decor without having to exert your creative skills whatsoever.
So first of all, you’ll want to find an image that you want to use as your mural design.
I’m really keen on sticking to royalty free images because, as an artist myself, i hate
the thought of stealing someone else's creative content.
Not only can you get in quite a bit of trouble for it, but it's just not a decent thing to
do.
Thankfully there are tons of images and illustrations online that are royalty free.
I was recently contacted by Graphic Stock.com, who rather than charging for each individual
image like most stock image sites, they offer a monthly or yearly subscription service where
you have access to over something like 300,000 graphics, photos, vectors and illustrations
which I think they said was like the largest download library of its type online.
Now if you’re not sure if you wanna sign up, they do offer a 7 day free trial where
you can download up to 140 different images which i think is enough to get a feel of the
kind of service they offer and to get your hands on a few great bits and bobs for free.
So having had a look around, I decided to go for this pattern because i really thought
it would suit the area i was painting.
And I saved a couple of other images for future reference, i thought one of these bikes would
look nice in a hallway leaning up against a wall and a motivational quote would look
great blown up above my desk.
Now that I’ve got my image ready, its time to blow it up and make this projector.
Ive seen a few versions of this diy floating around youtube but this is the way that works
best for me.
So all you wanna do is Take a cardboard box and cut a square or rectangle out of it.
Don't forget to take your time and mind your fingers.
Next you’ll need some clear plastic.
You can use one of those clear envelopes that you use to organise folders to separate things
or like me you could use a sandwich or freezer bag.
Then you can either print out your image and trace it from the paper onto your plastic
with permanent marker or simply trace it directly from your screen.
Place your plastic sheet over the window you cut out of your box and pop a torch or your
phone inside.
I’m usually fine just balancing my phone against the back wall of the box , you could
also put things inside the box to lean your phone against.
Then all that's left to do is turn off the lights.
And there you have a super simple projector.
If you don’t have permission to paint on a wall, you could also use this for blowing
up a drawing onto a large canvas or even make a nice tapestry with it.
Now just line it up with your wall or canvas, adjusting how close and how far you are to
change the size, and if you're working outdoors like me, you'd obviously have to wait until
it's dark.
you may also need to rest your box on a chair or a table to get it to the right height.
Just experiment with positioning until you have things how you want.
Then the rest is simple, follow the lines projected onto the wall to map out your drawing
or painting and get started.
I usually use acrylic paint for wall designs because its got a bold colour and it's water-resistant.
If you’re working outside like me, you might want to finish up the next day with a varnish
or some kind of sealant to make sure your mural is gonna be durable enough to withstand
weather conditions.
And there you have it.
Don't forget I’ve left a link below to the graphic stock website if you want to try out
their 7 day free trial.
I hope you enjoyed this video, I hope you found it useful, thanks for watching and i’ll
see you next time!
Bye!